Redundancies double as energy costs spiral and war in Ukraine dampens optimism
The number of planned redundancies in the UK has jumped 103% in just one month, from 8,869 in January to 18,043 in February, says specialist employment law firm GQ|Littler.
The number of redundancies planned by businesses has increased sharply as interest rates continue to rise. In February the Bank of England made the second of three increases in interest rates – pushing up the cost of borrowing for businesses.
Raoul Parekh, Partner at GQ Littler says: “An extreme shortage of staff and hopes of a post COVID recovery had persuaded businesses to hold off on redundancy programmes, with numbers in December 2021 and January 2022 at their lowest levels since April 2019. It looks like that period of stability might be behind us.
“It’s clear that the Bank of England intends to slow the economy in order to keep inflation under control. Spiralling energy costs and other impacts from the war in Ukraine are also likely to dampen optimism amongst businesses and lead to cost cutting.”
The company feels it’s likely that some businesses are making redundancies in anticipation that consumer spending will drop off in some sectors due to the cost-of-living crisis which is expected to be exacerbated by the rise in National Insurance rates in April.
This climb in the number of planned redundancies comes after months of low redundancy rates.
Mr Parekh adds: “It is not yet clear whether these higher numbers of dismissals will result in higher unemployment, or whether the current labour shortages instead create a higher sectoral churn. Given the attention paid to P&O’s mishandled redundancy programme employers will want to ensure that any similar measures are undertaken with extreme care and as sympathetically as possible.”
Export sales growth stagnating, says BCC
A survey of more than 2,700 UK exporters has revealed that UK export sales growth has been effectively stagnant for the past year.
The quarterly Trade Confidence Outlook from the British Chambers Of Commerce showed the proportion of exporters reporting increased overseas sales to be unchanged from Q4 at 29%, while those reporting a decrease rose 1 point to 25%.
The data showed that manufacturers were more likely to report increased export sales than either business to business service firms (such as lawyers or accountants) or business to consumer service firms (like online clothing stores).
Conversely, B2B service exporters were more likely than either manufacturers or B2C service exporters to expect profitability to increase in the coming year.
Responding to the findings, Head of Trade Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, William Bain said: “This data confirms our concerns – that for the last year there was a broadly flat picture for UK exports. This is in contrast with the performance of our near neighbours, with Germany’s exports both within and outside the Single Market steaming ahead by double digit margins and with trade losses from the pandemic already effectively recovered.
“UK exporters are facing the headwinds of higher red tape costs from trading with the EU, raised raw material pressures, and ongoing issues in global shipping markets. If we are to realise the aspirations of the UK Government’s Export Strategy then 2022 has to be the year where these structural factors holding back our exporters are addressed.
“Sustained export growth should be powering our economic recovery from the pandemic. Chambers and their members are already working hard to increase exports but need more substantive measures from Government now.”
Four areas where your business needs professional help
As a business owner, the idea of asking for help can seem a little tricky to get your head around. After all, you are the one in charge, and if this is your business, then you will have built the whole enterprise from the ground up. It can be so easy to get into a mindset where you feel like you need to do each and every thing all by yourself to be confident that it has been done right.
However, if you want your business to succeed then you need to know when it is time to ask for advice from someone with specialist knowledge and years of experience. This is especially important right now, when we are emerging from two years of unprecedented difficulty into a period of rising costs and continuing uncertainty. You need to be doing everything you possibly can to ensure that things run smoothly and to avoid one issue spiralling into something that could potentially cause real trouble. Here are just a few of the areas where your business could use some outside expertise in the months ahead.
Find An Excellent Business Lawyer
It is never a good time to find yourself in a position where you need legal help. As a business owner, however, there are several instances where you will need to reach out to an excellent business lawyer to guide you through the legal process. A solicitor can be an invaluable asset if you are looking at taking your business to the next level, as they will be able to talk you through any potential pitfalls and help you to draw up contracts and agreements.
There are going to be times when you will need a good business lawyer to make a claim for you and to recover the losses that you are owed. You simply cannot afford to be losing out on what you are due right now. So, for example, if your business has suffered from the professional negligence of another party, your professional negligence lawyer will talk your claim through with you and advise you on the best course of action. Hugh James is a top 100 law firm with a wealth of experience in professional negligence claims.
Ask For Financial Advice
If your business does not have an accountant on staff, then it is high time that you think about bringing one on board. Most small business owners will have an accountant or financial advisor that they use to discuss their taxes at the end of the year, but anyone who has had even a quick look at the way the markets have been going in recent months knows that planning for your business’s financial security is not something that can wait. A good accountant will be able to help you strategize how to build a cushion to carry you through any slow months, and they can help you look at any government programmes you can apply for. Should things take a real downward turn, they can also help you to figure out how you can make cuts that won’t affect your business too badly.
