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The national minimum wage has risen by 19p to £6.50 per hour as of 1 October 2014. The rate applies to anyone aged 21 or over. All other rates have also risen, with workers aged 18-20 now earning at least £5.13 per hour, workers aged 16-17 on at least £3.79 per hour and apprentices on
New measures to help designers and patent holders protect their valuable intellectual property (IP) came into effect in October. The Intellectual Property Act 2014 was introduced to modernise and streamline the whole IP legal framework. It is hoped that the measures will contribute £500m to the UK economy over the next ten years. Key reforms
Up to 10,000 new homes will be built between 2015 and 2018 as part of the government’s new Rent to Buy scheme. Housing associations will be able to apply for low-cost loans from a fund of £400m to finance the projects. They will then have 16 years to repay the loans, and during this time,
The inheritance tax threshold could rise significantly before the general election in May 2015. Prime Minister David Cameron believes that families should not be made to pay large amounts of tax on homes where they have lived for several years. He hopes to increase the inheritance tax threshold in the coalition’s final budget before the
A man has been ordered to pay £28,500 to his former partner after he had assured her that she would have a home for life. The couple began living together in 2002. The woman had been living in a secure tenancy and had limited resources. They bought a house with the man’s capital and he
The Help to Buy schemes, launched by the government last year, have enabled nearly 40,000 people to buy their first home, according to official statistics. Help to Buy consists of two schemes which enable people to buy a property even if they only have 5% of the purchase cost. More than 48,000 people in total
The level of compensation a victim receives for hurt feelings in employment disputes is to be raised by 10%. Earlier in the year, the Court of Appeal decided that there should be a 10% rise in the monetary value placed on a victim’s hurt feelings in civil cases. The Employment Appeal Tribunal has now confirmed
Changes have been made to the family court system with the aim of improving standards and speeding up the process. The new measures mean that only the most qualified, experienced and recognised professionals will be allowed to give evidence in family cases where children are involved. These expert witnesses can only give evidence if the
The government has simplified inheritance laws in order to modernise the process of dividing the assets of a person who dies without making will. It follows a review of intestacy law and a consultation carried out by the Law Commission. Under the new laws, if a person dies intestate, that is without leaving a will,
The government is to introduce new measures that will make it easier for people to build their own home. Under the Right to Build scheme, people who want to build their own home will be able to get help from their local council to find a suitable plot of land. The scheme will be trialled