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Strategic Advisory

Supporting staff through the cost of living crisis

The pandemic brought huge disruption to businesses of all shapes and sizes; over the least two years, their staff have had to endure once-in-a-career disruption as business model wheels had to be re-invented at warp speed. Loyal employees were put on furlough for extended periods and sometimes asked to make great financial sacrifices, or else they were plunged into working

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Is inflation the last straw for the food & beverage sector?

We reported in detail on the finances and risks in the food and beverage sector in early December 2021, just as the Omicron variant was emerging as the latest wave of the pandemic. With the exception of the travel industry, no UK sector has suffered more disruption and commercial damage than our pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants. Four months on,

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Mini-umbrella company (MUC) fraud . . . HMRC are on the case

Many businesses use temporary labour from specialist labour supply companies, whether they are in agriculture, food processing, construction, healthcare or other sectors. Statistics from the Office for National Statistics published in Q3 2021 showed that the temporary labour market had grown by 5% in the previous twelve months. The use of umbrella companies as the conduit for filling temporary vacancies

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Rent arrears remedies will be available again to unpaid landlords

Of all the many restrictions placed on creditors to protect businesses during the pandemic, none have been as long lasting or wide ranging as those, which have prevented the enforcement of rent arrears throughout the crisis. This shelter has been vital to many viable but cash-strapped enterprises, but as from 25th March 2022, the full panoply of remedies will be

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The dividend ‘dilemma’: How to protect yourself and your business

It is common practice for director/shareholders of owner-managed businesses to take remuneration by way of a low basic salary paid through PAYE, with the remainder being taken as shareholder dividends. This is because dividends typically attract a lower rate of tax (both for the individual and the company) than would be payable as an employee. Yet, although this is common

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Opus kicks off new year with Adrian Chambers joining as Partner

2022 will be a year of renewed optimism for many business owners as they hope to put the pandemic well and truly behind them and plan for a more positive future and ways to grow their businesses following the impact of covid. Raising finance will undoubtedly be at the top of most agendas with asset-based lending viewed as one of the

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