Newsletters
Spring 2026 Newsletter
As we welcome the new tax year, we are pleased to share our Spring 2026 Newsletter, which outlines key financial planning developments and upcoming changes that may affect you.
Highlights from this issue include:
- Upcoming tax changes for 2026/27 – including dividend tax increases, Making Tax Digital requirements, and changes to capital gains tax.
- Inheritance tax (IHT) reforms – new limits on business and agricultural reliefs, and future inclusion of pensions in estate calculations.
- Estate planning considerations – why now is a good time to review your plans in light of frozen thresholds and rising IHT exposure.
- Pension tax relief opportunities – many individuals may be due refunds due to tax coding errors or unclaimed relief.
- Annuities resurgence – higher interest rates are making guaranteed retirement income options more attractive again.
- ISA planning ahead of rule changes – maximising allowances now before restrictions expected from April 2027.
- Student loan developments – rising repayment pressures and interest rates for graduates.
These changes highlight the importance of proactive, long-term financial planning. If you would like to discuss how any of these updates may impact your personal circumstances, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Winter 2025 Newsletter
Speculation about the size of the black hole in the country’s finances and how the Chancellor was going to fill it was the backdrop to Budget day this Autumn, but on the day there were few surprises. Rachel Reeves stuck to her plan not to raise taxes through national insurance or income tax, which leaves us with a complex taxation strategy to unpick.
Perhaps the least surprising move was to extend the freeze on income tax bands and personal allowances for another three years (although for one more year than anticipated), sweeping another wave of basic-rate taxpayers into the higher-rate band, and tipping others over the higher-rate threshold. This extension to the boundary freeze is equivalent to a tax increase for anyone who gets a pay rise that takes them over a threshold. In the feature for this edition of our newsletter we explore this and other key changes coming down the line, including a hike in dividends tax from April, plus a new limit on salary sacrifice arrangements from 2029/30 and a revision to ISAs limiting cash holdings for under-65s from April 2027.
As the tax system becomes even more complicated, tailored advice will become increasingly important on how to best manage the interaction between income, savings, investments and tax.
Our other stories in this edition include:
- Understanding the inflation factor – The monthly CPI figure, ranging between 2.8% and 3.8% this year, can give the illusion of stability in the price of goods and services, but if the lens pans wider to reveal the cumulative increases since the beginning of the decade, the real impact of inflation on financial plans becomes clear.
- Can you afford your retirement? – Confidence in the State pension scheme is low. As arguments against the affordability of the triple-lock promise gather momentum 51% of adults don’t expect the State pension to last long enough for their retirement, so it’s prudent to make sure your own saving strategy is robust.
- Help for healthy working – The level of sickness among working adults in the UK has risen significantly since the pandemic, and a large proportion of absence due to younger people experiencing mental health issues. Employers may be able to support their staff better but you can also take steps to protect yourself and your lifestyle in case of health problems.
Our next newsletter will be available in March, when we will look ahead to the new financial year. Please do get in touch if we can continue to help or provide you with more information on any of the topics covered.
Summer 2025 Newsletter
The phrase ‘feel the heat’ could be applied both to the weather so far this summer and domestic and global politics. Following the Chancellor’s Spending Review on 11 June, the pressure is on the government to fund its investment commitments within its own financial rules. Meanwhile, developments on the world stage continue to concern and influence short- and long-term decision making.
One area of life that affects us all is ensuring we have made adequate provision for when we stop work. The Work and Pensions Committee reported on the success of employer auto enrolment pension arrangements in 2024 but concluded that contribution levels are too low to match individuals’ expectations for retirement. Our feature in this edition of the newsletter considers strategies for sustainable pension investment, whatever your stage of life. It is never too late, or too early, to make a difference to your pension fund.
There’s now just under a year until HMRC’s Making Tax Digital (MTD) programme starts to become mandatory for some taxpayers. The project to automate tax reporting should reduce opportunities for errors and omissions in business receipts and tax calculations. From April 2026 the self-employed and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 will need to have MTD-compliant software for reporting their finances, so if you if you are likely to affected, now is the time make sure you know what is required in the new regime.
Our other stories in this edition include:
• The lessons of ‘Liberation Day’ – President Trump’s power to affect the stock market by announcing erratic policy measures may appear to create opportunities for quick financial gains, but ultimately the markets recover and investors could lose out trying to predict how fast that will happen.
