A powerful reminder to prioritise people over technology, HMRC’s payment plans for tax payers and current interest rates
Welcome to today’s blog featuring our round up of the latest business news for our clients. Please contact us if you want to talk about how these updates affect your business. We are here to support you!
Post Office Horizon scandal: A stark reminder to prioritise people over systems
The recent Post Office Horizon scandal, given further exposure by the related TV drama, provides a cautionary tale about the perils of overlooking the human impact of technology decisions.
The Post Office’s Horizon accounting system erroneously implicated postmasters in financial irregularities and led to severe consequences, including loss of reputation and even imprisonment, for innocent individuals.
These mistakes have underscored the importance of emphasising the human element in decision-making processes and the danger of relying too heavily on technology. This is a particularly pertinent reminder in view of the increased use of AI in business processes.
For business owners keen to avoid a similar pitfall, it would be prudent to give adequate thought to key questions such as:
- What safeguards and oversight mechanisms do we have in place to prevent unintended consequences that could harm individuals or communities?
- Before implementing new technologies or systems, have we done thorough due diligence to assess the potential consequences on individuals, customers, and employees?
- Do we conduct a reasonableness check before accepting a conclusion direct from a technology source?
- Are we so reliant on technology that we would not be able to tell whether a mistake has been made?
Looking at the ramifications and costs of the scandal, placing people at the forefront of decision-making processes is not just ethically sound but could be vital for the ongoing success and sustainability of the business.
HMRC approve tax bill payment plans for 44,800 taxpayers
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have announced that nearly 44,800 people have sorted their upcoming 31 January tax bill by setting up a payment plan.
HMRC provide the option of a monthly payment called Time to Pay (see link below). Provided taxpayers owe less than £30,000, they can use HMRC’s affordability checker for help to decide on what arrangement will work best for them.
This arrangement must be set up before 31 January to avoid facing a penalty. Interest will be applied to any outstanding balances from 1 February.
If you need help working out how to make your tax payment or to set up a payment arrangement, please call us and we will be happy to help!
See: https://www.gov.uk/difficulties-paying-hmrc/pay-in-instalments
Inflation up but interest rate cuts still expected
Inflation figures for December show a small increase to 4% from 3.9% in November.
Economists had expected inflation to fall slightly, but a 12.9% increase in prices for alcohol and tobacco were behind the rise.
Expectations for the Bank of England to cut the base rate later in the year remain though. Energy bills are predicted to drop in 2024 and inflation has fallen from its peak of 11.1% in October 2022 more quickly than the Bank predicted.
The Bank’s target is 2%, so December’s inflation figure of 4% is still double the target.
Deputy chief UK economist at Capital Economics, Ruth Gregory, has been quoted as saying that she expects inflation to have fallen below 2% by April and feels that interest rates could be cut by June.
The Bank of England’s base rate is currently 5.25%.
See: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-67993276
Consultation on proposals for a new threshold for businesses to be able to access the Energy Ombudsman
A UK government consultation is in process looking at introducing a new threshold for bringing cases to the Energy Ombudsman that will include small businesses.
Currently, most small businesses that have a dispute with their energy supplier are unable to access the Energy Ombudsman for help with dispute resolution.
The consultation proposes that there be a new small business definition that will expand access to businesses with:
- up to 50 employees; and
- less than £6.5 million annual turnover or £5 million balance sheet total; or
- annual electricity consumption of less than 500,000kWh; or
- annual gas consumption of less than 500,000kWh
The consultation proposals and details for how to respond are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/new-threshold-for-businesses-accessing-the-energy-ombudsman