November Budget - Stop Public sector IR35 rules coming into the Private sector

[bobspud]

The root of the problem is dire situation with budget deficit and they want to find soft targets for tax increases.

and this is where clarity of thought falls flat...

Under the old system if I had a profit of £100000 at the end of the year I would set aside 20% and apportion a dividend that would accrue roughly 2k in capital gains tax each I will have also collected and passed on probably 26k in VAT so my fair share of taxes was

20k corporation tax
26k VAT
4k personal taxes

And the rest of the £80k is free to flow into the rest of society and a very large proportion will be paid to the government in fuel duty, Beer and spirits and then VAT on the rest...

So now they grab what they think is more tax at source but I only have 46% left to spend in society...

So wine sales are down ( lost vat and excise )
Restaurants are replaced with more home cooking... (more lost vat)
I buy a smaller car so now my petrol receipts are far smaller (more less fuel duty )

And next year Spreadsh!t Phil will be left scratching his head at why he seems to have LESS tax take. While the economy loses GDP

The very last place tax should be taken is at the source.

[MrMarkyMark]

Kudos. I network too, I think you have to now to survive or be ahead of the game.

When I made those comments they were mass generalisations and I believe for every one of us that do act like a professional services company, that there are at least two who don't. I am more than happy to be wrong (and probably am)

A lot of us on here try.

The amount that don't would actually be a lot larger than you think.
Its funny working for the same client co and being treated a lot differently to other contractors.

A lot depends on how you set your stall out at the beginning and how you manage the relationship after that.

Have been called everything from a "contractor for life" to a "mercenary" by clients in the past, have always been quite happy they have chosen to make the distinction

[mattfx]

Uhm, speak for yourself. I do exactly those things - full, certified partner status with my primary technology and I cold call contacts all the time. No, I don't phone random businesses - and neither do most consultancies.

Kudos. I network too, I think you have to now to survive or be ahead of the game.

When I made those comments they were mass generalisations and I believe for every one of us that do act like a professional services company, that there are at least two who don't. I am more than happy to be wrong (and probably am)

[OwlHoot]

Uhm, speak for yourself. I do exactly those things - full, certified partner status with my primary technology and I cold call contacts all the time. No, I don't phone random businesses - and neither do most consultancies.

And even if we don't always cold-call prospects ourselves, we rely, far more often than a permanent employee typically must, on someone (agents) to do this, and have to pay them handsomely!

[vwdan]

But let's be honest; it's not the same as a professional services company / reseller is it? We haven't had to cold call prospects, or advertise, keep up accreditation with vendors.

Uhm, speak for yourself. I do exactly those things - full, certified partner status with my primary technology and I cold call contacts all the time. No, I don't phone random businesses - and neither do most consultancies.

[OwlHoot]

The root of the problem is dire situation with budget deficit and they want to find soft targets for tax increases.

Exactly, they just want the money.

And this just shows what a worthless crock of tulip these so-called annual growth figures are, based on GDP.

If there was genuine growth year by year, then taxes would stay more or less constant and become an ever lower percentage of incomes, instead of the opposite.

[AtW]

The driving force is the clients who now want more freedom to hire and fire as the need arises (side stepping employment law in the process). The root of the issue is that HMRC (and he Gvmnt in general) who do not understand the new flexible work force chasing this new need.

The root of the problem is dire situation with budget deficit and they want to find soft targets for tax increases.

[NigelJK]

When I started contracting (around '87) you were a 'Freelancer' (a Contractor was a builder) and you used specialise 'consultancies' to locate your next gig, if you weren't head hunted. The consultancies were usually geared for TV/Radio/Journalists, and the accountants were usually specialised also. The market is now awash with some very 'average' candidates, using mainly checkbox ticking agencies. The driving force is the clients who now want more freedom to hire and fire as the need arises (side stepping employment law in the process). The root of the issue is that HMRC (and he Gvmnt in general) who do not understand the new flexible work force chasing this new need.

[mattfx]

If everyone did what you did, who would drive your uber or serve your coffee in the morning?

I am assuming you have indeed written to your MP then, pr1?

[MrMarkyMark]

But let's be honest; it's not the same as a professional services company / reseller is it? We haven't had to cold call prospects, or advertise, keep up accreditation with vendors. We have had to submit a list of skills to an agent who happens to have work. It's a unique market and you're right; because of the similarities of use finding gigs to permies finding jobs we are viewed in the same way.

Whilst we may also be delivering in a B2B manner, as many people have observed the hiring manager / PM at clientco is hiring you, not your business to deliver. Even if there is a substitution clause in your contract.

To sell that argument of being a "true" B2B business, you'd need someone who has only ever gone direct. I suspect those people are very few and far between.

I haven't used an agency or job site to find work for me for over 6 years now.

Even prior to then, in the early days, I had three direct contracts.
In fact one of those was a big transformation that lasted for around 3 years.

Probably in at least 3 of those occasions I could have subbed someone in fairly easily.
I had previously recommended people for contracts who the client liked on all three of those occasions.
In fact most of those then ended up going direct for those clients.

I did try and band together into a consultancy, made a few quid at it, but decided it was too much trouble at that particular time.
In addition I had 4 roles thieved by an in house recruiter who told a few porkies to my Client Co contact, saying she had to go through them.

That having all being said, I am thinking of starting a managed service at some point, just awaiting the right time.