Business &amp; Accountancy Daily

Image for kingston smith reports 13 revenue growth

Business | Kingston Smith reports 13% revenue growth

Kingston Smith has posted a 13.4% hike in revenues coupled with a similar rise in profits for the year ended 30 April 2018, which the firm said represented largely organic growth driven by investment in people and technology

21 Dec 2018

Image for mackay accounting black holes and hands till

Finance | Mackay: accounting black holes and hands in the till

With a spate of accounting scandals blighting listed companies, Clare Mackay, associate at SA Law LLP considers ways to take action against a fraudulent director and the legal options from personal claims to s463 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000

21 Dec 2018

Image for 64 uk workers risk gdpr penalties

Business | 64% of UK workers risk GDPR penalties

A survey of UK workers reveals that a majority have forwarded a customer email to their personal account, violating the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and potentially incurring large fines for their employer

21 Dec 2018

HR | People in the news: KPMG, Andersen Tax, PD Tax Consultants

This week's news of professional moves in the sector includes the appointment of a technology, media and telecoms head and chair at KPMG, three partners have joined Andersen Tax in the UK, PD Tax Consultants recruits a graduate tax consultant

21 Dec 2018

Careers

Image for pwc secures additional ps50m mg rover creditors

Business | PwC secures additional £50m for MG Rover creditors

Liquidators at PwC have announced a Christmas present for unsecured creditors of MG Rover Group Ltd, including former employees, who are in line for a share of a further £50.9m distribution, more than a decade after car production group collapsed into administration

21 Dec 2018

Restructuring & Insolvency

Accountancy Firms

Image for rsm replaces grant thornton patisserie valerie auditor

| RSM replaces Grant Thornton as Patisserie Valerie auditor

The parent company of high street cake chain Patisserie Valerie, which has been plunged into financial difficulties following the discovery of accounting irregularities, has announced it intends to appoint RSM as its auditor, replacing Grant Thornton

21 Dec 2018

Business | Bad financial decisions cost firms 3% of profits

Poor financial decision-making processes mean bad decisions by mid-level managers are costing firms more than 3% of profits, and CFOs must do more to ensure they offer better support for specific types of business decisions, according to research from Gartner

21 Dec 2018

Accountancy Firms

20 Dec 2018

Image for cullinane hmrc power grab step too far

Tax | Cullinane: HMRC power grab is a step too far

The House of Lords economic affairs committee is right to call for a new review of HMRC powers as the tax authority over-reaches itself with spurious tribunals and exhaustive investigations, not to mention the introduction of a 12-year time limit set out in Finance Bill 2018-19, says John Cullinane CTA, tax policy director at the Chartered Institute of Taxation

20 Dec 2018

Finance | Grunberg: three ghosts haunt audit market this Christmas

David Grunberg, founding partner of Grunberg & Co, mulls over the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) review of the audit market and suggests that a change of heart over consultancy might be needed from the Big Four

20 Dec 2018

Finance | Swabey: CMA review fails to address underlying problem with audit

The Competition and Markets Authority’s initial report on reforming the UK audit market ignores auditor independence and risks putting the cart before the horse, argues Peter Swabey, policy and research director at ICSA: The Governance Institute

20 Dec 2018

Auditing

Corporate Governance

Image for hmrc revises guidance tax treatment cryptocurrencies

Tax | HMRC revises guidance on tax treatment of cryptocurrencies

HMRC has listened to public concerns and published revised guidance setting out the tax authority’s approach to taxing individuals who buy and sell cryptocurrencies confirming that capital gains tax (CGT), income tax and national insurance contributions may apply

20 Dec 2018

Tax | Finance Bill delayed until 2019

Political divisions and extensive debate of the government’s Brexit deal mean that Finance Bill 2018-19 (FB 2018-19) failed to pass beyond the committee stage before the parliamentary Christmas recess and will remain without royal assent until the new year

20 Dec 2018

Finance | Accounting filing deadlines: Dec 2018 - Jan 2019

The key accounting deadlines from accounts for period ending 31 March 2018 to implementation of a raft of amendments SORPs following FRS 102 triennial review, effective date of IFRS 16 Leases and revised guidance on the strategic report requirements

20 Dec 2018

Business | BDO and Moore Stephens exchange contracts

The mid-tier firms have formally exchanged contracts, confirming a merger that will create a business with an estimated UK revenue of £590m, overtaking Grant Thornton to become the fifth-largest firm in the country

