Business News Articles

EU MPs back 20-week maternity leave
Small and medium-sized businesses have been warned that draft legislation has been passed by the European Parliament to extend maternity leave across Europe to 20 weeks on full pay. Under the current European rules women receive 14 weeks leave fully paid. In the UK, women get a year off, with the first six weeks on 90% pay, followed by 33 weeks on Statutory Maternity Pay. The rest is unpaid. If... more

Government to introduce broadband tax
Small and medium-sized business have been warned over a government plan to issue a levy on fixed line broadband users to fund an investment in Britain's broadband infrastructure. This levy will severely effect small firms, which will find their ambitions severely hampered by their inability to access high-speed, low contention network services, according to internet firm Outsourcery. "Access... more

33% of bosses unaware of their obligations
Over a third of small and medium-sized business owners are broadly unaware of their obligations as an employer, according to a survey by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). BIS have launched a service offering tailored advice for business owners on managing their employment law obligations with a free new online tool. "We know that running a small business is both chall... more

New sick note introduced April 6
Small and medium-sized businesses must be aware that a new fit note will be introduced on 6th April this year. The new fit note will allow doctors to give an employer a more detailed account of the employee's capabilities while ill. They can offer advice on the effects of the health condition and whether the patient would be able to work if temporary changes such as reduced working hours or ame... more

BA staff vote to strike
British Airways cabin crew staff have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action over pay and conditions. The BA staff union, Unite, has said that 80% of the11,691 ballot papers it received were in favour of striking, with just 1,789 employees voting against it. However, Unite said it would not be announcing any strike dates as it hoped to continue negotiations with BA. "We can only... more

Mortgage loans fall sharply in January
The number of mortgages that the UK's biggest banks agreed with home buyers declined sharply in January, according to data released by the British Bankers' Association (BBA). The BBA's members approved 35,000 new mortgages to home buyers last month, down from 46,000 in December. Part of the reason for the decline is that many home buyers had rushed to borrow money during December to beat the re... more

Deborah Meaden looks for smartest SMEs
Dragons' Den star and serial entrepreneur Deborah Meaden has joined forces with Smarta to find the UK's smartest small businesses. Smarta.com has uncovered remarkable companies who have gone the extra mile to differentiate themselves from the market or found clever ways to compete, from their marketing plan to their ethical stance Smarta.com conducted a survey of the winners and found some i... more

Retail sales drop 1.8%
UK retail sales fell by 1.8% between December and January, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics. This decline is the sharpest drop in 18 months as the reduction in sales volumes in the month after the Christmas period was more than three times faster than analysts had forecast. However, the figures were weighed down by the inclusion of petrol in the official figur... more

Tories would shut down Business Link
Shadow enterprise minister Mark Prisk has said that if the Conservatives are elected they will shut down Business Link. The advisory service employs 1,500 staff at a cost of £190m per year and has recently come in for criticism . "We believe that Business Link is failing in its task. Many surveys show that only a small proportion of businesses use it, and those that do are dissatisfied wit... more

Government borrowed £4bn in January
The government borrowed an extra £4.3bn last month, according to data released by The Office for National Statistics (ONS). The figures mark the first January that the government has been forced to borrow money since records began in 1993. The county's debt now stands at approximately £178bn. January is traditionally a strong month for tax receipts, but this year the ONS said both income t... more