Small businesses customers were being “woefully served” by energy suppliers
Following a major investigation into the energy market, to which the FPB contributed members’ experiences, Ofgem discovered that small businesses customers were being “woefully served” by energy suppliers. In response, they have introduced the following changes:
Greater protection for small businesses that make up the majority of commercial consumers
Limiting the automatic rollover of fixed-term contracts, which has resulted in businesses being locked, without being aware, into unfavourable long-term contracts
Prohibiting unjustified price differences between tariffs and payment types
Tougher rules governing marketing practices to prevent customers from being switched to higher-priced deals
Suppliers will be required to include key information on bills and produce annual statements to help customers compare tariffs.
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UK private businesses want a stable tax regime that supports and encourages growth
• Two thirds don’t believe the UK’s tax regime supports and encourages enterprise
• Less than 20% agree that government actions the concerns of private businesses
Only a third (33%) of private business owners surveyed believe that the UK’s tax regime supports and encourages enterprise, despite the wide range of tax reliefs available and measures introduced in the 2009 Budget, an Enterprising UK 2009 survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP has found.
A resounding 84% of private business leaders agree that a more effective voice within government would pave the way forward, supporting UK enterprise for the future.
Despite these concerns, almost all (99%) are seizing opportunities to support themselves through the recession, with 50% confirming that they have updated their respective strategic plans within the last three months.
Simplicity and stability of the UK’s tax system was top-of-mind, with a call for a reduction in uncertainty and the rate of change, up from 8% of respondents in 2006 to 17% in 2007 to reach 25% today.
Mary Monfries, head of UK private business, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, said:
“Private business is calling for a stable, certain tax environment in which to conduct their business successfully. Reducing tax rates would be a challenge in the current economic climate, but a reduction in the rate of change and uncertainty should be easier to deliver.
“Private businesses are not looking for a crutch from government – an overwhelming majority are taking active steps to help themselves in managing through the recession. However, they do want a more effective voice.”
Tax relief?
The findings show a mixed picture in awareness levels of the different tax reliefs available to UK private businesses and in some instances this awareness has declined since the survey was last published in 2007. Tax relief usage levels remain relatively low, although it needs to be remembered that a number of reliefs are targeted at specific problems so would not be expected to be relevant across a broad population.
The highest awareness levels of the 12 named schemes in the survey, known to more than eight in ten companies, were R&D tax credits, tax deductions for employee share scheme rewards and first year allowances for the acquisition of capital assets.
Environmental relief has a seen an increase in both awareness, up five percentage points to 67% (from 62% in 2007) and usage, rising six percentage points to 17% (from 11% in 2007). This demonstrates that private businesses in the UK are taking their role in environmental issues seriously, incorporating measures into their strategy.
Private business owners were candid in their attitude towards paying taxes, agreeing that it is their duty to pay their fair share of tax, but like any other cost to the business, will seek to reduce the size of the bill.
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New statistics show big improvements in Britain’s workplace safety and health record
Britain became a healthier and safer place to work last year, according to figures released today by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
Statistics show there has been a significant reduction in the numbers of people killed, injured or suffering work related ill-health from April 2008 to March 2009.
Across England, Scotland and Wales, 29.3 million working days (equivalent to 1.24 days per worker) were lost to injury and ill health last year – compared with 33.9 million in 2007/08.
Workplace fatal injuries fell from 233 in 2007/08 to a record low of 180 in 2008/09, and there was a reduction of more than 7,000 in the number of workplace injuries classified as serious or incurring more than three days absence from work.
Comparison with international data shows Britain to be one of the safest places to work in the EU.
via New statistics show big improvements in Britain’s workplace safety and health record.
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Manslaughter rules could ‘signal end’ for small firms
New guidelines recommend fining guilty firms a minimum of £500,000, irrespective of size
Fears have been raised that new sentencing guidelines for firms found guilty of corporate manslaughter could push small and medium-sized businesses under.
