Business News Articles

Email details to be kept for a year by ISPs
Details of every email sent or received in the UK will have to be retained by internet service providers (ISPs) from March of this year.... more

New broadband service launched for small companies
broadband service has been launched that is aimed specifically at small businesses in the fields of media and design companies. Enhanced Upstream has speeds of 16Mb downstream and 2.5Mb upstream and is aimed at SMEs that are dependent on adequate bandwith to send large amounts of data. The package also includes unlimited transfer, upload and download, 100Mb webspace and guaranteed download s... more

Pensions ‘increasingly important to keep and retain staff’
Over 90% of employers believe pensions are a key recruitment and retention tool, according research by HSBC actuaries and Consultants (HACL). The survey found 92% of employers believe pensions are an important way of attracting and keeping staff, but that 88% think that staff are not equipped to deal with the levels of risks associated with different pensions. "Employers recognise now, more ... more

Small firm owners warned over IT security
Small business owners have been warned that the IT security in many UK businesses is not sufficient and is placing companies at risk. "Security breaches are entirely preventable - effective and inexpensive technology exists to prevent them," said Nick Garlick, managing director of IT protection firm Nebulas Security. "It should be so ingrained in their culture that patching and anti-virus up... more

Almost half of staff believe they work better away from the office
Almost half of employees believe that they work more effectively remotely but only 8% of managers trust their staff to work out of the office, according to research conducted by YouGov. The research, commissioned by BT Business and Nortel, revealed that 42% of staff feel that they could work better remotely but, despite a raft of new technology, business owners are reluctant to allow their staf... more

Small firms welcome freeze in small companies corporation tax
The majority of small firms believe that the freeze in small companies corporation tax will help their business, according to a survey by the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC). 52% of respondents reported that the delay in increasing the tax would help their business in the current economic climate. Not all government measures to help business have been met with approval - over 90% of Britis... more

Pre-tax profits for BT down 81%
Telecommunications giant BT have announced that pre-tax profits in the three months to December 2008 have fallen 81% from £630m to £113m. Shares in the company have fallen to a record low following the announcement, down to the lowest level since BT was privatised in 1984. This news follows a report by the telecoms regulator that it would not be able to stop BT from securing an adequate re... more

Only ‘£12m’ lent to small firms through loan guarantee scheme
Only £12m has so far been lent to small companies under the government's £1bn loan guarantee scheme for small businesses, according to research by the Financial Times. Gordon Brown launched the scheme to try and ensure that banks continued to lend to small firms in the economic downturn, and the PM recently stated that over 60,000 businesses had benefited from the scheme. However, this fig... more

New IT service offers savings for small firms
Specialist supplier of Web-based services for small businesses, Business IT online, have launched a series of services to the SME market to help them cut costs. With recent reports from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) showing that over 80% of small firms saw their costs increase last year any area that small companies can save money is potentially vital. Business IT online have laun... more

Over £1bn worth of ‘time to pay’ deals agreed with HMRC
Over 60,000 businesses have taken advantage of HM Revenue & Customs time to pay arrangements and delayed paying certain taxes. The total figure of delayed payment by UK firms, many of them small companies, is over £1bn. The time to pay arrangements are particularly helpful to smaller firms that are experiencing cash flow and credit difficulties during the current recession. "This service... more