Philip Hammond

Will there be coronavirus help for small company directors who are paid by dividend?

The financial plight of limited company directors has been raised by the Tory chairman of the Treasury select committee. Mel Stride, a former Treasury minister, said chancellor Rishi Sunak needs to view company directors as a tranche of people who have ‘slipped through the net’ of all the other largesse…

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Autumn Budget 2018: Business rates cut for SMEs and new digital services tax

Chancellor Philip Hammond has confirmed plans to give smaller retailers a 33% cut to business rates and introduced a new digital services tax for companies with at least £500m in global revenue. The reduction in rates will take place over the next two years and is expected to save businesses…

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Retail sector ‘to face £186.45m business rates increase next April’

Retail firms will see business rates increase by £186.45 next April for the year 2019/20, according to real estate advisor Altus Group. September’s Consumer Prices Index (CPI) measure of inflation, announced on 17 October at 2.4% will determine business rate rises in England for the next year. It is its…

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Business rates could be changed to help retailers, says Greg Clark

Secretary of state for business Greg Clark has admitted that business rates could be changed in order to help high street retailers. Clark told a fringe event at the Conservative party conference that a change in business rates would be “one way” of recognising the role that high street retailers…

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Inflation rises to its highest level for six years

Inflation rose to 3.1% in the month of November, figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) have revealed. According to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI), this was up from the 3% level seen in October, and is its highest level since March 2012. More expensive recreational goods – namely…

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Online retail growth lower than average in pre-Black Friday lull

Despite showing a year-on-year growth of 12.6%, online retail sales figures in October were lower than average suggesting a pre-Black Friday lull. According to the latest figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, this was lower than both the average year-on-year growth rate of 14.3% for the last three…

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Budget 2017: Government unveils £300m business rate relief fund

The government has helped soften the blow of April’s business rate revaluation with a £300m relief fund for local councils. The announcement was made by chancellor Philip Hammond at today’s Spring Budget, in which he said business rates raise £25bn each year – all of which, by 2020, will be…

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New government cyber security centre opens

A new cyber security centre has been officially opened by the Queen today, in a bid to protect companies and the government from cyber attacks. The government’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) will use the new London office as its “operational nerve centre” in a bid to stop the growing threat…

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