Have more websites asked about your privacy settings lately? They all seem to want to know if you are willing to accept cookies. Unfortunately this doesn’t refer to elevenses, but falls in with new legislation that requires websites to seek your consent before a cookie gets downloaded to your computer. What is a cookie? A […]
HM Treasury has launched a consultation on a General Anti-Abuse Rule (GAAR) with a view to tackling ‘artificial and abusive tax avoidance schemes’. This is the result of a review commissioned by the Treasury from tax specialist Graham Aaronson QC as to whether the introduction of a broad anti-avoidance rule would act as a deterrent […]
As the IR35 storm brews, watch out for interesting recent developments in the field of limited company contractors. Following the expose of Ed Lester (the boss of the Student Loans Company found to be being paid through an intermediary limited company), it has been found that others are working this way – and whilst formally […]
And so – the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill has had a second reading in the House of Commons. Vince Cable announced that the government will not be pursuing Adrian Beecroft’s ‘compensated no fault dismissals’ proposals. Over 60 MP’s had signed had a motion calling on the government to drop it, as the move would […]
Changes in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill are intended to promote conciliation and reduce the number of employment tribunal claims – but how far will they achieve this? The Bill, which has received its second reading in Parliament recently, contains a number of changes affecting employment law, and the procedure to be adopted by […]
If an employee commits an act of serious misconduct (such as theft, or assault), and there is compelling evidence to support the allegation, most people would consider dismissal to be a fair outcome. However this is not necessarily true, as unfair dismissal laws do not just look at the reason for the dismissal: Employment tribunals […]
Recruitment manager Ricky Martin has won the latest BBC business contest, The Apprentice, securing £250,000 investment for his new business venture. Martin, from Portsmouth, beat Jade Nash, Nick Holzherr and Tom Gearing in the eighth series of the business reality show. Martin has an Honours degree in Biochemistry, and impressed Lord Sugar with plans for […]
Identifying the correct date of termination of an employment contract is crucial, and getting it wrong can be costly, as one employer recently discovered. An employee has three months from the EDT to present a claim to an employment tribunal So, it is extremely important for both parties to be crystal clear as to […]
As you may have already noticed, more than 6.4 million LinkedIn passwords have leaked to the Web after an apparent hack. Some login details are encrypted, but all users are advised to change their passwords. LinkedIn has more than 150 million users worldwide, so this appears to affect less than 5 percent of its user […]
The introduction of the no-fault dismissal procedure in the Beecroft Report is meant to reduce the burden of compliance and encourage growth in small businesses – but could it actually have the opposite effect? The no-fault proposals are intended to lessen the pressure on small businesses without HR staff by helping them to manage the […]
