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Chancellor announces new business-government forum on tax

British businesses and the Government will form a new working group to look at the long-term challenges facing the UK tax system and ensure competitiveness remains at the heart of any future reforms

Big Four hit back at LSE study

The Big Four firms have hit back at claims that their domination of auditing could have distorted the market and pushed up prices, according to the Financial Times

BoE Governor attacks City bonus culture

Mervyn King has launched an unusually fierce attack on the bonuses paid to City bankers and vowed to use his second term to curb the excesses he said had helped provoke the credit crisis

Sisters lose European inheritance tax battle

European Court rejects appeal by British siblings to same tax rights as married couples and civil partners

HBOS confirms £4bn share sale

HBOS has announced plans for a rights issue to raise £4bn of extra funding from its existing shareholders

Tax rules spark fears for exit of UK’s largest companies

The Treasury's tax policies come under fire after United Business Media is the latest to consider leaving the UK

Campbell Dallas plans to float IFA advisory business: The Herald

The mid-tier Scottish chartered accounting firm plans to spin out its fast-growing independent financial advisory business and float it on the Alternative Investment Market within two to three years

Andersen’s collapse results in fee bonus for Big Four rivals

The dominance of the Big Four auditors has directly raised the fees companies pay to have their accounts verified

HBOS to raise up to £4bn from rights issue

HBOS is finalising plans to tap investors for fresh capital of up to £4bn in a rights issue to bolster its capital base, according to a report in The Financial Times

Property still a winner for Scotland's richest 100

Scotland's top business tycoons are bucking plummeting property, construction and financial markets to dominate the list of the country's wealthy

Business 'losing faith' in politicians

Businesses have a lack of faith in politicians and political parties, believing they don't understand their needs, according to a new report by the British Chambers of Commerce

Sir Robert Smith, past president of ICAS, named as new non-political-party peer

Weir Group chairman one of three newly named peers who will sit on the crossbenches in the Upper House of Lords

IASB told to be more practical

European parliament accepts report strongly criticising International Accounting Standards Board

AIM market hit by credit squeeze as fundraising falls by 60 per cent

Deloitte's quarterly analysis of the junior stock market shows its lowest level of activity in three years

Stagecoach Group wins Scottish plc of the year award

The company – which runs 7,000 buses and employees 30,000 people across the UK – was described by judges as “a company that participates in the whole economy in Scotland”

Wesley Snipes jailed for three years for failing to file tax returns

US actor must also pay up to $17m in back taxes plus penalties and interest in high-profile case

Do more to protect customers' personal details, warns FSA

The Financial Services Authority is urging firms to change their attitude to data security to prevent customers falling victim to identity fraud and financial crime

Banks lose overdraft charges case

A judge has decided that the Office of Fair Trading can apply consumer contract regulations to decide if bank overdraft charges are fair or not

‘Considerable humility’ but no apology from RBS

The only apology offered by Sir Tom McKillop, chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland, at yesterday’s annual meeting was for the absence of one of bank’s non-executive directors

Government to compensate 10p tax losers

Chancellor reacts to criticism of the abolition of the 10p tax rate with increased winter fuel benefits and extended tax credits

Even Starbucks is feeling the grind

It has long considered itself “recession-proof”. But you know times are really tough when people stop going to their local Starbucks for their daily cup of coffee

Accounting should show the truth

Sir David Tweedie, chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board, says now more than ever, accountancy needs to focus on the real numbers

RBS primed to face shareholders

The Royal Bank of Scotland faces shareholders in Edinburgh today after announcing an unprecedented move to raise £12bn

Darling offers to speed up help for tax victims

Chancellor Alistair Darling has told MPs he will act "within this financial year" to answer concerns about ending the 10p tax rate

FRC: too soon to say credit market conditions are returning to normal

The Financial Reporting Council reminds market participants of the importance of disclosures relating to financing arrangements and the risks and uncertainties in the light of credit squeeze

RBS confirms £12bn rights issue

The Royal Bank of Scotland has confirmed that it is asking shareholders for an extra £12bn, in order to shore up its finances

E&Y announces significant globalisation moves

Ernst & Young to integrate all of its 87 country practices in Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa

Chancellor move to avoid tax defeat

Alistair Darling is to meet Labour MPs in an attempt to avert a House of Commons defeat on the abolition of the 10p income tax rate

Darling backs £50bn bank bailout

Chancellor Alistair Darling has backed the Bank of England's £50bn plan to help prevent the credit crisis causing more damage to the UK banking system

ICAS reflects on successful 2007

Institute sees record student numbers, satisfactory financial performance and a strengthening profile in 2007 annual review