Digital Marketing Is Going To Be Crucial
Just because you know your business inside and out, that does not necessarily mean that you know the best way to communicate it to potential customers and clients. Given everything that UK businesses have been through in the last couple of years, it is not surprising that competition is absolutely brutal out there right now. If you are planning a digital marketing campaign, you need to remember that there are companies with more resources and experience than you who are fighting for the same eyes online. A good digital marketing agency will understand that it is not about the resources that you have available to spend, but how good your campaign is. Find an agency that understands your brand and what sets you apart from the competition. Work with them to draw up person specifications for your target audience and talk to them about how you can continue to make use of customer data after the campaign is over.
Cybersecurity Is Still A Risk
As much as it pains us all to admit it, the cybercrime wave is not going to go away any time soon. When the numbers started to spike back in 2020, it made a lot of sense given that there were so many more people doing their business online. However, it is two years later, and the experts are warning us that the risks are as great as they ever were. Now, we all have a rudimentary understanding of the basics when it comes to cybersecurity. We use different passwords for different accounts, and we know not to click any obviously suspicious email links. However, it is clear that we need to be taking this issue more seriously. That means bringing on a cybersecurity expert to sit down with your IT team and identify those areas where you need extra help.
Nottingham City Council agrees to hand over tennis centre
Nottingham City Council has announced it is ready to hand over the Nottingham Tennis Centre to the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) from the end of April.
The move follows talks between the City Council and the LTA that began in August 2021 over the future of the Tennis Centre. Public consultation was undertaken on proposals for the LTA to take over the lease to secure its future. The arrangement would build on the centre’s success, aiming to further develop it as a key grass-court tournament venue, enable further investments to develop the facility into a world-class tennis training and competition base, while retaining community and public tennis facilities.
The process is now completed. With centre users and other stakeholder feedback collated and evaluated as well as with staffing, legal, and commercial aspects addressed, the City Council is pleased to be able to formally announce that the site lease and operation of Nottingham Tennis Centre will be handed over to the LTA from the end of April.
Feedback and questions from the consultation centred around the implications for current Active Nottingham fitness members as well as for those who use tennis facilities or are on the current coaching programme.
As the handover continues, the centre will continue to operate its existing programme of activities. Further communications will be sent out to members and facility users outlining what the change in ownership means to them and for their Active Nottingham membership contract. The LTA will also be holding events in-centre for people to come and discuss their plans and membership options.
Active Nottingham Tennis coaching members, with their permission, will be moved to the new LTA programme. All Active Nottingham gym and fitness members can access facilities at any of the six other city-wide sites. There are several membership options and the team is committed to discussing options for ongoing membership with individuals.
All current Active Nottingham members will maintain their free membership which allows discounts on pay as you play bookings and activities at the remaining City Council sites.
Cllr Eunice Campbell-Clark, Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture, and Schools said: “We are so pleased to be able to move forward with the transfer and we look forward to hearing about the LTA’s ambitious development plans in greater detail in the near future. We truly believe this agreement is the best way of building tennis in the city and beyond using the strong foundations that are already in place at the centre. While we are mindful that the change in operations will mean changes for some of our Active Nottingham customers, we are committed to making the transition as smooth and as seamless as possible.”Gary Stewart, LTA Head of Operations, said: “We’re delighted to be taking over the lease and running of the centre. This is a strategically important site for British tennis, and this move will allow us to safeguard its future. Work has already begun on upgrading the existing tennis facilities and there are more plans in the pipeline, as we look to add additional indoor courts over the next 12 months. These changes will help us support the thriving community tennis programme as well as provide infrastructure for events throughout the year. The tennis courts will be amongst the best in the country, but still available for the local community to use.”
Northants occupational health business acquired in £14.9m deal
Business-critical services and software firm Marlowe has acquired Northamptonshire-based TP Health, a provider of technology-enabled Occupational Health services in the UK, for an expected enterprise value of £14.9 million.
TP Health, established in 2006, is headquartered in Northampton and employs approximately 240 staff, including over 130 clinical professionals.
Marlowe said of the acquisition: “The acquisition of TP Health offers attractive operational synergies with Optima Health and adds further scale to Marlowe’s UK leading Occupational Health offering, a core compliance market for Marlowe within its Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) division.”
For the year ended 31 December 2020, TP Health generated a profit before tax of £1 million on revenue of £14.6 million. Net assets at 31 December 2020 were £1.9 million.
The total enterprise value will comprise an upfront cash consideration of £13.3 million in addition to an estimated £1.6 million in performance-related contingent consideration. The acquisition will be funded from Marlowe’s existing cash resources.
Mather Jamie closes duo of land deals with housebuilder
Specialist land development and property consultancy Mather Jamie has completed the sale of two plots of land which will be developed for housing in North Leicestershire and Warwickshire.
