| Date |
Item |
Url |
|
| 2009 |
|
|
| Oct 1 |
New UK national minimum wage rates will come
into force TODAY. They are now:-
- £5.80 an hour to workers aged 22 and above
- £4.83 an hour to workers aged 18-21
- £3.57 an hour to workers aged below 18 and over
compulsory school age
|
|
| Oct 1 |
Final changes under the Companies Act 2006 apply from TODAY. Mostly affecting Limited
Liability Partnerships. |
|
|
BEWARE the latest scam - Someone rings you, supposedly from your
credit card bank. They will talk about changes
for security reasons or some other topic. They
don't ask for your credit card number (which
also seems to confirm they are genuinely
from the bank) - because they have already
obtained it. But at some stage they will
ask for the 3 digit security number on the
back of your card. This enables them to buy
goods from suppliers over phone or Internet.
Your account will be debited for hundreds
of pounds within minutes of you putting down
the phone. |
|
| Apr 1 |
HMRC now have increased powers to visit home-based
business premises, including any part of
a residential property which is used to operate
a company, and to investigate their accounts.
This can be a costly process. The best thing
to do is to take out insurance cover - see
your accountants about that. |
|
| 2008 |
|
|
| Oct 1 |
Provisions of the Companies Act 2006 apply to Limited Liability Partnerships
from TODAY. |
|
| Oct 1 |
Changes to trade mark processes and applications
apply from TODAY, including a standard 2
month time limit on various procedures. |
|
| Jul 23 |
Employees on additional maternity leave and additional adoption leave will in future
benefit from all their non-pay contractual
terms and conditions throughout their entire
period of statutory leave. |
|
| May 26 |
New advertising regulations: 1. prohibit advertising likely to mislead
traders, and 2. impose strict conditions
on comparative advertising, particularly
to stop comparison of unlike products, mislead
traders or consumers, or confuse between
the advertiser and competitor. The regulations
do not apply to advertisement publishers;
nevertheless this web site may alter, or drop completely,
without notice, any directory entry where
we find sufficient reason to believe it may
be misleading within the terms of these regulations. |
|
| May 26 |
A number of unfair commercial practices are prohibited from TODAY. This includes
misleading consumers, withholding important
information, unfairly agressive tactics,
and implying that a prize has been won when
that is not the case or where money would
first have to be paid. It is in line with
the general principle of these regulations
that this web site normally takes the stance
that we will not include in our directory
any company or business that does not wish
to display it's address, either in the directory
entry itself, or failing that,
on the web site that any link in the directory
entry leads to. PO box numbers are not sufficient for this.
Exceptions can be made in
the case of small one man businesses where
the address is a private residence and the
trade is one where the product or service
is traditionally provided before asking the
customer for payment; e.g. window cleaning. |
|
| Apr 6 |
Previous regulations about informing and consulting with employees now apply to all firms with 50 or more employees. |
|
| 29 Feb |
From TODAY employers who employ illegal migrant
workers are liable to a civil penalty, if
they have not performed required checks of, and kept copies of,
the employee's relevant documents. For employees
permitted in the UK for a limited time these
checks must be repeated at least annually. |
|
| 2007 |
|
|
| Oct 30 |
New waste disposal regulations apply from TODAY. Businesses that send non-hazardous
waste to land-fill must treat it first. "Treating"
can be as simple as sorting it into different
types, but you need to check how the provisions
of the new Landfill Directive affect your
business. |
web |
| July 1 |
Smoking is prohibited in work places, and also in work vehicles
used by more than one person, from TODAY
(in England) under the recent anti-smoking
legislation. Compliant no smoking signs must
be displayed at all public entrances to smoke
free premisis, and in vehicles. The ban includes
smoking by employees, customers, and other
visitors; it applies also to "substantially
enclosed" spaces; and any indoor reserved
smoking areas are prohibited. Managers can
be fined if they fail to enforce the ban
or display compliant signs. |
|
| April 2 |
The smoking ban in Wales takes
effect TODAY (similar to the English
ban described above). |
|
| Jan 1 |
Limited companies must from TODAY display their registered
name, number and registered address in all
emails, and on their website if any, just
as they already have to on other business
correspondence. Other provisions come into
force later - watch especially for the reduced
time to file accounts from April 2008, and
who can be directors from Oct 2008. |
|
| 2006 |
|
|
|
Computer defences: The IT analysts, Gartner, predict that
by the end of 2007, “75% of enterprises will
be infected with undetected, financially
motivated, targeted malware that evaded their
traditional perimeter and host defences.” |
web |
|
Beware bogus emails, allegedly from HMRC, notifying recipients of a large tax refund
to be made direct into their bank account.
