Opinion

Alan Stewart, tax partner at chartered accountancy practice Meston Reid & Co urges individuals to consider all the options when it comes to inheritance tax. There’s unlikely to be any single solution for people looking to minimise their estate’s exposure to inheritance tax (IHT) liab

Andrew Sackey, partner and head of tax fraud investigation at Pinsent Masons, discusses the accelerating speed of the crackdown on corporate fraud. As we edge towards the end of the first working week of this new decade, it is worth noting that tax compliance measures first introduced at the start o

Callum McInnes of BTO solicitors discusses the pros and cons of bridging finance. Over the past five years or so, mainstream lenders have cut back and in many cases withdrawn lending altogether. This has made way for an alternative form of funding in the form of bridging finance.

John Moore, senior investment manager at Brewin Dolphin, highlights the company's predictions for the year ahead. After a choppy 12 months for markets, investors will be hoping 2020 will be the year for resolutions – not necessarily in terms of promises kept, but conclusions to a variety of lo

The third decade of devolution will see Scotland - and its business community - wrestle with an unprecedented period of change, Andrew McRae, of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Scotland has underlined in his festive message. Over the last two decades, Scotland’s smaller firms have rev

SNIPEF CEO Fiona Hodgson outlines Section75 pensions issue facing some plumbers. The road to hell is paved with good intentions which, in the case of the current situation with the Plumbing Pensions Scheme, is having a devastating impact on our industry and many of the people within it across the UK

KPMG’s family business leader Kirsty Ross discusses how succession dominates the agenda for Scotland’s family-owned businesses. They’re increasingly dubbed ‘the backbone’ of the Scottish economy. Scotland’s family-owned businesses contribute billions, with at leas

Gillian MacLellan, partner and employment law specialist at law firm CMS, discusses whether a four day work week would be successful for companies and staff. Labour’s manifesto commitment of moving UK workers to a four day week caught the headlines earlier this month. The party proposes to mov

Helen Brown of Anderson, Anderson and Brown details how UK companies are due to face many legislative challenges but tax opportunities can significantly help firms handle the changes. Over the years, the UK has continued to drive towards a more competitive Corporate Tax (CT) regime. This has be

Partner and head of banking and finance at Lindsays, Gavin Buchan, discusses how the rise of new finance possibilities is a positive development for all. When anything crashes and burns, there is often something that rises from the ashes. Since the economy emerged from the other side of the global f

Understanding the complex UK tax system is hard as it is, but when you layer on the interaction with the devolved administrations, the task gets even harder for Scottish voters. RSM’s Shirley McIntosh unpicks the manifesto claims with a Scottish lens. We have often mentioned the complexity of

John Cowan, a retail expert working with Business Gateway, discusses the reality of the retail market and the opportunities on offer to small businesses. Retailers across Scotland have recently been bombarded with a lot of doom and gloom, proclaiming the death of the high street. However, when takin

Following the announcement made by the Living Wage Foundation that the real living wage in the UK and London has increased, Jenny Stewart, head of infrastructure, government and healthcare at KPMG discusses what increasing the real Living Wage means for Scottish workers. Today, the real Living Wage

In a new report for Common Weal, former chief statistician Jim Cuthbert examines the newly developed 'Mutual Investment Model' that the Scottish Government has adopted for at least some future public infrastructure projects.

Dave Smith, tax manager at Meston Reid & Co, has urged contractors to seek IR35 advice now and not wait until 2020 to do so. In just a few months from now, new employment tax legislation is due to come into effect for medium and large businesses that engage contractors who operate through an int