Oil and gas contractors to underpin North Sea efficiency bid
Oil and gas contractors can play a major role as the UK’s oil and gas sector looks to make significant cost improvements to restore international competitiveness. This is according to Oil & Gas UK’s Economic Report 2015, which emphasises the requirement for the North Sea industry to cut costs by more than £2bn after production failed to justify a 9% increase in costs in 2014. ContractorCalculator CEO Dave Chaplin is optimistic that the current situation could benefit contractors, who offer a more cost-effective solution than permanent hires: “Contractors provide a low-risk solution which is ideally suited to this volatile market.” More...
Contractors gain Parliamentary representation following formation of new APPG
Contractors will once again have their voices heard in Parliament after it was announced that a new All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Self-Employment and Freelancing has been formed. The group will be chaired by contracting tsar David Morris MP, who was appointed as the UK’s first ‘self-employed ambassador’ on National Freelancers Day in 2014. “We can only hope that this new APPG, led by former small businessperson Morris, will both champion the cause of contracting and warn government against further attacks on the flexible workforce that can only damage the UK’s economic performance and global competitiveness,” highlights ContractorCalculator CEO Dave Chaplin. More...
Contractors urged to act swiftly over HMRC consultation
Contractors have been reminded that they have little time left to respond to HMRC’s Employment Intermediaries and Tax Relief for Travel and Subsistence consultation, and could risk losing tax relief on all travel and subsistence expenses. HMRC proposes using its narrowly defined Supervision, Direction and Control (SDC) test to determine which contractor expenses are eligible for tax relief. It is believed HMRC’s existing guidance on how the SDC test should be applied to other legislation is likely to scare-off contractors from claiming legitimate expenses. The deadline for feedback is 30 September 2015 and contractors can make their views known by e-mail to: consultation.intermediaries@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk More...
Contractors warned as HMRC launches new tax avoidance Spotlight
Contractors have been warned about the dangers of engaging in contractor loan schemes, after HMRC identified them as a prevalent and punishable form of tax avoidance. In the most recent addition to the taxman’s series of ‘Spotlight’ anti-tax-avoidance campaigns, HMRC identifies schemes which claim to offer contractors the opportunity to take home 80% to 90% of their income as ‘too good to be true’. HMRC warns that these schemes don’t work and advises users to withdraw immediately, but ContractorCalculator CEO Dave Chaplin is sceptical about its reasoning and believes HMRC is merely employing scare tactics: “How can [HMRC] possibly know this without testing each scheme in the courts?” More...
Construction contractors boosted by new committee
Contractors in the construction sector are to benefit from support in the form of the newly formed Construction Advisory Committee, the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed (IPSE) has announced. The committee will look to develop research and policy to support the 680,000 contractors in the construction sector who have concerns with the UK’s regulatory environment. “People working for themselves in the construction industry face a specific set of challenges, such as overcoming stereo-typical views, finding affordable training opportunities, and skills shortages,” notes IPSE Chief Executive Chris Bryce. More...
HMRC draws in record £1bn from APNs
Contractors have contributed to the record sum of £1bn that HMRC has so far collected in tax payments as a result of the introduction of Accelerated Payment Notices (APNs). HMRC brought in APNs in August 2014 to demand tax from contractors participating in tax avoidance schemes in advance of any legal challenge to the scheme, and since then more than 25,000 APNs have been issued, with £5.5bn expected to be raised by March 2020. “This first £1bn received in Accelerated Payments shows that we are turning the tables on those looking to avoid paying their fair share,” warns Financial Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke. More...
Construction contractors to enjoy spike in commercial activity
The outlook for contractors in the construction sector looks generally positive after UK commercial developers expressed optimism over the prospects for activity in the coming three months. This is according to Savills UK Development Activity Report for August 2015, which reports that activity growth is forecast to rise by 23.6%, the highest reading since January 2015. This comes in spite of the fact that August saw commercial activity growth slumping to 6.7% from 14.3% in July. “With the optimism index still expanding, a tick up in the activity index is expected for September,” highlights Simon Collett, head of building and project consultancy at Savills. More...
IT and financial contractors benefitting from buoyant market
IT and financial contractors in London’s financial sector continue to enjoy favourable prospects, compared with last year, according to Morgan McKinley’s London Employment Monitor for August 2015. Despite a decrease of 5% in job availability since July, figures revealed that available jobs throughout the month were up by 30% on August 2014. The strong yearly growth was reflected through a surge in applicants, with August witnessing a 105% increase in people seeking employment, year-on-year. “Overall, as the yearly numbers show, confidence remains positive for both employers and job seekers,” notes Morgan McKinley Financial Services Operations Director Hakan Enver. More...
Contractor numbers continue to climb, says ONS data
Self-employed contractor numbers continued their recovery in the three months to July from the 17-month low witnessed through March to May 2015 to reach 4.51million, according to the latest labour market data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Despite this, headcount was still down by 51,000 when compared with the same three-month period in 2014. IPSE chief executive Chris Bryce emphasised the requirement for the Government to contribute to sustaining the contractor workforce: “If the Government is serious in wanting to become Europe’s leading knowledge economy then it needs the country to have a competitive edge. Maintaining a vibrant and strong flexible workforce is the only way for this to happen.” More...
Australian contractors benefit from amendment of Unfair Contracts Bill
Contractors in Australia earning in excess of $100,000 per annum now have access to unfair contract protections after the Senate amended the Unfair Contracts Bill, reports contractor advocacy group Independent Contractors Australia (ICA). Contractors can now enjoy protections on earnings up to $300,000. Previously the annual earnings limit was set at $100,000, which the ICA opposed on the basis that it excluded many contractors working in sectors such as IT, finance and engineering, who occupy a significant portion of Australia’s contractor workforce. More...