Britannia Radio

Editor's Note Budget 2009 : Phew! Well, the Budget is over for another year. Mr Darling's delivery is deadpan, but what he had to say - and the huge pile of paper that accompanies it - carries much of interest. The hotly tipped restriction of tax relief on pension contributions did arrive, but not in the form expected, and there was little surprise in the acceleration of the tax hikes for high earners - including the rethink on what the rate should be. He could have avoided complexity by introducing another rate on income between £100,000 and £150,000 instead of restricting personal allowances but all in all no surprises here. Businesses will benefit from the extension to the loss carry back rules announced in November last year, and from the temporary FYA of 40%. Overall the Budget measures announced today will cost £5bn this year, but be largely neutral next year, and will raise £5bn in 2011/12. The shocks are, as always, in the small print. A plan to require the senior accounting officers in large companies to personally certify that the company's controls are adequate for the purpose of tax reporting is likely to raise eyebrows, particularly as the penalties for failure will be up to £5,000 levied on the officer personally! Tax agents fare no better: a consultation examines how agents who are careless or collude in their clients' dishonesty might be liable to sanction, including the possibility of extending the penalty regime to apply to them. All in all a lot to think about - and probably more to come when the detail is digested. We'll give you plenty of 'food for thought' over the coming weekend with in-depth analysis and an ebulletin on Monday drawing it all together. Best wishes Rebecca Benneyworth Editor editor@accountingweb.co.uk Featured links Five ways to improve your competitive edge: Free whitepaper Muir Hunter on personal insolvency: Your comprehensive reference to personal insolvency VAT Memo - probably the most user-friendly VAT reference - free trial Budget essentials Key points Chancellor Alistair Darling announced a hike in the top rate of taxation and a boost for jobs and small business as part of a package designed to "grow, not cut" his way out of recession. Summary of VAT measures Summary of employment income and BIK measures Summary of personal income tax changes Summary of business and corporation tax changes Summary of other measures of interest 2009-10 Tax Tables Five ways to improve your competitive edge: Free whitepaper In a competitive market, how do you ensure prospects come to you first? This free whitepaper explores the 'big five' factors you can take towards attracting business away from rivals and explains how to apply this thinking to your business. Budget news Higher rate tax shock The Budget included a surprise revision of the announcements made in November 2008. Loss measures improved Billion pound backing for digital Britain VAT to return to 17.5% next year Cross-border supply of services rules overhauled Easier cross-border VAT reclaims from 2010 EC Sales Lists to include services from 2010 Darling moves to combat unemployment Muir Hunter your comprehensive reference to personal insolvency Muir Hunter on Personal Insolvency contains expert commentary on the relevant legislation and insolvency rules. This includes analysis of the applicable court judgments and full coverage of the UNCITRAL Cross Border Insolvency Regulations 2006. Click here for more information Reaction What the Twittersphere is saying Discussion about Alistair Darling's 2009 budget is all over social network Twitter. The experts' view Credit insurance scheme - good but not good enough, say small firms Budget 2009 and small businesses VAT Memo - probably the most user-friendly VAT reference - free trial Try VAT Memo 2009-2010 (book and online) for free and we'll send you our Budget 2009 analysis as well. This new edition will include all 2009 Budget announcements as well as in-depth and refreshingly clear VAT reference material. Click here to trial the book and receive our 2009 Budget newsletter. AccountingWEB.co.uk's new job board partner Accountancyjobsonline.co.uk – brought to the profession by CCH, the publishers of Accountancy Magazine - offers the accountancy profession just that; accountancy jobs online in a fresh, real-time, up-to-the-minute careers environment. Click here to visit the new job board today Has Outlook blocked your images? If you need to right-click one of the images in this email bulletin to see the pictures it's easy to set up AccountingWEB.co.uk as a 'safe sender' so you don't have to do this every time you receive an email bulletin. Select the Actions-Junk Mail menu and pick either the 'Add Sender' or 'Add Sender's Domain' option.