The Great Debate UK
The legislation affecting your trade
–Joe White is COO of Moonfruit.com. The opinions expressed are his own.–
Legislation affecting your business can seem like one of those extra things you just shouldn’t have to worry about, but it is real and does matter. Some of it is a real pain, and some of it is a good discipline with real benefits.
The main kinds of legislation that affect the running of your business are:
-
Employment law – the relationships between you and your employees, from payment rights to varying types of discrimination
Consumer protection – to ensure that consumers are treated fairly by businesses, such as ensuring product quality is satisfactory.
Tax and regulations – anything from payroll tax, VAT and coporation tax, to filing accounts and statutory documents.
It’s your responsibility in your business to make sure you adhere to all these things. But it doesn’t mean you have to do it yourself. My first advice would be to make sure you have an accountant who is looking out for the day to day stuff, particularly around payroll and other taxes. The Inland Revenue isn’t particularly sympathetic to people paying incorrect tax, and a competent accountant will make sure you do.
from Commentaries:
Team Obama punts again on derivatives
The Obama administration formally sent its plan for regulating derivatives to Capitol Hill today. And to no one's surprise, the key proposal in the 115-bill is a plan to regulate "standard'' derivatives on regulated exchanges of clearinghouses.
As I've pointed out a number of times, Team Obama has yet to come-up with a workable definition for a standard derivative. The administration seems content to kick the issue down the road.
