Brian Potterill, director in PwC's telecoms strategy team, added: "The results of the spectrum auction in the Netherlands were announced late on Friday (14 December), raising a total of €3.8bn. As with the recent auction in Ireland which raised €855m the Dutch auction included more spectrum than on offer in...
Commenting on the Carbon Price Support details in the Finance Bill released today, Jayne Harrold, environmental tax specialist, PwC, says it’s a good day for detail, clarification and simplification on complex energy tax regulations. "The new measures published today on the Carbon Price Support are good news, and go a...
Paul Harris, R&D expert at PwC in the Midlands, welcomed today's R&D announcement saying it could be the boost British industry needs to get it back on track: "Today's announcement should be a welcome boost for the UK's core industrial sectors - and for those such as the British automotive...
The Government has responded to recent European Court Of Justice case law and the action of the European Commission to allow companies to move to other member states without an immediate tax charge. This has long been a significant restriction on companies' movements in a single market. Chrisd Romans, tax...
The Government has published reforms to the anti avoidance rules for people transferring assets abroad. While these are important tax avoidance measures, they were not compliant with movement of capital in the single market and often caused practical problems and administrative complexity. The Government has been consulting on the changes....
The Finance Bill published today has placed a cap on share loss relief for losses arising after 5 April 2013. However, the government has also provided a carve-out for shares on which Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) or Seed EIS relief has been claimed and retained. In these cases, relief on...
Commenting on the introduction by the Chancellor of an annual residential property tax, amendments to the punitive 15% stamp duty regime, capital gains tax on disposals by companies of high value houses and amendments to the transfer of rights legislation, Phil Luckett, PwC real estate tax director, said: "The Chancellor...
Philip Lewis, director, PwC said: "Qualifying life insurance policies are no longer a guaranteed tax free investment. From 6 April 2013, there will be a limit on premiums of £3,600 a year per policyholder as a result of the draft Finance Bill. "The limit applies to new policies, but we...
Commenting on draft legislation for a General Anti Abuse Rule, Stuart Wallace, tax partner at PwC, said: "Today's draft legislation and guidance notes have provided more clarity on the scope of the General Anti Abuse Rule. The GAAR aims to counter contrived tax arrangements that are entered into simply to...
Will Schofield, international mobility partner at PwC in the Midlands, commented: "We finally have a definitive test to see if an individual will be classed as a UK resident. This marks a fundamental change to the UK residence rules and significantly reduces the level of uncertainty for taxpayers and employers...
The Government has confirmed it will drop plans which would have meant individuals working through personal service companies (PSC), carrying out what would otherwise be senior employment roles, have their taxes deducted under PAYE. The proposals were aimed at controlling persons, defined as those having authority or responsibility for directing...
Commenting on news that the Government is to allow REITs to invest in other REITs, Alistair Reason real estate expert at PwC in the Midlands, said: “This is welcome news for the property industry. We expect to see REITs doing some spring-cleaning come April and looking at how they can...
So, we’ve seen that there was good news in the Autumn Statement for large multinationals. But let’s move to the personal side of the equation. Of the tax rises announced, obviously there was the expected announcement on anti-abuse rules and that will apply right across the taxpayer base. There was...
So how was the Autumn Statement for you? Here’s how I did against my predictions for private clients: As expected, there wasn’t a big Christmas giveaway. There were some modest changes to allowances and tax bands with the Chancellor planning to raise £1bn by increasing the reach of the higher...
The news that local authorities will bear the lion's share of the further 2% reduction in departmental budgets in 2014/15 will not come as a surprise to the sector, but that won't make it any more palatable. Our surveys of how local councils have responded to reductions in Government support...
Andrew Mair, Financial Services leader in the Midlands, said: "Our banks are still fragile and the challenging economic conditions look set to continue for some time. Clearly, we have more work to do to get the right balance between regulation that protects the economy from nasty shocks but also allows...
Barry Murphy, Tax Partner, gives his views on the Chancellor's speech today. which felt more like a Budget than an Autumn Statement. The Chancellor focused on how he will boost UK business and our competitiveness in an international environment. To pay for this he's targeting those he says can afford...
Steve Blackmore, pensions director at PwC Midlands, said: “The reductions in both the annual allowance and lifetime allowances completely undermines confidence and trust in pensions. This is a direct blow to the pensions savings culture and could put pressure on the few remaining private sector defined benefit (DB) schemes to...
Phil Harrold, partner and automotive expert at PwC in the Midlands, commented: "The cancellation of the 3p per litre fuel duty rise that was planned to come in 1 January 2013 will be welcome news for both the motorist and the car industry. However, the Chancellor also said that the...
Commenting on the gas strategy announcement in the Autumn Statement, Steve Snook, partner, energy and renewables said: "While the new gas strategy has expectations that 26 GW of new gas fired generation capacity could be required through to 2030, this announcement of itself provides no guarantee that all of this...
