The government is pressing ahead with its plans to make property agents in the private sector join “an approved or designated client money protection (CMP) scheme” if they handle client money. The move follows a public consultation by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government at the end of last year. In its response
The government has introduced new measures to protect company directors from identity fraud after research showed they are twice as likely as other people to be targeted by criminals. Until now, directors were required to register their personal address with Companies House. The records are public documents, so the information is available to anyone. This
Large employers who’ve missed the deadline for reporting on their gender pay gap have been given extra time to comply – but they’ve been told they’ve entered the “last chance saloon” to avoid penalties. Private and voluntary sector employers with 250 or more staff were required to report the information by 4 April. The Equality
An agency worker who was not provided with the ‘same basic working and employment conditions’ as regular employees has won his claim of unequal treatment. The case involved Mr D Kocur, who had been supplied to Royal Mail by an agency. He worked for the company for 12 weeks, triggering his entitlement to the same
Companies House has issued new guidance to help directors comply with regulations relating to identifying and recording who owns or controls the business. The owner or the person who makes the key decisions is known as a Person with Significant Control (PSC) or the ‘beneficial owner’. Companies must identify their PSCs when registering with Companies
The death of inventor Trevor Baylis saddened many people who had seen him on TV or used one of the numerous products he created. Baylis was perhaps best known for his wind-up radio which he proudly showed off on BBC’s Tomorrow’s World. He developed it after seeing the difficulty that governments in poorer countries were
The government has outlined plans to provide more protection for small and medium-sized businesses who supply companies that become insolvent. It also wants to prevent directors from unfairly shielding themselves from the effects of insolvency. Ministers say that in the worst cases, directors can even profit from business failures while workers and small suppliers lose
A commercial landlord has won a dispute with the liquidators of the former BHS retailer over the payment of rent. The issue arose because BHS had entered into a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) to pay reduced rents to landlords of its stores and offices. The agreement contained a clause stating that if the CVA was
A door company has been refused a court order to compel a longstanding supplier to continue providing it with products. Vibrant Doors Ltd claimed that after years of business between the two firms, its supplier Rohden UK Ltd suddenly terminated their agreement, without reasonable notice. Vibrant claimed this was unlawful and damaged its business. However,
The introduction of tougher electrical safety standards for rented properties has been put forward for public consultation by Housing Minister Heather Wheeler. The move comes after recent data revealed that tenants in the private housing sector were at a higher risk of electrical shocks and fires caused by electrical faults than those in social housing.