HLAS

Innovation has generally been recognised as essential for value creation, both for individual companies and for the UK economy as a whole. The development of new ideas, processes and technologies and their flow across different sectors is a significant driver of economic growth and productivity. Recently, innovation has also been identified as crucial to the transition of the economy away from fossil fuels and carbon-intensive business activities. Many factors affect whether and how businesses innovate, for example, the availability of skills and capital and government policy measures such as tax incentives. However, none are more important than the company’s own [...]

The UK Government will end the special status of all retained EU law by 31 December 2023. Under the Brexit Freedoms Bill, all EU legislation will be either amended, repealed or replaced. Many EU laws kept on after Brexit were agreed as part of a compromise between 28 different EU member states and were duplicated into the UK’s statute books. All EU legislation will be amended, repealed, or replaced under the new Brexit Freedoms Bill introduced to Parliament last month, which will end the special legal status of all retained EU law by 2023 and give the UK the opportunity [...]

The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) will provide energy bill relief for non-domestic customers in Great Britain (Scotland, England and Wales). Discounts will be applied to energy usage initially between 1 October 2022 and 31 March 2023. This support will be applied automatically to all eligible bills by suppliers. You do not need to take action or apply to the scheme. The level of support for each organisation will vary depending on the type and date of the contract. You will find details of how you will get the reduction based on the type of contract you are on and several examples [...]

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has published tailored guidance designed to support retailers, hospitality providers and utility services in protecting themselves and their customers from the impact of cybercrime. The guidance is specifically designed for any organisation with an online presence, but particularly for: Organisations that employ online customer accounts. Organisations at risk of having their brand spoofed by malicious actors. The guidance recognises that passwords remain the default method of authentication for a huge range of services, both at work and at home. However, accounts authenticated by passwords alone are known to be vulnerable to attack and so, [...]

HMRC have recently updated their guidance to employers whose employees are working in the EU or Switzerland. If a worker leaves the UK to work in the EU or Switzerland they will only pay into one country’s social security scheme at a time. They will usually pay social security contributions in the country they are working in. Employers’ liability to pay social security contributions follows the liability of the employee concerned. The UK has social security agreements with the EU and Switzerland. National Insurance continues to be payable in the UK but not the other country if HMRC has issued [...]

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have a dedicated webpage for employers reminding them of the need to be extra cautious with the safety of young people. When you employ young people under the age of 18, you have the same responsibilities for their health, safety and welfare as you do for other workers. This applies whether they are: A worker On work experience An apprentice Young people are likely to be new to the workplace and therefore at a greater risk of injury in the first six months of a job, as they may be less aware of risks. [...]

The UK Government has a webpage with guidance to help businesses identify and prepare for the hazards and threats that may disrupt their operations. Being more prepared and resilient can give a competitive advantage to your business. The actions you take to make your business resilient will depend on your circumstances and the risks you are comfortable taking. Having assessed these, only you can decide how much time, and possibly money, you want to invest in increasing your resilience. The suggested actions below will get you started, ranging from a free ‘print-off and fill-in’ plan to more specialised training. Quick [...]

HMRC is urging their Self Assessment customers to be vigilant of fraudsters and scams asking for personal information or bank details. Self Assessment customers, who are starting to think about their annual tax returns for the 2021 to 2022 tax year, should guard against being targeted by fraudsters, warns HMRC. Fraudsters target customers when they know they are more likely to be in contact with HMRC, which is why businesses should be extra vigilant about this activity. There is a risk they could be taken in by scam texts, emails or calls either offering a refund or demanding unpaid tax, thinking [...]

Over the last few days, we have seen a gradual dismantling of the mini-budget of Friday 23 September 2022, along with the economic policies that Prime Minister Liz Truss based her leadership campaign on. On Friday 14th October, Ms Truss announced a change of Chancellor, from Kwasi Kwarteng to Jeremy Hunt. This was swiftly followed by a series of U-turns culminating in Mr Hunt delivering an ‘emergency statement’ on Monday 17th October.  This emergency statement effectively replaces and re-writes the mini-budget. Designed to ensure the UK’s economic stability and provide confidence in the Government's commitment to fiscal discipline, the emergency [...]

Businesses that use Royal Mail's services are urged to plan ahead as strike action is expected to take place this autumn. If you use Royal Mail to deliver your goods, you should be aware of planned industrial action that is due to take place on: Thursday 13 October 2022 Thursday 20 October 2022 Tuesday 25 October 2022 Monday 28 November 2022 There is also functional strike action planned which impacts parts of Royal Mail's operation on the following: Processing, Distribution, International, Collections, Admin: 3, 9, 15, 24 November and 1 December 2022 Delivery: 4, 10, 16, 25 November and 2 [...]