The two sites are in highly desirable locations in Rugby and Long Clawson.
Located East of Brownsover Lane, the Rugby site has been purchased by Jelson and comprises 5.69 acres. It has planning permission for 14 new dwellings which will be a mix of 2, 3, and 4 bedroom houses along with the creation of a community green space.
The Long Clawson development has also been purchased by Jelson and has outline planning permission for 45 houses on the site of former farm buildings and large storage barns.
Commenting on the two completions, Mather Jamie senior associate director Gary Kirk said: “One of our key strengths is that we often work with our landowning clients on a strategic basis over a number of years to bring forward development opportunities. Both Rugby and Long Clawson are examples of sites we have been closely involved with for several years and we are proud of the outcome for both clients.
“Early engagement in any site allows us to feed into the planning process in such a way as to maximise value and saleability of a scheme in order that our clients achieve the very best outcome on sale. We expect to continue delivering similar sites to market in order to meet the high demand for greenfield sites for new build housing.”
Kieran Henry, land manager from Jelson, added: “There is huge demand for new build developments in rural locations as the new generation of hybrid worker seeks to escape the city and enjoy the countryside. We plan to build sensitively, whilst also bringing much needed new housing to these areas.
“As a well-respected 130 year old family owned business, we are committed to building strong connections with our local communities and pride ourselves in changing unused spaces into places where families can build a life and thrive.”
Employer company car considerations: Streets Chartered Accountants
If you are thinking about purchasing a company car through a limited company, there are many issues that need to be considered. In this short article Streets Chartered Accountants point out some of the main issues to be aware of, but it is important to properly research this area and weigh up all the available options.
The tax treatment of the purchase will depend on how the purchase of the company car is financed.
The purchase of a company car will be classed as a fixed asset and tax relief will be obtained by way of capital allowances. The amount of capital allowances that can be claimed will fall within one of the following 3 categories:
- 100% First Year Allowance. New and unused electric or zero emission cars emission cars benefit from 100% capital allowances. This means that 100% of the cost of the car can be deducted in the first year.
- 18% of the car’s value (main rate allowances). This effectively means that 18% of the purchase price can be deducted from your profits each year before you pay tax.
- 6% of the car’s value (special rate allowances). This effectively means that 6% of the purchase price can be deducted from your profits each year before you pay tax.
Council highlights concerns over proposed Hinckley National Rail Freight Interchange
A comprehensive consultation response from Blaby District Council to the developers of the proposed Hinckley National Rail Freight Interchange has stated that the plans cannot be supported.
In a wide-ranging response to the promoter, Tritax Symmetry, Technical Officers from the Council’s Planning team have laid out their concerns in a 36-page consultation response.
Scrutinising the proposals against both local and national planning policies, the Council’s technical response from Officers has concluded that the Rail Freight Interchange does not appear to provide the ability for most planned units to be rail connected. According to the Council, this brings into question the whole principle of the proposal.
Other concerns include major issues with the amount of development proposed and a significant shortfall in any biodiversity value, minimising landscape harm and poor consideration to the planned rerouted foot and cycle paths.
Blaby District Council says it is also disappointed at missing and inaccurate information in the plans. Transport modelling information, including highways mitigation and the impact on the level crossing at Narborough Railway Station have been poorly assessed in the proposals, according to the Council. In addition, the claimed business rate benefit for the Council from the development is inaccurate, as well as a potential miscalculation of the total number of employees by up to 20%.
Seven of the twenty-one sections in consultation response have received a ‘Strongly Negative’ conclusion, with six others receiving a ‘Negative’ conclusion. No sections received a positive summary following the Officer’s scrutiny.
Councillor Terry Richardson, leader of Blaby District Council, said: “We have to be clear; this proposal is simply not acceptable to myself, my fellow Councillors or Officers in its current state. This has been a deeply flawed consultation from the very outset, and our thorough response has laid bare the failings of these proposals.
“I want to commend the work of our Officers on this consultation response. Their efforts have shown that as it stands this is development has no place in the district, and at the very least another formal consultation must be run by Tritax Symmetry when they change their proposals.
“There is a lot of work for us left to do in our role as a consultee, to assess the local impacts and to represent the views of residents to get the best possible outcome for local people.”
Read the Council’s response to the consultation.
Blaby District Council is a statutory consultee with a crucial role to play in the examination process but will not be deciding the application. Due to the size of the proposed development it is classed as a “Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project” and any decision will be made by the Secretary of State for Transport.
East Midlands freeport plans take leap forwards
Plans to create an innovative, inland freeport in the East Midlands have taken a big leap forward with the submission of a key document.
The ‘Full Business Case’ (FBC), sent to the Government on Thursday, keeps the East Midlands Freeport on track to become fully operational later this year and builds upon the Outline Business Case approved in February.