Under new guidance published this week by the Sentencing Guidelines Council, an earlier proposal that firms should be fined between 2.5% and 10% of turnover has been replaced by a recommendation that companies should be fined a minimum of £500,000, irrespective of their size.
via Manslaughter rules could ‘signal end’ for small firms – Building.
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Eligible employers can potentially access training support of up to £1,500
As of 6 April 2009, employers could receive £1,000 towards recruitment costs when they take on a jobseeker who has been out of work for over six months. A quarter of a million subsidies of this kind are currently available for employers. In some instances, the subsidy would be paid in two instalments of £500 – the first when the employee starts work and the second when they have been employed for 26 weeks. As part of the deal, eligible employers across England could also access training support typically around £1,500 for their employees through Train to Gain.
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Staff wasting 4m hours a day on commute
British workers are said to be wasting 4.6m hours a day commuting, according to research released by Citrix GoToMyPC.
Over 60% of workers want to reduce their commute, with the most popular solutions being though home working (34%) and varying start and finish times (22%).
However, of the 2,000 workers surveyed, 46% revealed that their employer will not allow them to work from home or work flexible hours.
“Bosses who insist that people all go to work at the same time and stick to a set routine are actually weakening their business. That’s because people generally don’t like being told how to run their life; they feel their boss is controlling them and therefore are actually less motivated,” said Graham Jones, Internet Psychologist.
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Swine flu putting strain on firms
Small businesses are facing mounting employee absences due to a rise in staff that are being hit with infections, according to data released by leading absence management provider Active Health Partners AHP. The AHPs data reveals that the incidence of absences due to infections including flu, swine flu, colds and viruses from July to September 2009 increased by 96% compared to between April and June. “It is clear to see that swine flu related absences are having an impact on businesses due to the number of working days lost. As the incidence of swine flu is widely expected to increase over the coming winter months, organisations should ensure they have contingency plans in place to ensure minimum disruption to their operations,” said Bruce Robinson, chief executive of AHP.
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Lloyds pledge support to 30,000 start-ups
Lloyds Banking Group has pledged to offer support to 30,000 start-up businesses over the next three years.
The bank – of which taxpayers own 43% – said its plans would help ‘viable’ businesses gain access to credit as the UK recovers from recession and give “clearer and fairer” prices under a small business charter.
Under the charter the bank said it would run a programme of 200 seminars to advise small firms, meet ‘reasonable’ requests for finance and help viable businesses through temporary difficulties.
The bank has also promised small business borrowing will not be switched from base rate to LIBOR and the bank will not change the terms of overdrafts as long as firms keep within agreed limits.
“Anything that increases that transparency and understanding is welcome because small and medium-sized enterprises can then work more closely with banks to change or further enhance their business and address any concerns,” said Russel Griggs, chairman of the CBI business group’s small business council.
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SMEs invited to live Apple webchat
SMEs invited to live Apple webchatSmall business owners have been invited to take part in a live webchat on the 2nd of December that discusses the benefits that Apple technology can bring to your business.The webchat is with James Stevenson, Managing Director of Virtual Aviation, who switched his company to the Mac platform. James explains how switching to a network of Macs has helped his company improve operational efficiency, share data with ease and even manage customer accounts and bookings remotely using the iPhone.”The integration between Apple products has been seamless. It allows us to get on with work and be as productive as possible. Theres no doubt that we run a more efficient operation now,” said James Stevenson. To take part in the live webchat please click below.
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BOE: ‘interest rates may rise’
Interest rates may be increased next year and quantitive easing (QE) could be removed, according to Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England.
The Bank of England’s Inflation Report predicted that Britain will recover faster than anticipated from the recession, but the economy is still fragile. The report said that GDP will grow by 4% in 2011 – forecasters had previously predicted just a 3% growth.
In the key set of three-monthly forecasts, the Bank said that if interest rates were left at their current historic low of 0.5% and the £200bn of QE left in place inflation would, within two years, be above its 2% target.
“The considerable stimulus from the past easing of monetary and fiscal policy and the depreciation of sterling should lead to a recovery in economic activity,” said Mervyn King.
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