Summer Budget 8th July 2015

SUMMARY

Chancellor George Osborne has delivered the first Budget by a wholly Conservative government in almost 20 years. The March 2015 Budget provided some clues as to possible new measures and of course, the Conservative election manifesto contained a wide range of commitments to be introduced during the course of the current parliament.

The Chancellor said that this is a Budget for working families in a 'one-nation society'. In 'a big Budget for a country with big ambitions', he focused on how the government will continue with its deficit-reduction plans, whilst giving the promised support to 'hard-working families'. He said that whilst the deficit would be cut at the same pace as under the previous government, it would be a bold budget containing bold new measures.

As predicted, savings in welfare spending of around £12bn, and increases in revenue from tax avoidance and evasion to yield around £5bn made an early couple of headlines in the Chancellor's speech.

Budget March 2015

Summary

This was a forward-looking Budget, with much of the content based on the assumption that the current Government will pick up where it left off, after the General Election on 7 May 2015.

The sweeteners for voters include; a cut in duty on beer, cider and sprites, including whisky. The tax on road fuel is frozen, but the tax and NI charges for having the private use of a company car or van are set to increase above the levels which had already been predicted.

There are two changes to entrepreneurs' relief which take effect immediately, but those should not affect people who are selling significant stakes in their businesses.

For the future the Chancellor promised to increase the tax-free personal allowance up to £11,000 and introduce a new tax-free savings allowance of £1,000, but not until April 2016 at the earliest. Class 2 NIC is set to be combined with Class 4 NIC, which will be a simplification for the self-employed.

The promised abolition of annual tax returns to be replaced by an online tax account may sound attractive, but HMRC's track-record of mixing up figures submitted under RTI does not bode well for such an ambitious project.

We have organised the coverage below into future promises, which can only happen after the General Election, and immediate changes which take effect from 18 March 2015, or from April 2015.

This newsletter is a summary of the key tax points from the Budget, based on the documents released on 18 March 2015. It is possible that a different position will be shown by the draft legislation which is due to be published on 24 March 2015. We will keep you informed of any significant developments.

Weston Colour Run 2015

Weston Colour Run

Hillmans very own Simone Leigh-Willmore is taking part in this years 'Weston Colour Run 2015'. 

The fun-run  is North Somerset’s only colour run event where runners turn themselves from a blank canvas to a human kaleidoscope!  All in aid of Weston Hospicecare.

 

Please visit Simone's JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/Simone-Leigh-Willmore/ to make a donation.

Alternatively please visit http://www.hillmans.co.uk/weston-colour-run for further information.

eNews - March 2015

March's Tax Tips & News

Welcome to our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman.

If you need further assistance just let us know or you can send us a question for our Question and Answer Section.

We are committed to ensuring none of our clients pay a penny more in tax than is necessary and they receive useful tax and business advice and support throughout the year.

Please contact us for advice.

We're here to help!                 

March 2015 eNews Contents

· Salary, dividend or pension contribution?

· RTI penalties

· Child benefit claw-back

· Company cars

· March Questions and Answers

· March Key Tax Dates

eNews - February 2015

February's Tax Tips & News

Welcome to our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman.

If you need further assistance just let us know or you can send us a question for our Question and Answer Section.

We are committed to ensuring none of our clients pay a penny more in tax than is necessary and they receive useful tax and business advice and support throughout the year.

Please contact us for advice.

We're here to help!  

February 2015 eNews Contents

· VAT Benchmarking
· Supporting the Sick
· RTI Reports and Penalties
· Holiday Pay
· February Questions and Answers
· February Key Tax Dates

Have you paid your tax?

Have you paid your tax?

There’s only a few days left before the 31st January tax return deadline. If you haven’t yet paid your tax here is an easy guide to paying HMRC.

January Extended Opening Hours

As it's the last full weekend before the tax return deadline day (31st January), our office in Worle, Weston-super-Mare office will be OPEN on Saturday and Sunday between 10am and 4pm.

If you know anyone who has a tax problem and they use an accountant who is CLOSED this weekend, why not ask them to get in touch? We'd be happy to help.

Please give us a call on 01934 444100, or drop into to our office in Worle which is conveniently located just off Worle High Street.

Our office address is: 2 Laurel House, 1 Station Road, Worle, Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, BS22 6AR. 

The Best Small Shops Competition

Is your small business a shop? 

The All-Party Parliamentary Small Shops' Group is running a competition to find the UKs best small shops.

The competition is back after a period of four years and is sponsored this year by PayPoint.

The Best Small Shops Competition celebrates the economic powerhouse represented by small retailers in the UK economy.

The Best Small Shops Competition is administered by the Independent Retailers Confederation. The Competition has been designed to bring small retailers to the attention of parliamentarians and the local community.

Entries close at 4pm on 30th January 2015. Visit www.bestsmallshops.uk for more information.

Thanks Xero for the Chocolates

We received a lovely box of chocolates in the post this morning from our cloud accounting software provider Xero. A nice surprise to find in the post on the first day back.

The box sported Xero's company logo, but the chocolates themselves were even branded.

A really novel and innovative way of getting your brand out there, watch out for 'Hillmans chocolates' next Christmas!

eNews - January 2015

January's Tax Tips & News

Welcome to our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman.

If you need further assistance just let us know or you can send us a question for our Question and Answer Section.

We are committed to ensuring none of our clients pay a penny more in tax than is necessary and they receive useful tax and business advice and support throughout the year.

Please contact us for advice.

We're here to help!       

           

January 2015 eNews Contents

· VAT Moss new guidance

· Incorporation of a business

· Shared parental leave and pay

· Solicitors disclosure

· January Questions and Answers

· January Key Tax Dates