IT contractor opportunities to plug skills gaps in gaming and special effects
IT contractors could be the solution to meeting chronic skills shortages in the UK’s gaming and special effects sectors, following a report highlighting that too few graduates and students have the right entry level skills. According to the report, not only are students lacking core skills, but teachers and lecturers are also falling short. The report, “Independent Review of Skills for the UK video games and visual effects industries”, was commissioned by Culture Minister Ed Vaizey and published by NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts), More…
Contractors warned over offshore accounts – new penalties of up to 200%
Contractors with undeclared money offshore have been given a stark warning by HMRC that they risk penalties of up to 200% on the tax evaded. The penalties ‘for offshore non-compliance’ will be linked to the location of the offshore accounts and the transparency of the host country. That means contractors discovered by HMRC with cash stashed in accounts in territories that don’t share information with the UK will face the stiffest penalties.
Contractors escape the worst as HMRC ‘failed in its duty’
Although contractors were largely unaffected by the incorrect Pay As You Earn (PAYE) coding debacle, HMRC has been criticised by the Committee of Public Accounts (CPA) because it “has failed in its duty to process PAYE accurately and on time”. According to a new CPA report, HMRC knew that 7 million employees on PAYE had either overpaid or underpaid in the tax year 2008-2009, but because of “problems with the new computer system” it was not until September 2010 that it started informing taxpayers. The report says: “The flawed implementation of the [National Insurance and PAYE Service – NPS] in 2009-10 has resulted in lasting and costly losses for [HMRC] and caused unacceptable uncertainty and inconvenience to the taxpayer.” More…
Contractor demand online surges in all core disciplines, driven by private sector
Contractor demand online has increased across the IT, engineering, construction, finance, management and marketing sectors, according to January 2011’s Reed Job Index. The index’s main indicator, Employed Demand, is at a record high. “UK employers seem to be in job-creation mode ... with 13 per cent more jobs on offer now than 13 months ago,” says reed.co.uk MD Martin Warnes. “Employers right across the private sector are confident enough to recruit new staff.” More…
Contractors in manufacturing still experiencing growth, but construction and services lag behind
Contractors in manufacturing have enjoyed another month of record growth across the sector, with the January Markit/Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) reaching a record high. Activity across the services and construction sectors has picked up, with both the Construction and Services PMI’s reporting reversals of the slowed growth reported in December. However, both sectors continue to shed workers. More…
Government looking at new trading options for single-person contracting businesses
Contractors may have an alternative trading solution to forming a limited company, according to a review currently being undertaken by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Although it has been reticent in revealing details, BIS is seeking to reduce the regulatory burden for business by completing a “review of whether a new corporate form for single-person businesses could reduce costs for small entrepreneurs.” The department notes: “At present there are hundreds of thousands of limited companies that are owned and run by a single person, and that person has to comply with extensive rules designed to balance the interests of multiple shareholders and directors.” More…
New tribunal rules to benefit agency payroll and umbrella contractors
Agency payroll and umbrella company contractors will indirectly benefit from a new consultation on Employment Tribunals claims reform. According to the Association of Recruitment Consultancies (ARC), the reforms could significantly reduce the compliance costs for agencies and the likelihood of contractors being drawn into tribunal proceedings. New rules will also ease the regulatory burden and associated costs to umbrella contractors’ end-user clients when the Agency Workers Regulations come into force in October 2011. More…
Contractors with property portfolios hit by falling house prices
Contractors with property portfolios undergo yet another month of falling prices and asset values as the Nationwide House Price Index reveals a 0.1% fall in house prices. However, year on year the fall in values was 1.1%, and according to Nationwide’s Chief Economist Robert Gardner, the demand for homes has stabilised: “The property market entered 2011 with a whimper rather than a bang, with house prices edging down slightly in January,” says Gardner. “Prices fell by 0.1% month on month, leaving prices 1.1% lower than January 2010.”