Taking control of your business
We were finally getting over the financial crisis when Covid struck. Russia’s war in Ukraine has not only meant human suffering – it has affected the entire global economy, driving up the cost of food and energy. It adds to the hardship for those on low incomes and means serious food security risks in the…
Read More
HM Revenue Customs thinks the solution lies in the use of online
HMRC Annual Report shows some important trends for business owners HMRC’s annual report was published last week, and it shows that they failed to meet many of their key customer services measures in 2022-23. Customer satisfaction dropped to 79% from 82% last year and telephone performance has also declined with an average wait of 16…
Read More
Why Cash Flow Management is Vital
Last week the Office for National Statistics (ONS) stated that the UK’s rate of inflation dropped to 7.9% in the year to June, which means the rate of price rises in the UK has slowed more than expected, down from 8.7% in May – although it still remains high. Falling fuel prices contributed to the…
Read More
What is a “Sustainable” business?
After some of the hottest temperatures seen on record last month we have been reminded about global warming and how small businesses could help the drive towards net zero. Smaller businesses have recently been affected by the pandemic, higher interest and inflation, and increased energy costs, so it is worth discussing the viability of a…
Read More
Protect Your Retirement Income
The Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates by half a point to 5 per cent last week, with increasing calls for tougher action to fight persistent high inflation. Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, said that the Bank thinks inflation – the rate at which prices are rising – will fall…
Read More
Challeging Times
Recently we have seen increasing interest rates, the largest monthly house price fall for nearly 14 years by 3.4%, and businesses and individuals paying the highest tax burden since the 1960’s. Times are likely to remain challenging for many businesses, however history shows us that that when things are difficult, genuine quality always rises to…
Read More
How high could interest rates rise?
Earlier this month the Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates for a 12th consecutive time as the rate of rising prices remains high. The Bank rate has gone up from 4.25% to 4.5%. The BOE has been under pressure to put rates up because it has a target to keep inflation at 2%, but…
Read More
Artificial Intelligence – Can it work for your business?
With the new wave of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, there’s an opportunity to automate many routine or administrative tasks and improve the overall efficiency of your business. One AI tool that has gained significant attention recently is ChatGPT. Developed by OpenAI, ChatGPT is an advanced language model that can understand and generate human-like text. This…
Read More
Recruitment tips in a changing environment
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the UK economy is predicted to shrink for the remainder of 2023 and then grow by only 1% in 2024. Interest rates continue to rise as pressure grows on the Bank Of England to call time on its aggressive monetary tightening campaign. There remains uncertainty in the Banking…
Read More
What Really Important
What’s really important? With the constant news surrounding the economy, interest rate uncertainty, and high inflation, its difficult not to worry about these issues and lose sight of what’s really important – the health and welfare of you and your loved ones. The issue we all face is a potent mix of inflation, recession, high…
Read More