It is the latest "phishing" scam, and is
aimed at persuading people to complete a
form with all their bank details. It is a
move on from all the recent emails supposedly
from banks. Do NOT complete the form! |
web |
| 1 Oct |
Age discrimination in the workplace is outlawed from TODAY.
It is now illegal for employers to treat
employees under 65 differently because of
their age. Job advertisements will not generally
be able to specify age requirements. Employees
due to retire at 65 may ask to stay on. Many
benefits that may have been applicable
up to age 60 or some other age will have
to be extended to age 65. |
|
| 2004 |
|
|
|
Telephone scams are now rife, whereby computer
users who connect to the Internet using dial-up modems are being rerouted
through premium rate numbers without their
knowledge. Achieved by software being downloaded
onto victims computers. It results in bills
for hundreds of pounds, and BT and other
companies refuse to accept liability. |
|
| 1 Oct |
From TODAY the Disability Discrimination Act requires
small businesses to ensure
that their premises and services are accessible
to people (both customers and employees)
with disabilities, or face stiff fines. |
Web |
|
Data Protection Act Scams are on the increase! If you receive official
looking, even threatening letters requiring
you to register for the Act, usually for
a fee around £100 plus VAT, ignore them.
The fee, with very simple registration form
direct or online from the Information Commissioner,
is £35, no VAT, and only if it applies to
your business. |
|
| 5 Feb |
Companies planning to buy computer or communications equipment may be well
advised to buy before March 31, as Gordon
Brown is widely expected to stop the current
100% first year capital allowances on such
purchases by small companies (40% allowances
for medium companies). |
|
| 2003 |
|
|
| 11 Dec |
Businesses using email marketing must,
under regulations taking effect TODAY,
have received explicit permission before
sending commercial emails to individuals
unless (a) the recipient is an existing customer
and (b) the email only contains details
of products or services similar to those
already supplied to the customer. |
Web |
| 1 Dec |
Employee use of hand-held
mobile phones while driving, under TODAY's new mobile
phone regulations, may result in prosecution
of not only the driver, but also the employer.
Employers will not only be liable if they
require employees to use a hand-held while
driving, but may also be liable if they fail
to forbid their employees to use them. |
Web |
|
Banking email scams are on the rise. People receive emails purporting
to be from their bank, with a link to a replica
of the bank's official site, which then asks
for their password and account details. In
October customers of all of Barclays, Citibank,
Halifax, Lloyds TSB and NatWest, and also
PayPal, were emailed in this way. Never follow
links from such an apparent bank email,
or release your account details in response
to one. The banks will not ask for them. |
Web |
| 15 Aug |
Farmers and landowners in
Berkshire (and other parts of the South)
should note the deadline of midnight of 23
August 2003 for you to appeal against land
you own which might have been included in
the Countryside Agency's Provisional Maps
of Open Country and Registered Common Land.
This is under the Countryside and Rights
of Way Act 2000 (the so called "right
to roam" Act). |
web |
|
An all-day business-to-business
trade show will held at Newbury Racecourse on Wednesday
22 October 2003, to promote networking and
allow small businesses to meet. Includes
exhibitors, demonstrations and seminars.
Organised by the West Berkshire Business
Club, but open to non-members. Click the
web site link opposite for details. |
web |
| 1 July |
From TODAY suppliers of digital services
from outside the EU will have to pay VAT on sales to member
states. |
|
| 1 May |
VAT registration threshold is
now £56,000 as from 10 April 2003. But
note: an amnesty for the belated notification penalty is
in force until 30 September 2003. |
|
| 1 May |
Does your company have a wireless
computer network? A security test done in Reading and Wokingham
streets, by consultants Consult & See,
has found 60% of company wireless networks
set up with zero security precautions. Hackers
could just sit in the street outside with
an aerial (that's how the test was done)
and hack in to these company systems. |
web |
| 17 April |
The DTI have launched a
new web site giving news
of technology around the world. |
web |
| 6 April |
The Flexible Working Regulations come in to force TODAY, entitling employees
with young children to 1. paternity leave
2. increased 26 weeks maternity leave
3. requests to work from home to be considered. |
web |
| 6 April |
The new Working Tax Credit (WTC) and Child
Tax Credit (CTC) apply TODAY, replacing Working Families’
Tax Credit, Disabled Persons’ Tax Credit
and the Children’s Tax Credit and other benefits. |
|
| 6 April |
A 1% National Insurance
increase applying from TODAY to employee earnings
and self-employed profits, applies to everything
above the lower limits; it is not limited
by the upper limits. |
|
| 31 March |
The Sale and Supply of
Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002 come into force TODAY,
requiring: 1. goods to conform to advertising,
labelling, and the sale contract 2. guarantees
to be in writing and legally binding 3. faulty
goods to be repaired or replaced if returned
within 6 months. |
|
| 31 March |
New service from Berkshire Express - we launch this news page to inform business
owners of vital information. |
|
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