SPRING BUDGET | MARCH 2020
Newly appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, delivered his first Budget on 11 March, against a backdrop of uncertainty following the COVID–19 outbreak and subsequent financial losses. It was the first of two Budgets to be delivered in 2020, with the second to follow in the autumn. COVID–19 AND THE NHS The Chancellor wasted no time in diving into the heart […]
Minimum wage apprenticeships – not plain sailing
A report out in January shows that around 20% of those on apprenticeship schemes are not being paid the National Minimum Wage (NMW), while apprenticeships themselves have fallen in number. The figures in the Apprenticeship Pay Survey from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) show the strange anomaly that correct levels of […]
Independent taxation: Jersey women no longer left behind
It may be hard to believe that there is still a part of the UK where wives must ask permission from their husbands to file independent tax returns. Welcome to Jersey. The Jersey States Assembly agreed to abolish the archaic rule in early February, reversing a situation whereby only one person in a couple is […]
Intestacy rule change favours spouses
The intestacy rules for England and Wales have been amended. The intestacy rules automatically apply to the distribution of estates where there is no will. There are three different sets of rules in the UK: one for England and Wales, a similar set for Northern Ireland and a wholly different set for Scotland. The rules […]
‘Time to pay’ arrangements get easier
For taxpayers who have trouble affording their tax bills, HRMC has updated its process for setting up time to pay arrangements. If you have missed the self-assessment filing deadline of 31 January, and are struggling to cover your tax payments, you can now set up a time to pay arrangement online with HMRC. The online […]
A Budget Day… at last
In early January the Chancellor announced a new Budget date: 11 March 2020. This could be a significant Budget. Traditionally, the first Budget of a new Parliament is when the Chancellor delivers the medicine of tax increases and/or unpopular reforms. To borrow from Macbeth: ‘If it were done when ‘tis done, then ‘twere well it […]
Lower your expectations…or not?
Every two years, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) recalculates its national population projections (NPP). As part of the exercise, the ONS reviews and updates its assumptions about future mortality, which in turn will have an impact on population size. The latest figures, released in early December, show a fall in life expectancies from those […]
Call you back – new HMRC guidance on taxing mobiles
If you’ve received a new mobile phone from your employer for the new year, new guidance from HMRC on the taxation of the device may be useful. As increasing numbers of employees are using phones provided by their workplace, differentiating between business and personal use can become tricky. Where more than one device is used, […]
New year, new government
How will the new government affect your financial planning? December’s general election delivered a Conservative government with the sort of majority which consigns the knife-edge parliamentary battles of recent years to the past. So, what will the new government do, apart from “get Brexit done”? A look at the Conservative manifesto, easily the shortest […]
Self-assessment comes calling again
Not everyone enjoys the holiday season, but for some it creates a useful breathing space. For some Christmas Day presented the opportunity to submit their self-assessment tax return. It happens every year – the countdown to the end of January. Many of us make pre-new year’s resolutions to get our self-assessment forms done early. However, […]
