Manifesto launched to give contractors greater European recognition
Contractors may gain greater recognition in Europe following the European Forum of Independent Professionals (EFIP) Manifesto for freelancing launch at the European Parliament in Brussels. The document calls for “proper recognition of the nine million independent professionals (iPros) now working across Europe and the vital and growing contribution they make to the European economy”. PCG director of policy and public affairs, Simon McVicker, says: “For too long policymakers have made traditional employees, small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and big business their focus, without asking what impact policies might have on iPros. It’s high time this vital way of working is included in the social conversation.” More...
Construction roles dominate contractor hiring during February
Construction and property roles dominated contractor hiring during February 2014, with a year-on-year increase in demand for construction workers of 81%. The latest Reed Job Index shows that most in demand are quantity surveyors, followed by site and project managers. “The Reed Job Index for February shows the extent to which a construction and property jobs boom is driving the recovery. New opportunities have tripled in the last four years,” says reed.co.uk chairman James Reed. More...
Contractors benefit from increased hiring across manufacturing, construction and services
Contractors are benefitting from increased hiring across the board, reports three February 2014 Markit/Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) UK Purchasing Managers’ Indices. Covering manufacturing, construction and services, they show strong growth has been sustained across the economy. In the services sector firms are facing capacity issues, and are hiring more contractors and employees to cope with demand. More...
IT and financial contractors to benefit from financial sector recovery
IT and financial contractors look set to benefit from a strong recovery across the UK’s financial sector during 2014. According to recruiter Hays, it is seeing “a marked recovery in recruitment trends in the UK financial sector”. Hays CEO Alistair Cox notes: “Rising confidence in the markets, growing M&A [mergers and acquisitions] activity and increasing trading revenues all point to a healthy outlook for recruitment trends in the UK financial sector.” More...
Contractor tax avoidance scheme proposals by HMRC go too far, says tax body
Proposals by HMRC to link together contractor tax avoidance schemes of a similar nature and force all scheme participants to pay tax immediately following an HMRC court or tribunal victory “go too far”, says the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT). “Handing HMRC almost unprecedented executive powers to decide who falls within the mischief they intend to deal with, without the usual safeguards and appeal rights, is not something which should be done lightly,” warns CIOT president Stephen Coleclough. “It should be regarded as an emergency measure to deal with a clearly defined set of cases and it should be time-limited.” More...
Top smartphone tax apps for umbrella and agency payroll contractors
Umbrella and agency payroll contractors seeking to manage their tax affairs on the go via their smartphone as the end of the 2013-2014 tax year approaches have a choice of free and paid-for apps to use. In a review by Michael Grothaus on knowyourmobile.com, five apps come under the spotlight, including HMRC’s own free tax calculator. Unfortunately, based on the reviews and unlike ContractorCalculator’s interactive online calculators, it looks like none of the apps will be of much use to limited company contractors, as most seem to focus on Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and employment. More...
Contractors may see pre-election tax cuts as part of the forthcoming Budget
Contractors could benefit from tax cuts in the 2014 Budget, suggested David Cameron in a speech to a Midlands audience. BBC News reports the prime minister as saying: “‘Every efficiency’ found could help to provide a ‘bit of extra cash’ for households”. The report goes on to say that, “Some senior Conservatives are calling for the 40% income tax rate threshold to be raised to £44,000 in the Budget to ease the burden on middle-class voters”, which would directly benefit many contractors. More...
Contractors told RTI is working – despite HMRC’s mistakes
Contractors have been told that, in spite of major errors such as incorrectly sending late filing alerts, HMRC’s Real Time Initiative (RTI) for Pay As You Earn (PAYE) income tax and National Insurance Contribution (NIC) payments is working. In an interview with AccountingWeb’s John Stokdyk, HMRC’s director general for personal tax, Ruth Owen, said: “I think RTI is working very well. We’ve now had 30 million submissions. We’ve got 99% of employer records being reported in real time. Our research is saying customers are getting used to it. Given the scale of the changes to PAYE, I think it is working.” More...
Contractor accountant offers support to contractors seeking to grow their business
Contractor accountant ClearSky can now offer subsidised financial advice for contractors seeking to grow their contracting businesses. The firm has joined a £30m government scheme, the Growth Voucher scheme, offering support worth up to £2,000 of matched funding to small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). “For us, the Growth Voucher scheme is an ideal project to be involved in,” explains ClearSky accounting director Daniel Mepham. “Small businesses are the engine room of the economy, and our philosophy is to help them get on and grow, so it’s a perfect fit.” More...