Cobbler Timpson will face millions in losses after Chancellor's National Insurance tax raid
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
COBBLERS chain Timpson has warned it will face a multi-million-pound hit from the Chancellor's tax raid — just months after its boss quit to join the Government.
The family-owned firm, known for its history of hiring former offenders, saw CEO James Timpson step down to become Prisons Minister in July to work on reforming jails.
2
Timpson has warned it will face a multi-million-pound hit from the Chancellor's tax raid
Credit: Alamy
2
James Timpson stepped down as CEO to become Prisons Minister in July to work on reforming jails
Credit: Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing St
In the company's first set of accounts since the General Election, it says: 'His time in Government will be a loss to the business.'
Timpson reported sales rose by 4.5 per cent last year to £347million, while profits jumped by 26 per cent to £48million.
But the company said its record year would be difficult to match in the face of big increases in the minimum wage and 'a swinging increase in our contribution to National Insurance'.
The firm, which already pays above the Living Wage rate, said it would face £12million of extra costs from Rachel Reeves' changes to NI.
The admission is awkward given Lord Timpson's ministerial role.
The Labour peer did not return a request for comment.
Timpson is often held up as an example of a good employer.
It has 17 holiday lodges for staff to take breaks, and it spent £711,000 last year on training recruits with a criminal record.
Ex-offenders make up 12 per cent of its workforce.
Accounts show it paid the Treasury £108.2million last year in VAT, employment taxes and business rates on its shops.
Martin Lewis issues warning for 700,000 workers as National Insurance hikes have 'direct impact' on take home pay
RIVAL DOC BID
A TUSSLE for NHS doctor surgery landlord Assura has taken a fresh twist after healthcare investor Primary Health Properties made a £1.68billion offer yesterday.
It is higher than the £1.61billion accepted from private equity firms KKR and Stonepeak Partners.
Assura will consider the new offer.
RICH TAX PUSH
THE UK's richest are paying less tax than they should, a watchdog says.
The National Audit Office said HMRC had earned £5.2billion from tackling 'non-compliance' from well-off taxpayers in 2023/24.
That was more than £1billion higher than projections — confirming more avoidance than expected.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Labour's industrial strategy is a corporatist, state-led agenda
Within the strategy, the talk is of competitiveness, the answer is intervention. The document acknowledges that firms are concerned about high electricity prices and lengthy waits for grid connections, and the answer is that the current policy is right but can be tweaked. The burden of regulation and the speed of planning are noted as barriers, so let's see if the government's actions back their words in trying to address these. I doubt it on regulation, but I am more hopeful of planning reform, which would indeed make a profound, welcome difference to growth prospects. At their core, industrial policies reflect scepticism about markets and an aversion to supply-side reform. Instead of removing hurdles to growth as supply-side policies would, industrial policies often reflect the lethal combination of politicians driven by a belief that the state drives growth, academics who think they know best and lobbyists. This new strategy is unlikely to improve underlying business conditions. Industrial policy is sometimes presented as a complement to supply-side reform, but more often, it becomes a substitute. One criticism has been that government spending crowds out the private sector, but this strategy hopes that funds directed to the IS-8 will crowd it in. Let's see. There is also something amiss about these eight sectors in that they reinforce the imbalanced nature of the economy. The UK is a low wage economy because half the population work in low paid jobs. Outside London and the South East the numbers employed in these eight sectors is very limited. The UK's approach to such strategies often leans towards tax credits. That remains a focus. This new strategy explicitly mentions the role tax plays in incentivising investment, innovation and growth. It then argues our current approach is competitive. Really? In the 2024 International Tax Competitiveness Index, the UK ranked 30th out of 38 OECD countries and looks more likely to fall, than rise. The last 12 months have been turbulent for the world economy and difficult for the UK. But instead of tax, spend and borrow, what we need is for the UK to save, invest and compete. Gerard Lyons is a research fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE How many adults are on PIP in YOUR neighbourhood? Shock figures show up to a third of working age adults are claiming the disability benefit in parts of England
Nearly a third of working-age adults currently get personal independence payments (PIP) in parts of England, analysis shows. MailOnline's audit of Government figures – presented in an interactive map below – names the PIP capital as a suburb of Plymouth. Neighbourhoods within Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Stockton-on-Tees have similarly high rates. Critics of Labour 's ballooning £143billion welfare bill said the figures should act as a 'wake up call' for the Government. The analysis comes after Keir Starmer completed a humiliating backtrack on his flagship welfare reforms package at the eleventh hour, following sustained pressure from over 120 MPs. The initial package of reforms was mooted to save around £5billion by the end of the Parliament and included a restriction on the eligibility for PIP. Existing claimants were to be given a 13-week phase-out period of financial support in an earlier move that was seen as a bid to head off opposition by aiming to soften the impact of the changes. It's understood now that around 370,000 existing PIP claimants will be able to keep their payments. But the change on Personal Independence Payment (Pip) is estimated to wipe up to £2billion off the £5billion savings by the end of the Parliament, and Universal Credit tweaks another £1billion. