Insights

The Agriculture Bill having is having its second reading and debate in the House of Lords on 10 June and possible Royal Assent in due course.

Business Advisory experts James and Mark are back! Listen as they bounce around some impromptu views and ideas.

Business Advisory experts James and Mark are back! Listen as they bounce around some impromptu views and ideas.

The prospect for the future of farming looks, at best, somewhat cloudy at the moment. Faced with the proposed reduction in Basic Payments and the disruption caused by Coronavirus, many businesses will currently be looking at their landholdings with a view to tightening their belts (if they’re not doing so, they probably should be).

Listen to Business Advisory experts James and Mark as they bounce around some impromptu views and ideas.

HMRC have announced that the Extra Statutory Concession (ESC) which exempts employer provided living accommodation from being a taxable benefit when made available to a ‘representative occupier’, will be withdrawn from 6 April 2021.

Listen to Business Advisory experts James and Mark as they bounce around some impromptu views and ideas.

At the end of April the Insolvency Service issued the latest corporate and personal insolvency statistics for the quarter January 2020 - March 2020. The report shows that the total number of company insolvencies in Q1 2020 decreased by 8.5% from Q4 2019 and decreased by 8.5% from the same quarter in the previous year

A recording of our recent webinar is available to watch - join our experienced advisors and learn how as a leader you can steer yourself, your team and your business through these challenging times.

There has of course been a huge increase in employees working from home as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The employer may have closed their premises, or employees may be following advice to self-isolate.

We are pleased to announce that Larking Gowen has acted for the shareholders of Ortoo Technologies (“Ortoo”) on the sale of the company to The Key Support Services Limited (“The Key”) despite the added complexities brought by COVID-19 to corporate transactions.

A recent report from Mark-to-Market titled ‘April 2020 valuation barometer’ painted a positive picture in terms of deal volumes and values achieved across the UK mergers and acquisition markets (M&A) for the period 1 January to 31 March 2020 (Q1).

Whilst the Government has communicated the support available for businesses and the self-employed, for many, navigating the numerous assistance packages available can be a confusing and stressful experience.

Profits (and losses) for farm businesses are known to fluctuate quite substantially year on year for a number of reasons which are often beyond the control of the farmer.  

During the current crisis it is important that we can continue to receive and process your accounts documentation. This can be tricky whilst maintaining social distancing. To help we are currently offering all clients the use of an online application called Receipt Bank at no cost, until October 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic is touching all aspects of our lives. Even though the Government is providing comprehensive support through this difficult time, the personal financial circumstances of many will be dramatically affected by the crisis.

If you have previously dismissed claiming child benefit as your income is over the £60,000 per annum threshold, now is a good time to review your situation and maybe start to reclaim.

Many business owners will have been contemplating the sale of their business in 2020 and then along came COVID-19 and shattered their hopes and dreams.

When someone dies, their estate will still be liable for income tax and capital gains tax during the estate ‘administration period.’ This is the period during which the personal representatives apply for probate, collect in the deceased’s assets and pay their liabilities.

The level of disruption to the country’s way of life is unprecedented. The spring planting season has, however, continued apace and whilst the recent flooding is still very much in our memory, agriculture has never had a more important role to play. There is plenty of work to do in the field, but the legacy of the recent winter will continue to affect rural business’ financial positions.   

Despite having helped many businesses with cash flow management issues in the early 1990s and 2008 economic crashes, I think we’re now living in a period where the phrase “cash is king” has never been so true.

When the government recently introduced the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (or CBILS), offering to guarantee 80% of loans made by banks, there was much hope that this would make a real difference for desperate businesses looking to survive through this crisis. 

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen the Chancellor unveil an unprecedented number of financial measures to support those impacted by the Coronavirus. 

Last week, Rishi Sunak announced that self-employed people in the UK will be able to claim support worth 80% of their average monthly profits, in an “unprecedented” move to cover the impact of Covid-19.

Larking Gowen is to welcome two new partners, John Atkins and Louise Dean, who will be based at our Norwich and Colchester offices.

When somebody dies, their personal representative must pay the inheritance tax (IHT) due by the end of the sixth month after the death. So, if someone died on 1 January 2020, the inheritance tax would be due for payment on 31 July 2020.

Some of you may be wondering how the current crisis is affecting Probate. Here’s what we know. 

With the current pandemic impacting on cash flows, this is a timely reminder to all businesses that a tax relief exists that could really help you in these challenging times.

In these unprecedented times, cash flow is likely to become a hot topic and cause for concern for many. 

HMRC have issued new guidance on how the coronavirus will impact on the Statutory Residence Test (SRT).