The new pension regulations, which will also have companies making a financial contribution to schemes, are expected to be brought in from next year. It will mean companies with 350 or more members of staff being affected from 2013, whilst smaller businesses will have to put the regulations in place from October 2014.
A new flexible private pension scheme, targeted at small businesses with 20 staff or fewer, may provide an alternative option for SMEs ready for when the new regulations are executed.
Launching this week, the scheme will cost highly paid employees the same to run as a government-backed scheme. The scheme, designed for high-earners by Towergate Financial and HSBC, will charge a 0.5 percent annual management charge for employees paying £300 a month into their pension. A wide range of attractive investment options and services will also be provided, including easier online access to information about their pension.
The scheme would work in the favour of small businesses, with a maximum charge on the group personal pension being 1 percent as there would be a set up fee and annual management fee.
Following the collapse in private pension provisions during the recession, research by the Department of Work and Pensions revealed that in a survey of 2,500 employers, 72 percent of private sector firms did not provide a pension for staff.
With the new regulations being put in place, it could be time that employers start to plan ahead and think about having the most financially sound pension scheme for their employees. With employers also being expected to make a financial contribution, it may also be the time to start looking at where best these financial contributions could be made.
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( 3 / 252 )Once upon a time, women looked forward to the equivalent of being rescued by a handsome prince, giving up work and living happily ever after. Allegedly. However, the reality, certainly over the last 30 or so years, has been quite different. These days women who marry and/or have children no longer give up their careers as a matter of course.
With Lord Davies’ report on equality in the Boardroom due out later this week, there has now been a poll conducted amongst almost 3,000 members of the Institute of Leadership and Management, which suggests that women have exchanged their glass slippers for a glass ceiling.
Over 70 percent of the women polled – and remember that these are already high achievers – believed that the glass ceiling is still a barrier to the top jobs, whereas fewer than 40 percent of men thought that it even exists.
One quick fix to the problem of diversity in the workplace, where a mere 12 percent of Directors in FTSE 100 companies are female, would be positive action, or quotas. However, Penny de Valk, Chief Executive of the Institute, has been quoted as saying that “although they drive compliance, they do not necessarily drive a commitment to the more fundamental changes that are required."
According to the poll, one of those changes might be in the way in which women perceive themselves as business leaders. Apparently a high percentage of the women polled felt that they lacked confidence and career ambition but, interestingly, more of them aspired to run their own business than achieving higher status within an organisation.
All of which might mean that women have actually come a long way from their glass slipper days. Modern women are apparently happier running their own show, with around a quarter of Directors of SMEs being female. The hero of the story might actually be a heroine.
For more information, please visit www.glazers.co.uk
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( 3 / 257 )There may be a hint of Spring in the air for the growth of the economy, with the launch of the government’s Business Growth Fund. The fund, chaired by Sir Nigel Rudd, will start investing in April in small companies with an annual turnover of between £10m and £100m.
The fund is backed by six of the UK’s leading banks and will put between £2m and £10m into each investment, taking an equity stake of no less than 10 percent and no more than 50. The team leading the fund is well qualified in this arena - working alongside Sir Nigel will be Stephen Welton, of CCMP Capital, who has just been named its new Chief Executive.
The fund has been set up as part of the government’s plans to re-boot the economy and it will target SMEs mainly outside London, working alongside the Regional Growth Fund (RGF).
Secretary of State for Business Vince Cable said: “This is great news for small businesses throughout the country who have been struggling to get the credit they need to grow. As we work to create a more balanced economy it is entirely right that the banks should play their part in helping small businesses throughout the country.”
Small businesses, which qualify, would be able to use the fund as an alternative to traditional bank loans and overdrafts, which Sir Nigel believes is the way forward. “For too long in this country small companies have relied on bank finance.” He said.
Small businesses are undoubtedly the way forward for the growth of the economy, as we have always been a nation of entrepreneurs and workers. Rather like plants, in the right environment and not smothered by legislation and bureaucracy, we can thrive. The addition of funding can only help fertilise the growth.
For more information, please visit www.glazers.co.uk
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( 3 / 190 )Many start-ups are unaware of the government’s new flagship national insurance concession meaning many up-and-coming businesses are paying far too much employers’ national insurance.
Official figures have revealed that only 1,500 new businesses had taken advantage of the new scheme, launched with an aim to rouse enterprise and employment. This is a minor figure, compared to the 250,000 new business bank accountants opened between July and November 2010.
When launched, it was estimated that 400,000 new businesses would benefit from the flagship concession at a cost to £940m to the Exchequer. The holiday relief is worth up to £50,000 for new businesses, which is applicable to a maximum of 10 staff during the first year. However, it seems that the lack of promotion behind the scheme has meant it has remained under the radar for the majority of new businesses.
Start-ups are now being encouraged by accountancy firms to claim for overpaid NICs via the HM Revenue & Customs’ website.
Many accountants have come forward to claim that the scheme was flawed as it was too targeted and specific, making it too difficult for businesses to qualify.
The scheme may be flawed but it could bring some much-needed financial benefits to new businesses and accountancy firms can only continue in giving advice and guidance.
For more information, please visit www.glazers.co.uk
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( 3 / 227 )Confusion over red tape regulations is rife amongst small businesses with many unable to clarify which regulation applies to their business, a new report claims.
The totality of regulations, in particular for small businesses, is complex. They will generally have to consider up to 60 regulations covering areas such as planning, employment and health and safety, which are all governed by multiple official bodies.
The report by National Audit Office (NAO) revealed that many businesses were breaching rules because it was unclear which regulation applied to their business.
Communication between government departments and businesses regarding the red tape they imposed was said to be insufficient and not effective. The Better Regulation Executive (BRE), a body set up to cut the amount of red tape businesses face, said they accepted that more communication was needed.
The total cost the regulations cost to businesses was not available from the NAO report but back in March the BRE estimated it to be £9.9bn over the coming year.
The Federation of Small Businesses remarked that they had problems dealing with regulation because of the constant “churn and change”.
The government have said they want to end ‘tick-box’ regulation and that BRE are getting underway in putting strategies into place to cut back on the cost of regulations to small businesses.
For more information, please visit www.glazers.co.uk
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