Government approval will unlock the complete range of benefits offered by the Freeport, adding to the special incentives already available to eligible businesses investing in the Freeport’s Tax Sites.
The blueprint sets out plans to make sure that the UK’s only inland Freeport is fully equipped to achieve its objectives, including promoting growth in advanced manufacturing and logistics, low carbon and renewable energy production and research and development, as well as supporting the Government’s Levelling Up, Net Zero, skills and innovation and trade and investment objectives.
This will in turn enable the Freeport to create an estimated 61,000 new jobs and generate £8.9 billion for the economy over the next 30 years, playing a critical role in levelling up the region.
Building on the Freeport’s public and private sector partnership, it makes the case for £25 million of seed capital funding that will deliver new road infrastructure, cycle routes, land preparation works and a Hydrogen Skills Academy – subject to local planning processes.
The plans include upgrades to regional transport infrastructure and cycle routes centred around delivering more sustainable connectivity across the Freeport’s three main locations at the East Midlands Airport and Gateway Industrial Cluster (‘EMAGIC’), East Midlands Intermodal Park (‘EMIP’) and the Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station Redevelopment Site.
The Hydrogen Skills Academy, backed by Loughborough, Nottingham and Derby universities, is expected to open in November 2023. It complements a series of innovative hydrogen projects being taken forward by the region’s Hydrogen Task Force and will be the UK’s first practical, industry-based training centre associated with the production, handling, storage and use of hydrogen, helping put the East Midlands at the forefront of the UK’s Net Zero transition.
Penny Coates, chair of the East Midlands Freeport Board, said: “The submission of the Full Business Case to Government demonstrates our continued progress in building the UK’s only inland and best-connected Freeport.
“The designation of our Tax Sites in March means the Freeport is already offering real benefits to attract new investment to the East Midlands. Approval of the FBC will enable us to deliver even more benefits, both for businesses and communities across the region.
“The Hydrogen Skills Academy is just one example of how the Freeport is harnessing our region’s strengths to further increase our ability to secure new opportunities for the future, creating new jobs whilst supporting the advance towards Net Zero.
“This has all been made possible by the ongoing collaboration and hard work of our public and private sector partners, whose shared commitment will continue to ensure the Freeport delivers its full potential.”
Largest council housing development in a generation completes for Chesterfield
Local families are set to move into their new homes after works on the biggest council housing development in the borough since the 1980s completed.
A £4.1m development has seen 21 brand new properties constructed on the former Brockwell Court site in Loundsley Green – the latest development as part of Chesterfield Borough Council’s commitment to increasing the supply of affordable and accessible homes across the town.
The new development, named Badger Croft, comprises of ten two-bedroom houses, six three-bedroom houses, four four-bedroom houses and one three-bedroom bungalow – all of which will be let to local families on the council’s housing register.
Councillor Chris Ludlow, cabinet member for housing, said: “We’re pleased to see that this development is complete and ready to welcome families to their new homes. It’s the biggest council housing development of this generation, so it’s a huge milestone in our efforts to increase the housing supply across the borough.
“Creating attractive places for people to live is at the heart of what we do and these new properties will provide affordable, modern and accessible homes for families in our borough.”
In response to the climate emergency that was declared by council leaders in July 2019, the council is committed to ensuring that all its housing stock is as energy efficient as possible.
Councillor Ludlow added: “It’s really important that new developments in the borough take account of environmental issues – contributing to a more sustainable future for us all.
“Living in a warm and energy efficient home is not only better for our planet, it will also reduce costs to run the property, offering affordable warmth to our tenants.”
Each of the new properties has increased levels of insulation throughout and electric vehicle charging points have been installed on properties with driveways to support lower carbon transport options.
Whilst works were ongoing on site, the council’s main contractor, Henry Boot Construction, worked with the local Holmebrook Conservation and Improvement Group to complete additional landscaping works and environmental improvements close to the new development that will help to enhance the wider local community. This included the creation of wildflower meadows and planting that will help boost biodiversity and support pollinators.
Ryan O’Loughlin, director at Henry Boot Construction, said: “As a local contractor, it has been a pleasure working with Chesterfield Borough Council to deliver an exceptional development. Residential is a sector of strategic importance for Henry Boot Construction and this adds to our impressive portfolio of high-quality schemes.”
The council’s Local Plan encourages all schemes costing over £1m to include a work of art to the value of 1% of the total cost of the project, as part of the ‘Percentage for Art’ scheme which the council has operated since 1994.
This has been reflected with the development at Badger Croft where the council approached artists to submit proposals for an art installation that embraced a Badger theme associated with the area. After proposals were submitted, and through vigorous debate, local councillors made the decision to go with Coralie Turpin, who designed a 3.4m tall steel structure and then created a handmade mosaic design incorporating badgers and celebrating nature.
