Contractors who have been used to public sector working will need to learn private sector language if they become victims of the government spending cuts.
There is a North-South divide when it comes to hiring intentions, according to the latest quarterly survey of entrepreneurs conducted by RSM Tenon, the professional services firm.
Member companies of the REC met with the Office of Tax Simplification last week to discuss IR35. The REC was recently appointed to the OTS’ small business consultative committee. The head of public policy at the REC, Gillian Econopouly, said she was delighted that members had the opportunity to discuss IR35 directly with the OTS.
APSCo has just released a new online assessment tool to help recruiters benchmark the progress of their consultants, a move that could raise standards and benefit umbrella company contractors.
Umbrella company contractors might be unsurprised to hear that the Commons Treasury select committee has been told that HMRC is nearly at breaking point due to recent staffing cuts.
Pfizer, the world’s largest drugmaker, announced last week that it intends to shut down its Research and Development facility in Sandwich within the next 2 years.
Small businesses, including limited company contractors, could benefit if the Ministry of Defence rethinks the way it deals with SMEs, according to a new report by the FSB.
Contractors might be interested to learn that HMRC is going to impose penalties of up to 200% on individuals found guilty of tax and capital gains evasion.
Despite various blunders by HMRC last year that affected umbrella company contractors, the department still spent nearly £800,000 more on bonus payments to staff than it paid out the previous year.