Bank of England set to unveil detail of £50 billion credit crunch rescue

Details are expected later today of a plan to use £50 billion in UK Government bonds to restore liquidity to the banking system

Small business calls for fair crack at Government procurement

Following the Office of Fair Trading investigation into alleged price-fixing by large building companies, the small business lobby is calling for a level playing field

Too late for a U-turn on income tax, Chancellor says

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, has said there is no chance of a reprieve for the 10p band of income tax

'Building a strong professional community' is a key theme for new ICAS President

Taking up his post at the ICAS AGM, incoming President Glenn Allison stressed the "business leadership" role of CAs

New president takes over at ICAS

The new president of ICAS takes over the reins today, with Glenn Allison assuming the role being vacated by Isobel Sharp

Don't underestimate forces for stability in the UK economy, says CBI

CBI chief says in the real economy, lots of businesses are doing fine and we're heading for a soft landing

RBS 'prepares fundraising plan'

Britain's second largest bank, the Royal Bank of Scotland, is expected to ask shareholders for up to £12bn of extra cash to improve its financial position

KPMG and E&Y both named Auditor of the Year

KPMG and Ernst & Young have both taken home the award for Auditor of the Year at the Real FD/CBI Finance Directors’ Excellence Awards

FPB urges Government to halt the decline of the UK’s small shops

The Forum of Private Business plea follows a report warning that the majority of independent convenience stores, newsagents, off licences and other specialist retailers could disappear by 2015

ICAS president calls for more rigour in accounting research

Outgoing ICAS president Isobel Sharp used the twentieth anniversary of seminal report Making Corporate Reports Valuable to question the value of much present-day research

Skills shortages are key concern for UK business

Despite concerns over the economy, skills shortages are seen as a key threat to business, says KPMG

Bond rescue plan for banks under fire

Reports of a plan to ease the credit crunch by allowing banks to swap mortage-based assets for Government bonds have attracted criticism from the Opposition

City gender gap for auditors' salaries

Just one in four auditors moving to an in-house role in the City is a woman, according to new research.

Bankers to press Brown on markets

The heads of Britain’s biggest banks meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown amid rising concerns over the global economic crisis

Economic worries hit retail sales

Credit crunch, bad weather and an early Easter combine to send UK retail sales down in March, posting their first fall in almost two years

Business failings cost UK public £6.6bn

Financial services the worst offender as Office of Fair Trading survey says poor products and services cost the public £6.6bn last year

Tax deadline sees rush to sell family businesses for cash

Management buyouts at family-owned Scottish businesses have soared on a double-barrelled boost from recent changes in capital gains tax and the credit crunch

ICAS members win right to compete with lawyers for probate work in England and Wales

The Ministry of Justice in London has approved applications by ICAS to compete with lawyers, notaries and barristers for wills and probate work

Europe fears greater credit crunch shock

Europe will not escape the worst effects of the credit crunch, leading industrialists have warned, and could start to feel a greater effect within six months

World leaders urge action on food prices

World leaders call for urgent action to tackle soaring global food prices, while promising to quickly implement measures to strengthen the international financial system and prevent a repeat of the credit crisis

Follow Scotland’s example on enterprise, urges FPB

The Forum of Private Business is urging the UK Government to follow Scotland’s lead on small businesses, afer research suggested it has bucked the trend by marking a fall in the number of firms going bust

US financial model can be fixed

Overseers of the US and international financial system need to quickly put reforms in place to restore confidence in markets disrupted by a global credit crisis, according to Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke

Bank offers few clues to future policy

The Bank of England gave the markets what they were expecting with its quarter point interest rate cut, but kept its future policy under wraps

Rising inflation is complicating response to world slowdown: IMF

The International Monetary Fund says the global economy is caught between a slowdown in growth and rising inflation, but there is no one-size-fits-all response

Staff morale sinks at HMRC

If you thought just filling out a tax return was demoralising, you should be able to have some sympathy for the staff at HM Revenue and Customs

Interest rates cut by 0.25 per cent, ECB rates unchanged at 4 per cent

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee has trimmed the base rate of lending to 5 per cent

IMF predicts US recession, cuts global growth forecast

The International Monetary Fund says the US will suffer a recession this year, recovery will not begin until next year, and global growth is going to slow to 3.7 per cent

Banks acknowledge role in credit crisis

While publicly accepting much of the blame for the credit crisis, the world’s leading banks have said that further regulation of the industry would be wrong

Accountancy rules broken ‘irretrievably’

The Financial Times reports this morning that rules regarding how banks account for off-balance sheet interests are “irretrievably broken”, according to a warning from a senior group of international rulemakers

New look tax return still not good enough: ICAS

While welcoming the fact that the new return is shorter, Derek Allen, director of taxation at ICAS, says it is still too soon to say whether the pain of changing the form will be worth the gain

IMF: US mortgage crisis to cost the world $1 trillion

How do you put a figure on the global squeeze on credit? According to the International Monetary Fund, potential losses will cost the world economy $945bn (£472bn), and could be even higher

If we're earning more, why aren't we happier?