20 Dec 2018

Accountancy Firms

Careers

Image for litrg urges workers not ignore loan charge settlement

Tax | LITRG urges workers not to ignore loan charge settlement

With time running out for taxpayers to settle with HMRC before the loan charge applies on 5 April 2019, the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) is concerned that low paid workers who received payments in the form of loans are being put off contacting HMRC

20 Dec 2018

| Labour policy report calls for state-backed audit body

A Labour party report on the ‘dysfunctional’ audit market has recommended that audit firms should be banned from selling any non-audit services to clients, and recommends the creation of a state-backed audit body for the financial services sector and a new ‘companies commission’ to formulate accounting standards

20 Dec 2018

Finance | Charity Commission to take hard line over material reporting

Two auditors have been reported to their professional body in the wake of the Charity Commission’s follow-up report on auditors’ compliance with the requirements for reporting matters of material significance, with the regulator warning it may take similar action without prior warning in future

20 Dec 2018

Business | Director banned for assisting client’s £1.65m fraud

An accountancy firm director has been given a 12-year disqualification from running companies after he helped one of his clients to defraud creditors of more than £1.65m

20 Dec 2018

Finance | PwC review sparks further writedown at energy supplier Yü

AIM-listed energy supplier Yü Group, which reported a £10m profits writedown in October after discovering accounting irregularities, says a forensic review by PwC has identified a further reduction, and has revealed that the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched an investigation

20 Dec 2018

Tax | Global Reporting Initiative publishes tax strategy draft

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), an independent organisation focused on sustainability reporting, is asking for feedback on its draft of the first global standard on tax and payment disclosures to governments within the next three months

20 Dec 2018

Business | DWP to trial auto enrolled pensions for self-employed

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is seeking input on its plans to develop and test options designed to encourage self-employed people to save for short, medium and long-term financial goals, including a pension

20 Dec 2018

Pensions

19 Dec 2018

Image for uber loses landmark employment rights appeal

Tax | Uber loses landmark employment rights appeal

The upholding of an earlier judgment by the Court of Appeal means that two former Uber drivers should have been treated as permanent staff and were entitled to receive the national minimum wage and holiday pay, with significant implications for the gig economy

19 Dec 2018

Tax | Charities: tax implications of charitable giving - part 10

James Hender, head of private wealth at Saffery Champness, explains what charitable donors need to know to make sure they get the most out of their donations, using Gift Aid to its full tax relief potential and contingent capital gains tax (CGT) liability for high earners

19 Dec 2018

Finance | IFRS 16 Leases: tips and advice for aviation sector - part 8

The latest in our series on the lease accounting rule changes under IFRS 16 Leases focuses on the implications for the aviation sector, the impact on cash flow and arguments for renegotiating lease contracts. Steven Fox, head of corporate solutions at MRI Software, explains

19 Dec 2018

Finance | CCAB publishes revised LLP SORP

The Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (CCAB) has published an updated version of the statement of recommended practice – accounting by limited liability partnerships (LLPs SORP), designed to take into account revisions to FRS 102

19 Dec 2018

Tax | HMRC hires 3,000 extra staff to handle Brexit customs

HMRC is hiring significant numbers of staff and is one of 25 government departments to share in an additional £2bn of funding allocated for Brexit preparation for all scenarios, while the UK’s five main business group have released a letter expressing ‘horror’ at the lack of practical action

19 Dec 2018

Business | FCA consults on major overhaul of overdraft market

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is making what it calls ‘the biggest intervention in the overdraft market for a generation’ with proposals which would end banks charging higher prices for unarranged overdrafts, as part of a package of measures stemming from its high-cost credit review

19 Dec 2018

Tax | HMRC seeks input over electronic sales suppression

HMRC has launched a three-month consultation looking at electronic sales suppression (ESS), whereby businesses or individuals use technology to artificially reduce their reported sales and corresponding tax liabilities

19 Dec 2018

Business | NAO urges Bank of England to cut spending

The Bank of England (BoE) is spending a third more than other central government departments on essential services such as IT and building operations, according to a report from the National Audit Office (NAO)

19 Dec 2018

Image for restaurant owner ban ps120k tax payment takeaway

Business | Restaurant owner ban for £120K tax payment takeaway

A mother and son who ran a restaurant in Blackburn have been disqualified for seven and four years after they under-declared the company’s full cash takings to the tax authorities

19 Dec 2018