Chancellor Alistair Darling presented his Pre-Budget Report on Wednesday 9 December 2009.  Many of the anticipated changes were not made and the obvious conclusion is that he did not want to rock the boat prior to the election.

However, Mr Darling spoke of the Report taking place at ‘a critical time for our economy’ and that the task in hand was ‘to secure the recovery and promote long-term growth’.

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In the April 2009 Budget it was announced that the rules for furnished holiday lettings (FHL) in the UK will be withdrawn in April 2010, but what does this really mean for landlords?

Sophie Howard ACA, our Agricultural Manager, takes a look at the implication for farmers and other owners of furnished holiday property.

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The Government has announced that at 12.30pm on Wednesday 9 December 2009, Alistair Darling will make his Pre-Budget speech.  

The Chancellor is expected to outline how he plans to reduce public debt over the next four years.  Many experts have been predicting changes to Capital Gains Tax and further changes to the new 50p rate of Income Tax being implemented in April 2010.  Also, will he look at changing the VAT rate in the future, which is set to return to 17.5% in January 2010?

Our senior team will be listening to the live Budget speech and looking at how the measures announced will affect our clients, so watch this space!!!

HMRC are launching their new Section 36 (FA 2008) compliance checks.  HMRC Officers can now inspect any business to check the “tax position” which means past, present and future liabilities to Income Tax, PAYE, VAT ie any tax!  The HMRC officer can enter any business premises, look at the assets, records and any document they wish.  The old safety net of an enquiry window has effectively been abolished.

Now for the really scary bit … only 7 days notice is required of an HMRC visit and that can be verbal or in writing.  There is no appeal.  Penalties for obstruction are £300 and then £60 per day. read more »

Jonathan Crowther acts for several farming clients and is frequently asked questions about how to pass on the farm and to explain ways to minimise Inheritance Tax. Understanding this complex area of tax is the first stage of a planning process. This article provides straightforward answers to many commonly asked questions.

With agricultural land values increasing and the value of farmhouses at a premium, it is vital that farmers do not lose their possible reliefs by unwittingly changing the nature of their business. There are many traps for the unwary or uninformed!

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