Financial IT contracting recovery underway in London’s financial sector
Financial IT contractors may be experiencing the first stages of a recovery in London’s financial district. According to February’s Morgan McKinley London Employment Monitor, the number of new City jobs rose by 11%. This is the second consecutive month that available new jobs have increased, although when compared to February 2012, there are still 15% fewer. The UK’s financial sector is the second largest consumer of IT contractor services, so its activity levels correlate to IT contractor demand. More...
Contractor demand remains positive during February, despite slowing growth
Contractor demand was sustained throughout February, although agency billings grew at the weakest rate since August 2012. Despite the fall in billings, February’s Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC)/KPMG Report on Jobs showed vacancies increased at the fastest rate for a quarter, suggesting that there are not enough suitably skilled contractors immediately available to fill assignments. More...
IT contracting turns a corner, led by increased budgets and confidence
IT contracting is turning a corner as clients’ budgets and confidence are increasing. This is the conclusion of research by recruiter ReThink Recruitment, which also shows that organisations are investing in IT upgrades across the board, and not just in ‘hot areas’. “Factors that tended to make IT directors cautious last year…have subsided,” explains ReThink Recruitment director Michael Bennett. “Businesses are now hoping to bring years of IT job cuts or headcount freezes to a close and are ready to invest in their IT departments again.” More...
Contractors facing tough choices over public sector contract opportunities
Contractors can expect a fresh wave of public sector contract opportunities, against which they must weigh up the threat of IR35, new office holder rules about to be implemented post-Budget 2013, and the off-payroll rules implemented in September 2012. The surge in public sector hiring has been flagged in the most recent Manpower Employment Outlook Survey. The survey confirms austerity has not gone away, but public sector clients have been ‘over-firing’, letting the most expensive, and therefore experienced, staff go, prompting the need to start hiring again. More...
Construction contractors can look forward to increased activity and new contracts
Construction contractors can look forward to a resurgence of activity and contracts in the commercial property sector in the coming months. Savilles Commercial Development Activity report for February shows that UK commercial activity, which includes offices, retail, industrial and refurbishment, has increased for the sixth successive month, and at the fastest rate for four. The report highlights that public sector new build, particularly in retail and leisure, is rising for the first time in three years.
Oil and gas contract opportunities to rise, driven by service company investment
Oil and gas contract opportunities in the North Sea are predicted to increase over the next two years, as 75% of oil and gas service firms confirm they plan to expand their workforce, and 90% are forecasting increased revenues. This is according to Ernst & Young’s UK Oilfield Services Industry Review, which also warns of an impending skills crisis, with over half of firms surveyed citing a lack of qualified personnel as the main factor limiting the growth of their organisations. More...
Renewed oil and gas sector confidence to benefit contractors in the sector
Oil and gas contractors look set to benefit from rising confidence in the UK’s oil and gas sector, which is likely to generate increased investments and contracts. Oil & Gas UK’s latest business confidence index shows an overall increase in industry confidence led by service providers in the sector, particularly in the marine and subsea subsectors. In a further boost to contractor prospects, Oil & Gas UK also warns of skills shortages that are likely to drive up contractor demand and rates.
Contractors will face a “not-quite-quite finished” HMRC website from April 2013
Contractors will be required to use the “simplistic, not-quite-yet-finished Gov.uk design template” from April 2013 as HMRC starts to migrate all of its web content into the ‘Inside Government’ web platform. HMRC told AccountingWeb’s Rachael Power that all of its content “would be switched to Gov.uk by March 2014”. Power warns contractors that they can expect some technical challenges in the coming months: “That timetable already looks overoptimistic, given that so little technical tax guidance has made the trip yet, let alone all the online filing systems and ‘customer’ portals,” she says. More...
Contractors with buy-to-let investments subject to fresh HMRC campaign
Contractors with property portfolios will be subject to a fresh campaign by HMRC targeting buy-to-let investors. This follows HMRC’s first successful campaign, launched in 2011. UHY Hacker Young head of tax Roy Maugham warns contractors with property portfolios that HMRC sees them as easy targets: “Clamping down on CGT [capital gains tax] avoidance has been fruitful for HMRC in the past, so it is not a surprise that they are refocusing their efforts on this sort of tax avoidance again this year.”
Contractors earning over £60k with children have until Easter to act on child benefit
Contractors with children and who earn over £60,000 only have until Thursday 28th March 2013 to stop their 2013/14 child benefit, or they potentially risk receiving a substantial tax bill from HMRC in the next tax year. Because of Easter’s timing this year, the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) is urging contractors to take action before the usual 5 April deadline.