Haines Watts

Haines Watts | October 20, 2016

The Treasury has announced that it is shelving George Osborne’s plan to allow pensioners to sell their annuities for cash. The former Chancellor mooted the idea in March 2015 as part of his plan for wide-ranging ‘pension freedoms’.The scheme would have given people who already hold an annuity similar freedoms to those approaching retirement, who are no longer required to buy an annuity with their pension pot. Individuals would have been able to sell their annuity income without...

Haines Watts | October 18, 2016

Average wages for self-employed individuals are lower than they were in 1994/95, a report by the Resolution Foundation has revealed. Data published by the think tank showed that, whilst the number of self-employed workers has grown by 45% since 2001/02, their weekly earnings have fallen by £60. The report revealed that self-employed individuals’ typical weekly earnings grew during the late 1990s and early 2000s, but fell in the wake of the financial crisis....

Haines Watts | October 13, 2016

A new report published by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) suggests that the Government has made ‘limited progress’ in reducing the cost of regulation for UK businesses. The Government had previously pledged to reduce the total cost of red tape by £10 billion between 2015 and 2020. In its report, the PAC reveals that, so far, less than £1 billion has been saved. It also suggests that the Government has included the compulsory 5p plastic bag charge as a ‘saving&rs...

Haines Watts | October 10, 2016

The Money Advice Service (MAS) is set to be replaced by a new financial guidance service, the Government has announced. The new service will also replace the Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) and Pension Wise, and will provide consumers with pension advice. The Government had considered creating two separate bodies to replace the MAS and other pension services. However, industry and consumer finance groups raised concerns over how the bodies would work together....