• Funding for long-term care – An independent commission on long-term care will report initial findings in 2026, but nothing will be due for implementation until 2036, leaving another generation to fund their own personal care costs.
• Wedding bells and wedding bills – The number of couples saying ‘I do’ has bounced back strongly after the Covid-19 pandemic, despite a significant rise in the costs of a wedding or civil ceremony. If you are planning to help pay for your child’s big day, consider starting to save as early as possible.
Our next newsletter will be available in the autumn, when we will be anticipating the Chancellor’s likely plans for the Budget. Please do get in touch if we can continue to help or provide you with more information on any of the topics covered.
Spring 2025 Newsletter
Here’s our summary of the Spring Statement delivered by the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, on Wednesday 26 March.
Having set herself ‘iron-clad’ fiscal rules and the goal of holding a single fiscal event each year, the Chancellor was in a difficult position only five months after her first Budget. Growth had been slower and interest rates and inflation higher than the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projected last October, meaning that her main fiscal target was liable to be missed. Despite much press speculation, fresh tax increases were ruled out until the next full Budget, so her focus was turned on controversial spending cuts.
A large slice of the pain was borne by the welfare budget, with well-trailed reductions to Personal Independence Payments (PIPs) and the health-related element of Universal Credit. However, there were a variety of other measures, including administrative and technical tax changes, as well as increased fees for passports and other Home Office services.
Among the key headline items were:
- cuts to sickness and disability benefits producing projected net savings of £4.8 billion a year by 2029/30;
- tax administrative reforms aimed at raising over £1 billion a year;
- a £3.25 billion Transformation Fund to improve public sector productivity;
- confirmation that the Treasury is “looking at options for reforms to Individual Savings Accounts”, with the emphasis on the balance between cash and equities; and
- a projection from the OBR that growth in 2025 would be 1% – half the level projected last October – but that each of the subsequent four years would see higher growth than last autumn’s.
As ever, the Treasury’s publications contained a wide range of detailed proposals and much to digest. Our summary highlights the key aspects likely to affect you. If you have any questions about what you should do next, please get in touch.
Winter 2024 Newsletter
As we move from 2024 to 2025, we leave behind a year of marked political change. Along with 60 other countries, the UK went to the polls in 2024 resulting in a firm Labour win after 14 years in opposition. The US will see the return of Donald Trump to the White House, while countries as far apart as France and South Korea grapple with political tensions. How these play out is likely to affect a range issues in the new year. Meanwhile you still have three key months in which to review your finances and consolidate your planning ahead of the tax year end in April.
While Labour’s first Budget at the end of March included an immediate change to levels of capital gains tax, there was also no movement on frozen tax bands and thresholds. The effect has been to push increasing numbers into higher tax brackets. We can help you navigate all the complexities and hurdles, keeping your personal finances on track.
Our Winter 2024 Newsletter will assist in making sure you maximise your allowances and reliefs to reduce your tax bill. The guide offers practical, concise steps you can take across key issues, such as:
- income tax saving opportunities
- tax-efficient investments
- pensions planning
- directors, employees and the self-employed
- capital gains tax planning
- inheritance tax planning
- charitable giving
With added examples and key planning points, we hope the guide gives you some ideas for how to make the most of your finances for the end of the tax year. If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.
Autumn 2024
As the days start drawing in again, all eyes are focused on the end of October when the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, will deliver her first Budget. The timing of the day before Halloween lends itself to some joking scary references, but the context of the new Labour government’s initial Budget is sobering. Following the dramatic revelations about the poor state of the Treasury finances within three weeks of taking power, both the Chancellor and Prime Minister Kier Starmer have referred to “difficult choices” to be made. The first of these – restricting the Winter Fuel Allowances for pensioners – was immediately controversial. While Labour’s election manifesto ruled out income tax or national insurance rises, the promise to add VAT to private school fees is already in train for January.
Our feature in this edition of our newsletter focuses on the Chancellor’s likely targets for tax increases in the Budget. After promising not to raise taxes for working people, taxing other forms of wealth seems likely to be in her sights. Meanwhile the burden on those paying tax at higher rate is falling on ever more shoulders, with over a million more people becoming higher-rate taxpayers since the threshold freezes of 2021/22. New, higher rate brackets introduced in Scotland and the lowered additional-rate threshold from 2023/24 have swelled these numbers further. The threshold freezes are due to remain in place until 2028, although it is possible even then they will not be updated – the Chancellor may see retaining a strategy already in place as less difficult than introducing new measures.
