Family businesses face very specific challenges in their quest for growth and success. Here Grant Gordon identifies the potential obstacles and advises on how to overcome them.
The strengths of family businesses have been highlighted by a number of recent studies and include their tendency towards long-term thinking, a restrained attitude to debt, a genuine commitment to customer service and an unceasing entrepreneurial approach.
In the UK, according to the… Continue reading

Income tax and CGT for 2011/12 and beyond

In advance of the Budget there was much media excitement about whether the Chancellor would increase the tax-free personal allowance for 2011/12 by an extra £600 on top of the £1,000 increase we already knew about.

In the event, there will be no changes to the rates and thresholds for 2011/12 for income tax, National Insurance contributions and tax credits… Continue reading

Against a background of rising inflation, considerable public debt and borrowing requirements, George Osborne has stepped up to the plate today to confirm his changes to the UK tax system. Prior to the event we were advised that he would be confirming significant increases to personal allowances, taking steps to help with rising petrol prices and perhaps simplifying the tax system, in particular a possible merger of National Insurance and… Continue reading

Businesses are to see corporation tax slashed to 23% as the Chancellor pledged to make Britain more attractive and stop international firms quitting the UK.

The tax rate will be cut in April by two percentage points from its current 28%, rather than the 1% reduction previously announced, and will fall by 1% in each of the next three years.

The reduction will be offset by a… Continue reading

By Brian Milligan
Business reporter, BBC News

The average loss to

Paper VAT returns – time is nearly up!
Many businesses are sending VAT returns and payments by post even though it should be done electronically. What does the Taxman intend to do about this?
Failure stats. Recent official statistics show that around one-third of all businesses are still sending in their VAT returns on paper, despite the change in the rules in April 2010 which requires them to be submitted… Continue reading

PAYE – do it online or else!
From April many PAYE documents must be sent to the Taxman electronically. If you don’t do this, you’ll be fined. What’s the full story?
End of year forms. The deadline for submitting your 2010/11 end of year PAYE return Forms P35 and P14 is May 19. There’s no automatic extension to this deadline as there has been in past years. What’s more, you’ll… Continue reading