The latest survey from the Office for National Statistics finds us more affluent and able to afford the good things in life, but we're no happier for it

Better pay, fewer bonuses

Accountants and finance professionals seem to be doing well for pay increases, but not when it comes to an annual bonus, according to a new study

New director of corporate recovery services at MacRoberts

Donald McGruther expected to be active in business restructuring and recovery as credit squeeze takes effect

IMF plans gold sale to raise at least $6bn

The International Monetary Fund votes to sell some of its gold holdings as part of radical plans to shore up its troubled finances

Credit squeeze hitting retailers

Two separate reports show how challenging the business environment has become since the clampdown on consumer lending started to bite

UK bank details for sale online 'for £5'

Web-based criminals are becoming ever more sophisticated in their efforts to acquire confidential information from the internet

Top 10 hedge fund managers earn $14bn

Betting against US subprime mortgage securities helps top traders earn more than the GDP of certain countries

Tesco sues Guardian over tax avoidance claims

The supermarket giant has started legal proceedings for libel and malicious falsehood against the newspaper over allegations it made over Tesco’s tax affairs

IMF head calls for global action on turmoil

Government intervention at a global level is required to tackle the credit crisis, according to the head of the IMF

Brown under fire over tax changes

As a new fiscal year begins, Prime Minister Gordon Brown is again under attack over his decision to scrap the 10p starting rate of tax

Corporate killing laws comes into effect

The business sector could face record fines after the introduction of new corporate killing laws

Credit crisis causes office glut in City

Economic uncertainty sees office lettings in financial district down by almost a third over past six months

HM Revenue and Customs to act as judge and jury under new tax penalties

Under new penalty provisions, HMRC will set the level of fines for tax offenders and also decide the degree of fault

Heathrow operator apologises for T5 chaos

BAA promises 'impeccable service' soon; BA to operate full schedule for first time on Saturday

Spotlight on new stars of Scottish business

Ambitious Scottish businesspeople may have an anxious weekend ahead of them, to see if they have been nominated in the Scottish Business Achievement Awards

Treasury to grant exemption over non-dom tax

The Treasury has caved in to pressure to grant a tax exemption for investment management services to non-domiciles, according to the Daily Telegraph

Small firms 'failing to plan for the unexpected'

UK firms are at risk of going out of business due to a lack of planning for unexpected events, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI)

Entrepreneurs' tax relief could harm thousands of business owners, says ICAS

Finance Bill provisions for proposed CGT relief for entrepreneurs reflect Government paranoia about tax avoidance

Stagecoach founders move to beat capital gains tax deadline

Brian Souter and his sister Ann Gloag have become the latest business figures to save millions of pounds by transferring or selling shares ahead of this weekend’s changes to CGT

Bernanke concedes for the first time that recession is possible

Fed chairman warns that US economy could contract in first half of 2008, but says growth should pick up in second half

Business might be feeling pinch – but not BlackBerry

Manufacturer of the must-have smartphone doubles its profits in last quarter, and over two million new subscriber accounts

HMRC tactics help overcome tax evasion in 'hidden economy'

The National Audit Office says HM Revenue and Customs has become more effective at tackling tax evasion, but the chances of being caught are still too low

Financial sector braced for tougher times ahead

The number of people employed in the financial services sector fell at its fastest rate for five years during the last quarter

KPMG chief calls for a rethink on public company audits

John Griffith-Jones, head of KPMG Europe, calls for new 'kitemark' standard for audits in wake of Enron and WorldCom scandals at an ICAS event

UBS writedown boosts financial markets

The news that the Swiss banking giant is to take a £9.6bn hit saw a boost in sentiment on Wall Street overnight

First Direct suspends mortgage lending

Bank swamped by five times the normal level of applications after rival banks pulled mortgage deals because of worsening conditions in the money markets

Pension plans feel the pinch

Brits are cutting voluntary contributions to their pensions as the rising cost of living is hitting people's plans for the future.

KPMG launches new maternity and parenting package

Firm responding to increasing demands on "Sandwich Generation"

Ernst & Young unveils new look

Big Four firm aiming to present a more consistent and connected view

How will the new Corporate Manslaughter Act affect your business?

Forum of Private Businesses warns that legislation could hit freight transport firms and those with company cars

Accountants likely to vote Conservative

Poll finds boost for David Cameron's party

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