Our other stories include:
- Interest rates take a step down – The Bank of England’s first cut to base rate in four years opens the prospect of a new environment for investors. Now may be the moment to lock in fixed rates as returns on fixed interest securities start to fall.
- Dividends deliver – behind the headlines – Bumper dividend payouts in 2024 mask the full story for investors as the numbers have been significantly skewed by ‘special’ payments. The real picture is more nuanced across different sectors.
- The truth about student loans – This autumn’s university starters will be subject to the new repayment terms set in place by the previous government. Their threshold for loan repayments has been brought down to £25,000 and their term extended from 30 to 40 years.
By the next issue of the newsletter in December, we will be fully engaged in digesting the impact of the October Budget announcements. Please do get in touch if we can continue to help or provide you with more information on any of the topics covered.
Summer 2024
Despite expectations of an election during 2024, Rishi Sunak’s choice to go early on 4 July caught everyone from his party to the pundits by surprise. The six weeks of campaigning saw claim and counter claim around tax policy, the NHS, housing and other key issues which will have fed into voters’ decisions on polling day. Where summer is usually a calmer time in politics, that seems unlikely as a new government takes stock over the next few weeks and sets the direction of travel.
Tax has, of course, featured heavily and regardless of the election outcome, 2024/25 is set to be a challenge for many taxpayers. In the Summer edition of our newsletter, we give readers a nudge to check their tax status. The cumulative effect of tax allowance freezes will push some over a tax-paying threshold, but if you’re not already using self-assessment you will have to check what you owe and notify HMRC of tax owed.
Both the main parties committed to maintaining the State pension triple lock, which goes some way to reassuring those coming up to or in retirement. As we cover in our feature for this edition, the costs of retirement have escalated again. The annual review of the costs of living in retirement from the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association showed that, in one year, the cost of retirement had increased by over 25% for a couple living outside London to enjoy a minimum level of retirement. So planning your contributions through your pre-retirement years is more crucial than ever.
Our other stories include:
- Don’t fall for scams this summer – Holiday-booking frauds stole £12.3 million from holidaymakers in 2023, but scams are all too commonplace across every financial area.
- The cost of sickness – Long-term sickness rates have risen substantially in 2024, but State provision for those unable to work is very little. Is your income protection enough to see you through a period of inability to work?
- Basis year now means tax year – The shift of the taxation period for self-employed workers and partnerships to align with the tax year will cause some complications and higher payments in the self-assessment process this year and could pull some into higher taxes.
By the next issue of the newsletter, our new government will be getting established, and we may even have seen another Budget. Please do get in touch if we can continue to help or provide you with more information on any of the topics covered.
Spring 2024
The days are getting lighter as we move into the time of year for regeneration and uplift. Certainly the government will be hoping that positive news on the downward trend of inflation will lift voters’ spirits in this election year. With the Bank of England expected to nudge interest rates down as well over the next few months, there may well be an ‘air of spring’ for many.
The Chancellor seemed to be hoping his additional national insurance cuts announced in the Spring Budget would boost that feeling. Although most of the measures that appeared were thoroughly teased, there were still a few surprises to affect your new tax year planning. There was an element of swings and roundabouts: for example, the increased threshold for the introduction of the high income child benefit charge from £50,000 to £60,000 came with an increase to the size of the band to which it applies from £60,000 to £80,000.
We explore this and other key takeaways from the Budget in the feature for the Spring edition of our newsletter. We also look at the probable lowering of interest rates in 2024 and the potential effects on your savings. If you’ve been holding cash deposits, either directly or in money market funds, the benefit you’ve seen from the accumulated rise in rates will begin to dissipate.
Our other stories include:
- The renewed case for ISAs – The combination of the erosion of the value of tax allowances and improved terms mean that ISAs are coming back into fashion for the new tax year.
- Succession – have you got a plan? – It’s not just fictional warring families and multinational empires that need to face up to managing future ownership and control. Private company shareholder/directors or partners need to ensure they have planned for transition and the unforeseen.
- Tax charge trap for pension withdrawals – With the pension freedom rules giving people more flexible and earlier access to their retirement savings, many are finding themselves penalised with higher tax payments on initial withdrawals.
There may be more clarity on the path to an election by the summer when we’ll share our next edition with you. Please do get in touch if we can continue to help or provide you with more information on any of the topics covered.