General

The Bank of England has warned the UK faces a \”sharp economic slowdown\” this year as it raises interest rates to try to stem the pace of rising prices. Rates rose to 1% from 0.75%, their highest level since 2009 and the fourth consecutive increase since December. Inflation – the rate at which prices rise […]

The wait goes on for reform of the UK audit market. Although earmarked as a “priority”, there will be no draft bill in the forthcoming Queen’s Speech of the proposed regulatory changes that include a new watchdog, competition caps and shared audits. Government officials have briefed the media that the legislation has been dropped from

Government borrowing in the last financial year more than halved from the amount borrowed a year earlier when the UK saw major COVID-19 restrictions. Borrowing – the difference between spending and tax income – stood at £151.8bn, less than half the £317.6bn borrowed in 2020-21, figures showed. The government has had to borrow less since

A growing number of UK businesses are at risk of going under, as costs spiral and COVID-19 loan repayments come due, a report has found. Construction and hospitality are the sectors struggling most, according to insolvency firm Begbies Traynor. Loan repayment schedules should be extended to ease the pressure, it said. The government said it

The war in Ukraine is set to cause the \”largest commodity shock\” since the 1970s, the World Bank has warned. In a new forecast, it said disruption caused by the conflict would contribute to huge price rises for goods ranging from natural gas to wheat and cotton. The increase in prices \”is starting to have

The UK government’s newly unveiled shake-up of corporate transparency legislation and Companies House will disproportionately hinder the already struggling small business population, according to Sanjay Parmar, partner at Grunberg & Co. “The government’s whitepaper in connection with reforming Companies House will increase the amount of red tape for small businesses who, under the current economic

The burden of tax falling on workers and employers has increased as a hotly-debated rise in National Insurance payments takes effect. Employees, businesses and the self-employed will pay an extra 1.25p in the pound. The government says it will spend it on health and social care. Opposition MPs said it exacerbated cost of living pressures,

Women in the UK were paid just 90p for every £1 earned by a man, according to the latest figures released through the government’s gender pay gap reporting mechanism. Among those high-profile companies reporting particularly large gender gaps was easyJet. According to data filed by the company’s larger arm, Easyjet Airline Company, women’s median wage

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has set out measures aimed at combating soaring energy, food and fuel prices, in his Spring Statement. He cut fuel duty by 5p but resisted calls to scrap April\’s National Insurance rise of 1.25p in the pound. He warned the UK\’s post-pandemic recovery had been blown off course by the war in

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA ) has called on the government to empower regional leaders through devolved funding projects to grow innovation initiatives. It said this was one of the principle recommendations outlined in the new Higher Education Commission report, ‘Empowering Innovation: The Role of Universities in Boosting Regional Economies’. The report puts