New UK Government measures to support the self-employed will cause “sleepless nights” for those North Sea workers who have been left in limbo, according to industry experts.
Workers have said they have been “hung out to dry” and “abandoned” by Bilfinger Salamis after their jobs were cut without the option to use the government’s coronavirus support scheme.
As one of the most controversial pieces of legislation affecting the flexible workforce, IR35 is never far from the headlines and there have been campaigns and protests to try and halt the reforms. That has now been successful as Contractors celebrated their success last night.
The UK Government has postponed the introduction of a much criticised tax reform that would have had major implications for North Sea contractors.
A looming tax change may be the “death knell” for many one-man band offshore contractors, a leading north-east accountant has warned.
A tax expert has described the government’s five-week review of incoming IR35 legislation as “nowhere near long enough” to fully consider its complex range of issues.
A government review has been launched into new tax rules expected to hit thousands of contractors across the oil and gas industry.
The Treasury has said it “remains committed” to changes to contractor pay rules by April, despite a delayed budget and the upcoming general election.
The eagerly awaited IR35 off-payroll draft legislation was published by the UK Government in mid-July, extending the public sector IR35 changes to large and medium-sized businesses in the private sector.
More than 16,000 people have backed a campaign to stop changes to contractor pay rules which will widely impact the North Sea energy sector.
In the Chancellor’s most recent Autumn Budget the UK government confirmed plans to reform the IR35 tax legislation for the private sector.
Employment law can be complex and the energy sector is not immune from the confusion that surrounds IR35.
Changes to off-payroll working rules will “acutely impact” the North Sea oil and gas sector, a tax expert has warned.
A freelance contractor has said it is “right” the disguised employee model will “disappear” from the North Sea, thanks to incoming legislation.
The chancellor announced a change to off-payroll working rules in yesterday's budget for the private sector, which could have wide implications for the oil and gas industry.
Algeria said it has arrested seven suspected Islamist gunmen in Amenas, close to the gas plant where an attack took place three years ago. A statement said the militants were not linked with any group but a number of different factions including Al Qaeda and ISIS (Islamic State) do operate in the region.
Saudi Arabia is delaying payments to government contractors as the slump in oil prices pushes the country into a deficit for the first time since 2009, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. Companies working on infrastructure projects have been waiting six months or more for payments as the government seeks to preserve cash, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Delays have increased this year and the government has also been seeking to cut prices on contracts, the people said.
Oil and gas contractors are facing a triple tax blow under a stealth £3billion tax raid by George Osborne. As the dust settles on the first Tory budget in nearly 20 years, details of a three-pronged attack on the North Sea's self-employed workforce are now emerging. Contractors - who have already bore the burnt of the job cuts which have plagued the industry since the turn of the year - look certain to lose out on thousands of pounds of income due to changes in Fividend Tax next year.
A conference has been called in Aberdeen to offer advice to oil and gas contractors as North Sea firms begin cutting thousands of jobs and rates are also reduced. Hundreds of people are already out of work as major energy firms react to the Brent crude slump. Last week, Talisman Sinopec said 300 jobs from its North Sea operations are to go, including 200 contractors. Schlumberger and BP have also revealed plans to axe hundreds of north-east jobs.