Managing risks to volunteers, latest HMRC tax webinar dates, exporting to the USA, trade negotiations with Turkey, net zero air travel and BAE Systems’ exponential increase in orders
Today’s blog covers a wide variety of topics affecting businesses across the UK. If you have queries regarding your tax affairs or accounts, please do get in touch, we’d love to hear from you!
Volunteering: guidance for employers on how to manage the risks
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has guidance on how to manage the risks to volunteers.
The guidance explains how health and safety law applies to volunteering.
There is also information on:
- when to report incidents involving volunteers; and
- including volunteers in your risk assessments.
The pages provide some specific advice for volunteers who manage non-domestic premises such as village and community halls, as well as guidance on charity retail and fundraising.
See: Volunteering: How to manage the risks – HSE
Latest HMRC tax webinars
Listed below are a number of live HMRC webinars that will give the self-employed an understanding of key taxes that affect them and also help employers with payroll. The webinars are free and last around an hour.
Webinars for the self-employed
Capital expenditure and revenue repairs (IFP1)
Tue 28 Nov at 1:45pm
Cash basis and property income allowance (IFP3)
Thu 30 Nov at 11:45am
VAT – the basics and the VAT return
Tue 12 Dec at 9:45am
Finance costs and travel expenses (IFP2)
Wed 29 Nov at 9:45am
VAT accounting schemes
Fri 1 Dec at 1:45pm
Mon 18 Dec at 9:45am
Car expenses for the self-employed
Wed 13 Dec at 9:45am
Capital allowances and vehicles
Wed 13 Dec at 11:45am
Business expenses for the self-employed
Thu 14 Dec at 11:45am
Employer webinars
Company directors – payroll and you
Tue 21 Nov at 1:45pm
Getting payroll information right
Mon 27 Nov at 9:45am
Expenses and benefits for your employees – travel
Tue 5 Dec at 11:45am
Expenses and benefits for your employees – company cars, vans, and fuel
Thu 7 Dec at 9:45am
Employer filing obligations
Wed 13 Dec at 1:45pm
Taxing employees’ benefits and expenses through your payroll
Thu 14 Dec at 9:45am
USA Export toolkit for smaller businesses
The Department for Business and Trade has launched a toolkit to help small businesses export to the USA.
The toolkit designed for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) looking to trade between the two countries. It helps SMEs find support in the UK from the Department for Business and Trade and other sources to help their business grow and export, particularly to the USA.
See: Export advice for SMEs doing business in the UK and overseas – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Call for input on new trade negotiations with Turkey
The Department for Business and Trade has launched a call for input on an updated free trade agreement (FTA) with Turkey.
The deal would replace the existing UK-Turkey FTA, which was rolled over from when the UK left the European Union but doesn’t cover key areas of the UK economy like services, digital, and data.
The consultation seeks input on:
- what you think about the UK’s current trading arrangements with Turkey;
- where the UK could make changes or improvements; and
- where you are facing challenges or constraints when attempting to trade with Turkey.
The UK government will use this information to help inform their approach for starting negotiations on a new FTA with Turkey in the future.
This is an opportunity for businesses, organisations and individuals to help shape and refine the UK’s negotiating aims ahead of the talks.
This call closes at 11:45pm on 5 January 2024.
See: Trade with Turkey: call for input – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
New programme helps British SMEs lead the way on net zero air travel
Cutting-edge British aerospace companies are set to benefit from a new multi-million pound SME Programme that will secure high-skilled jobs and help the UK lead the way on greener air travel.
The Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) SME Programme will offer UK-based small and medium-sized firms the chance to bid for a share of £10 million total funding per year towards their innovative research projects.
The Programme was announced by Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani at the ATI’s 2023 Conference in Birmingham. It will be delivered in partnership with the ATI and Innovate UK.
The new Programme will open to applications in February 2024 and aims to give SMEs the best opportunities possible to apply for funding to develop innovative technologies supporting the Government’s commitment to Jet Zero.
This is the plan to achieve net zero carbon emissions for commercial aircraft by 2050, while also keeping the UK’s aerospace industry competitive in the sustainable design, manufacture, assembly and operation of future aircraft.
The Programme will allow SMEs in the UK aerospace sector to bid for grants of up to £1.5 million each, helping to boost high-skilled jobs in the industry across the UK.
It also builds on the Government’s commitment to backing UK aerospace R&D to succeed, as demonstrated by the ATI Programme, for which government provided £685 million in 2022.
Support for organisations engaging with the SME Programme will be delivered by the ATI Hub. This will include sessions with ATI technologists, themed innovation workshops and guidance on preparing for a pitch-panel presentation.
The ATI Hub can also generate new connections between start-ups, SMEs, bigger and tier one organisations which could become consortia applications to the SME Programme.
BAE Systems sees a £10 billion rise in orders as global conflict continues
BAE Systems has reported a £10bn rise in orders since the end of June. The defence giant, which has bases across the UK, said in its latest trading update it is on track for a double-digit jump in annual earnings as countries increase military spending amid the conflict in Gaza and Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The group, upped its earnings guidance in August after orders soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, forecasting earnings per share would grow by 10% to 12% in 2023 and that sales would rise by between 5% and 7%.