HMRC has announced that it will pilot a new ‘seasonal model’ for its self-assessment helpline in an attempt to relieve pressure on its phone lines and prioritise urgent queries. The initiative, set to run for three months from 12th June 2023, will experiment with directing self-assessment queries from the helpline to HMRC’s digital services, which […]
The UK’s cost of keeping energy bills down for homes and businesses over the winter months added up to almost £40bn, the first official government total shows. The Treasury pegged the final cost of keeping a lid on the UK’s energy bills at £39.3bn between October 2022 and March 2023 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine […]
Britain remains on course to dodge a recession this year but growth will “flatline” as stubborn inflation and a tight jobs market continue to drag on the economy, according to the latest forecast from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). The lobby group has upgraded its growth prediction for 2023 to 0.3 per cent but […]
A guarantee from UK Export Finance (UKEF) has provided Northern Ireland-based bus manufacturer Wrightbus with £50 million in financing to support its ambitious exporting strategy. This Export Development Guarantee sees the UK’s export credit agency guarantee 80 percent of the loan from Barclays Bank. This financing builds on previous government support announced last year, helping […]
The cost of living crisis has hindered the online shopping sales boom with digital sales falling to their lowest levels since before the pandemic. The number of online sales fell by 3.3 per cent during May as punters, under the cosh, have had to cut down on the number of goods they buy from digital […]
Banks need better cooperation with SMEs to grow the economy as 70 per cent ofbusinesses have abandoned overseas expansion plans due to a lack of resources and support, according to industry experts at Money 20/20. Almost three quarters of business owners feel their banks provide ‘very limited’ support around international finances, revealed the SME Empowerment […]
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has spent over £90m on remote working technologies in the last three financial years, according to official figures. The data, obtained using Freedom of Information (FOI) legislation by the Parliament Street think tank, revealed that the taxman spent a total of £90,566,908 purchasing 187,427 devices, which include laptops, mobiles, tablet […]
Energy companies are under growing pressure to allow thousands of struggling businesses to change their gas and electricity contracts after two major suppliers agreed to cut rates that had been fixed at the height of the energy crisis. EDF has agreed to offer new deals to 15,000 small and medium businesses that are trapped in […]
Female entrepreneurs could add £250 billion to the UK economy with equal access to funding and right support, according to the Business and Trade Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities, Kemi Badenoch. This comes following the Government’s publishing of the third annual Investing in Women Code (IWC) report, revealing that the significant progress made in breaking down […]
The owners of the majority of UK businesses with a turnover of £5 million upwards are pursuing an exit strategy, according to new research. In a startling reflection of the uncertainty prevalent in the UK business environment, 65% of owners are looking to sell off their enterprises, with two in five planning to exit within […]