06-07-2020
The new reality
It may be some time before we could state with some certainty that it was back to business as usual; usual being the business environment before the arrival of Coronavirus. What has changed? The major change has been the dampening of demand due to lock-down and other government interventions aimed at job retention and support for businesses Read more..

06-07-2020
What is working capital?
Accountants would say that working capital is the difference between current assets and current liabilities. It is the capital of a business used in day to day trading operations. Current assets are generally those that can be converted into cash reasonably quickly, money in your bank account. For example, stocks and work in progress, amounts due Read more..

01-07-2020
Updated HM Treasury instructions re: CJRS
On 26 June 2020, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak made a further (third) Treasury Direction under sections 71 and 76 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 concerning the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). There are a number of important changes to the way the revised scheme works that started to come into effect from 1 July 2020, the date that employers Read more..

01-07-2020
Government support for pubs, cafes and restaurants
The government has confirmed a further easing of lockdown as pubs, cafes, restaurants, hotels, hairdressers and cinemas have been given permission to reopen in England from 4 July. The launch date has been dubbed as Super Saturday. These changes will see a further move towards the reopening of certain businesses that can operate by following the Read more..

01-07-2020
Financial help for debt advisers
The government has announced that an extra £37.8 million will be made available to support debt advice providers during 2020-21. The distribution of the money will be overseen by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS). MaPS will set out the process for allocating funds in the coming weeks to charities for debt advice and to other money Read more..

01-07-2020
Reporting Capital Gains on residential property
The Capital Gains Tax (CGT) reporting and payment date for UK residents that sell a residential property changed from 6 April 2020. This change means that any CGT due on the sale of a residential property needs to be reported and a payment on account of any CGT due made within 30 days of the completion of the transaction. In practice, this change Read more..

01-07-2020
Vehicle MOT dates
The government has announced that mandatory MOT tests for car, motorcycle and van owners in England, Scotland and Wales are to be reintroduced from 1 August 2020. This means that all drivers whose vehicle is due for an MOT test from 1 August will be required to get a test certificate to continue driving their vehicle. The government is Read more..

01-07-2020
Trusts and CGT
A trust is an obligation that binds a trustee, an individual or a company to deal with the assets such as land, money and shares which form part of the trust. The person who places assets into a trust is known as a settlor and the trust benefits one or more beneficiaries. The trustees make decisions about how the assets in the trust are to be Read more..

01-07-2020
IHT exemption for gifts out of income
It is possible for wealthier taxpayers to take advantage of the IHT exemption for gifts and payments that are paid as normal expenditure out of income. This is a very flexible exemption from IHT as there are no specific requirements, for example, making fixed, regular gifts to the same person. With proper planning this can be a particularly useful Read more..

01-07-2020
Stock valued at net realisable value
One of the acceptable methods to value stock is at the lower of cost and net realisable value (NRV). NRV is broadly defined as the estimated selling price of an asset less any disposal costs. HMRC provides the following guidance in their Business Income Manual. The realisable value is the expected sale price of the relevant stock in the condition Read more..