BLOG

The UK Government has announced a wide-ranging plan to support small businesses, outlining a series of measures aimed at tackling long-standing challenges and helping smaller firms to grow.

The plan has been welcomed by leading professional bodies, including the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), as an important step toward strengthening the UK’s small business economy.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show signs that the UK labour market is continuing to cool.

For the three months to June, unemployment rose slightly to 4.7%, the highest in four years, while average pay growth slowed from 5% to 4.6% including bonuses. Excluding one-off payments, pay remained flat at 5%, suggesting that employers are scaling back incentive-based rewards as budgets tighten.

HMRC has launched a new letter campaign targeting companies that may have miscalculated corporation tax marginal relief on their recent returns.

Businesses receiving one of these letters must respond within 30 days, even if they believe their calculations are correct. Failure to do so could result in a formal compliance check and potential penalties.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to deliver her Autumn Budget on 26 November 2025. With borrowing at a five-year high and public finances under pressure, speculation is growing about which tax changes may be announced to raise revenue.

While nothing will be confirmed until Budget Day, it’s worth considering the areas most likely to affect individuals and businesses here in Northern Ireland.

At Exchange Accountants, we’re proud that a recent client survey showed 99% of our clients would be happy to recommend us to family and friends. For us, this is more than just a statistic — it’s a reflection of the relationships we’ve built and the trust our clients place in us.

In business, financial risks don’t always appear on the surface. Sometimes they hide in the detail — and if left unchecked, they can grow into serious problems that affect profitability, compliance, or even a company’s survival. This is where forensic accounting comes into play.

At Exchange Accountants, we are advising clients to review their inheritance planning following significant changes to the way pension savings are treated for inheritance tax (IHT).

Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed in the last autumn Budget that unspent pension pots will now form part of an individual’s estate for IHT purposes, regardless of age at death.

This is a major shift away from previous rules, where pensions could usually be passed on tax-free if the deceased was under 75.

f you have employees or clients with children aged between 16 and 19 years old, there is an important deadline approaching that could impact their entitlement to Child Benefit — worth up to £1,354 a year.