The Ministry of Justice says it will be consulting on plans to extend the scope of the criminal offence of a corporate “failing to prevent” beyond bribery and tax evasion, to other economic crimes. Apparently, police and other law enforcement agencies can struggle to prosecute corporations for money laundering, false accounting, and fraud under existing…
April saw business activity growth slow across England and Wales, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Regional Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). Employment rose only slightly, signalling caution among businesses, while cost pressures picked up amid the introduction of the National Living Wage and higher fuel prices. The index measuring business activity across England’s private sector…
The Enterprise Act is now on the statute book, affecting the UK’s 5.4 million businesses. According to the Government, the Act will help it deliver on many of its commitments, from cutting red tape and tackling late payment to boosting the quality and quantity of apprenticeships. It includes measures to: •establish a Small Business Commissioner…
April saw the seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fall below the critical no-change mark of 50.0 for the first time since March 2013. At 49.2, from a downwardly revised reading of 50.7 in March, Markit suggests that the headline index was dragged lower by lacklustre trends in production and new orders and declines…