Two technical amendments are to be made to the rules to corporate interest restriction (CIR) to ensure that it works as intended. CIR was introduced from 1 April 2017 under Finance (No 2) Act 2017. This was the UK’s response to Action 4 of the OECD’s BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) Action Plan. The...Read More

Housing co-operatives are to get relief from stamp duty land tax (SDLT) and annual tax on enveloped dwellings (ATED) when they acquire residential property. The change will have retrospective effect from 1 April 2020. The SDLT relief applies only in England and Northern Ireland, as Scotland and Wales have their own devolved taxes. [20.07/3]Read More

Changes are made to the enterprise management incentive (EMI) rules to ensure that taxpayers are not disadvantaged by a reduction in their working hours from being furloughed or otherwise prevented from working full hours because of coronavirus. One of the conditions is the working time requirement. This broadly requires the worker to spend the less...Read More

In July 2020, the Chancellor of the Exchequer was reported to be considering a new online sales tax to help reduce the tax differentials between online sites and shops. The Treasury has issued a call for evidence. [20.07/6]Read More

British households have suffered an average 4.5% reduction in incomes in May 2020 compared with monthly income before the March 2020 lockdown. This average reflects widespread differences, with many households better off as they save on such items as commuting costs and meals out. [20.07/3]Read More

Accounting firm Grant Thornton is facing legal action over its audit of cafe chain Patisserie Valerie which collapsed in 2019 because of an accounting fraud. Grant Thornton deny negligence. [20.07/3]Read More

Economic recovery from the coronavirus lockdown is expected in the second half of 2021, according to 49% of chief financial officers from large companies, most of whom are listed. This is according to a survey conducted by Deloitte in July 2020. [20.07/3]Read More

The UK government borrowed a record £127.9 billion in the three months to 30 June 2020, mainly to fund coronavirus-related schemes. This amount is more than twice the whole amount of £55.4 billion borrowed in 2019/20. [20.07/3]Read More

The backlog in issuing birth certificates has led to cancellation of holidays. A child can only be added to a parent’s parent if the child has a birth certificate. Councils have a backlog equal to 1,700 per council, according to The Times of 25 July 2020. The requirement to register a birth within 42 days...Read More

The number of workers on payrolls fell by 649,000 from March to June 2020, according to the Office of National Statistics. By the end of June, 2.6 million people were claiming jobseeker’s allowance or other work-related benefits. That figure is less than some commentators had feared because of the furlough scheme. The number of weekly...Read More