HLAS

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have launched a new initiative, Asbestos: Your Duty. This initiative targets workplaces, schools and hospitals with the aim of safeguarding individuals from asbestos exposure. Asbestos is a hazardous substance that saw widespread use in post-war construction, prior to being completely banned in 1999. Sarah Albon, HSE’s chief executive said that “asbestos exposure in Great Britain is still the single greatest cause of work-related deaths due to exposures decades ago.” Workplaces such as offices and factories, schools, hospitals, and places of worship all come with a legal duty to manage asbestos. Therefore, business owners and [...]

A Code of Practice on cyber security governance has been published by the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology that is designed to help businesses better defend themselves from cyber threats. The more digital business life has become, the more cyber security issues have become an essential part of risk management for every business. Figures indicate that 32% of firms have experienced a cyber breach or attack in the last year, and ransomware attacks and malicious actors posing significant threats continue to rise. Even the NHS 111 service was taken offline recently by a cyber-attack. Because of its prevalence and [...]

HMRC released figures last week indicating that some 3.8 million tax returns were yet to be filed before the 31 January deadline. In total, they are expecting more than 12.1 million tax returns to be filed. With a week to go, they had received 8.3 million online returns, leaving a lot of activity for the final week. Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, encouraged anyone still to file that “now is the time to take action and get your return done.” Penalties for late filing and interest on tax owed provide additional incentives for doing as he urged. [...]

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, which received royal assent on October 26, 2023, gives Companies House the power to play a more substantial role in tackling economic crime. It is anticipated that the initial set of changes introduced by this transformative legislation will happen on or shortly after March 4. The changes are currently waiting for parliament to approve the secondary legislation. Key amendments include new rules for registered office addresses, additional powers to be able to query information and request supporting evidence and make stronger checks on company names, as well as the ability to share data [...]

The Department for Business and Trade are making changes that will ban dripped fees, make fake reviews illegal, and make sure that price labelling on supermarket shelves is clearer. These measures are part of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill that is currently progressing through Parliament. Dripped pricing refers to when an initial price is shown to a consumer, but additional fees are “dripped” into the checkout later in the buying process. These hidden fees will be outlawed under the new measures so that online shoppers are instead given a clear idea upfront of what they will pay. It [...]

In a busy week for cyber-related news, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), have released a warning that they anticipate global ransomware threats to rise with AI. They have published an assessment of the near-term impact of AI on the cyber threat. In it, they conclude that AI is already being used in malicious cyber activity and this will only increase. The report suggests that AI lowers the barrier of entry by effectively giving unskilled and novice cyber criminals and hackers access to skills that would otherwise take considerable time to develop. NCSC therefore anticipate an increase in the volume [...]

The government has pledged £500,000 of funding to help facilitate agreements that will allow UK professionals to qualify more easily to provide services in foreign countries. UK-qualified professionals, such as architects, lawyers or accountants, are often not qualified by their UK qualification to practise abroad. Therefore, anyone wishing to do so usually has to obtain further professional qualifications in foreign countries, which is slow and expensive. UK regulators and professional bodies will be able to apply for grants of up to £75,000, for each year that the grant is available, to enable them to make deals with their counterparts in [...]

Are you thinking about or in the process of applying to become a Community Interest Company? If so, Companies House are running a webinar that will help attendees fully understand how a Community Interest Company works. It will also provide some helpful tips for the application process. The Business Support Helpline will also be sharing in the webinar to explain the help they can offer you and your business. The webinar will run on Thursday 8th February 2024, starts at 11am and is scheduled to last an hour. To sign up, see: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1761272928126826587

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is providing a funded Cyber Essentials programme to help small businesses in certain sectors across the UK implement essential security controls. While all businesses face cyber threats, some that hold sensitive information or that are seen as an easy target can face increased risks. The focus of the funded programme is to help these additional risk businesses protect themselves. The Cyber Essentials programme covers how to control firewalls, secure settings, access controls, malware protection, and software updates. These controls can help a business protect itself from the most common types of cyber threat. The [...]

In recent weeks there has been a flurry of online activity discussing the new law that will require online marketplaces to report information about income made by their users to HMRC. The discussion has led to many people asking questions such as “Will I have to pay tax on the money I make from selling my old belongings on Vinted or eBay?” The key point to remember is that the rules for declaring income and paying tax on it have not changed. HMRC had the power to request information from online marketplaces anyway; from 1 January 2024 the new rules [...]