Battle cry for strategic review of contracting sector
Contractors concerned about recent initiatives from HMRC may take heart that demands for fairer treatment may be starting to be heard. SNP’s Treasury spokesman, Roger Mullin, believes the Government misunderstands the world of work and how it has changed. He told the Commons: “I suspect that part of the problem is that the Government have misunderstood the needs of the modern labour market. People are no longer employed either in traditional ways or entirely self-employed in the way it is traditionally understood.” More...
Brexit: US contracting clients and ‘Brexposure’
Contractors working with US companies may face fallout from the Brexit vote. US-owned companies in the mining, oil and gas and financial sectors have all seen significant falls in share value, mainly due to uncertainty of what the move will bring. The effect on contactors may be too early to call, but JPMorgan Chase'sJamie Dimon has suggested that there may be an effect on hiring, and has said that the vote to leave the EU could threaten up to 4,000 jobs that support the bank's European business More...
Brexit uncertainty triggers immediate hiring and investment freeze
Contractors could be among those affected by plans for investment and hiring being scaled back according to a snap business reaction survey from the Institute of Directors.A third (32%) say hiring will continue at the same pace, but a quarter (24%) will put a freeze on recruitment, and 5% will make redundancies. Simon Walker, Director General of the Institute of Directors commented on the results: “Businesses will be busy working out how they are going to adapt and succeed after the referendum result. But we can’t sugar-coat this, many of our members are feeling anxious.” More...
Leading contracting clients to publish their tax strategy
Contractors concerned about their own tax affairs will be interested to see that HMRC is demanding that hiring businesses are more open about their tax strategies. According to new regulations aimed at countering tax evasion and avoidance, large companies will need to publish a tax strategy each year. The document must explain the business’s tax arrangements, although amounts of tax paid or commercially sensitive information need not be included. More...
No immediate post-Brexit emergency Budget, confirms Chancellor
Contractors concerned about the falling Pound and stock market volatility as a result of the Brexit vote may take some comfort from the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Chancellor George Osbourne has said the UK is ready to face the future "from a position of strength" and indicated there will be no immediate emergency Budget. He added there would still be a need to "adjust" the economy, but said “there will be no change to people's rights to travel and work and to the way our goods and services are traded or to the way our economy and financial system is regulated.” More...
Oil and gas contractors could find new contracts through switching sector
Contractors in the energy industry may find the downturn in the upstream sector – particularly oilfield services companies – can be avoided by going downstream. The downstream sector is faring better in terms of hiring and lower oil prices don’t have nearly as negative an impact on refining as they do on exploration and production and drilling. “We look at transitioning a lot of outplaced upstream workers to downstream because they have applicable industry experience,” explained James Kemper, president of executive placement firm W.H. Meanor & Associates. More...
Increasing oil and gas sector opportunities for IT contractors with mobility skills
IT contractors could be looking forward to growing opportunities in the oil and gas industries. Low energy commodity prices are forcing businesses in the sector to re-examine how they do business and many are turning to IT and mobility to help overcome them and increase operational efficiency. Apps, the Cloud, the Internet of Things are all cited as possible growth areas, with cloud-based mobile back end-as-a-service (MBaaS) of particular relevance. More...
Finance Bill 2016 continues to work its way through the Parliamentary process
Contractors concerned about their tax position are continuing to watch the progress of the Finance Bill 2016. The Finance Bill is the government’s vehicle for renewing annual taxes, delivering new tax proposals and maintaining administration of the tax system, and contains a number of measures which will affect how much their earnings contractors will be allowed to keep. More...
The draft version of HMRC’s online IR35 tool ‘nowhere near ready’
HMRC is currently proposing that clients, or the third party agency if there is one, will be responsible for testing whether the worker falls within IR35 – and is therefore subject to PAYE and NIC. They have also promised to provide new online IR35 interactive tool to allow the client or agency to perform this test by answering just a few questions. “This tool is nowhere near ready,” states Rebecca Cave, Consulting tax editor for Accountingweb.co.uk.More...
Contractors should continue to check they get best value from accountants
Some small accountancy firms will not have the qualifications or experience to offer the advice that many SMEs will need in the coming months, says Bobby Lane, partner at Accountants Shelley Stock Hutter. “Given the events of the past weekas we enter new territory our SMEs now more than ever need the support of their accountants. It is vital that all businesses surround themselves with advisers who can help them navigate, take advantage and deal with opportunities and threats as they arise.” More...