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is odds-on to hike taxes to pay for the financial shortfall, experts have said. If the legislation clears its first hurdle on Tuesday, it will then face a few hours' examination by all MPs the following week – rather than days or weeks in front of a committee tasked with looking at the Bill. Anyone with a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability that affects their day-to-day life can get PIP, including adults in full-time employment. Latest Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) statistics show 3.7million people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland currently receive it. This is up from around 2m before Covid struck. The number of young people aged 16-24 receiving PIP has also skyrocketed, as too have claims for anxiety and depression. PIP is split into two parts and claimants can be eligible for both. The daily living part goes to adults needing help with everyday tasks, whereas the mobility part is doled out to those who require assistance getting around. Whether they get one or both parts and how much they get depends on how difficult they find everyday tasks and getting around. Anyone nearing the end of life such as from a life-limiting illness will automatically get the daily living part – but the mobility part depends on their needs. Adults undergoing PIP assessments are scored on a scale of zero to 12 – based on how difficult they find everyday tasks such as preparing and eating food. Currently, someone who receives between eight and 11 points in total gets the daily living part of PIP at a standard rate, worth £73.90 per week. If they get at least 12 points, they get the daily living component at an enhanced rate, worth £110.40 a week. Under current rules, an applicant needs to be scored at least eight points in any combination to be awarded the lowest rate of PIP. If the package passes, they would need this to have scored four of these points in a single activity. MailOnline's analysis found the Victoria Park area of Plymouth to be the PIP capital. In that particular district, almost 32.5 per cent (1,336) of its 3,940 working-age adults receive the handout. Victoria Park was followed by Byker East in Newcastle-upon-Tyne (31.8 per cent) and the Central Stockton & Portrack region of Stockton-on-Tees (30.5 per cent). Our investigation revealed the rate stood above 20 per cent in 58 of 7,200 MSOAs – tiny communities across England home to around 5,000 people. All but four of these neighbourhoods were in the north. The DWP uses out-of-date 2011 boundaries for its benefits data, but the ONS uses 2021 boundaries for its population figures. To get correct figures for the current geographies, we have had to convert these to 2021 boundaries, which could lead to discrepancies in the calculations. John O'Connell, chief executive, at the TaxPayers' Alliance told MailOnline: 'These figures should be a wake up call for this government. 'When nearly one in three working-age adults in some areas are on disability benefits, its clear that something has gone badly wrong. 'PIP must be reformed to support those in genuine need, rather than becoming an easily accessible income stream.' Our investigation involved analysing DWP data on the number of working-age adults claiming benefits in all 7,200 MSOAs. We then compared these figures with the ONS's latest estimates of the working age (16 to 64) population in these areas, allowing us to calculate a percentage. Government data is still collected via 2011 boundaries set by the Census. MailOnline has converted it to the 2021 boundaries.
Wales Online
3 hours ago
- Wales Online
Prime Minister meets trainee pilots and sees a flight simulator at RAF Valley
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer met trainee pilots and their families and was shown a flight simulator on a visit to RAF Valley on Anglesey. The No 10. leader made the visit yesterday to help mark Armed Forces Day today as he prepared to attend the Welsh Labour Party conference in Llandudno. Armed Forces Day takes place on the last Saturday of June. It is a chance to show support for the men and women who make up the UK's military units. The PM was joined at RAF Valley by Wales' First Minister Eluned Morgan MS and Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens MP. Today on Armed Forces Day there will be events to support serving personnel, service families, veterans and cadets. They will take place across the country with a national event in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire. Get the best island stories from our Anglesey newsletter - sent every Friday (Image: Paul Currie/PA Wire) It comes as the Government confirms plans for the first time that all government departments will have to legally consider the needs of the Armed Forces community when making new policy. More details of the legal duty will be set out in due course but could include initiatives such as extending travel benefits to the families of veterans and the bereaved, or flexible working for partners of serving personnel who are required to move as part for their role in the Armed Forces. The Government says this delivers on a manifesto promise and is part of the Government's commitment to renew the nation's contract with those who serve and following the Strategic Defence Review, which underscored the role the Armed Forces play in protecting our national security, which it says is the foundation of the Government's Plan for Change. (Image: Paul Currie/) The Government says it is committed to renewing its contract with the Armed Forces community, delivering two above inflation pay awards for service personnel and an extra £1.5bn investment this parliament to improve forces' family housing through the Strategic Defence Review. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: 'Across the country and around the world, our service personnel and their families make the ultimate sacrifice to keep us safe and protect our freedom and our way of life. 'When I became Prime Minister, I made a promise to serve those who have served us. Through the new Armed Forces Covenant, we are delivering on that promise - ensuring our service personnel, veterans and their families are treated with the respect they deserve - that is our duty."
