New Milton Advertiser 2nd Oct 2020

18 · Friday 2nd October 2020

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Business Monaco move for billionaire Sir Jim

Cautious welcome for new jobs plan

LOCAL business groups have welcomed Chancellor Rishi Su - nak’s latest jobs plan, unveiled last Thursday, but also sounded a note of caution. A major part of the Chancel - lor’s winter economic plan is the Job Support Scheme, set to replace the furlough initia- tive and will ensure employees who work at least a third of their normal hours receive up to three quarters of their sal- aries for six months. However, this would only support “viable jobs” according to Mr Sunak, who did not elaborate on its definition. The new scheme begins on 1st November and is estimated to cost the government £300m a month. Mr Sunak also announced the temporary reduction of VAT rates the hospitality and tour- ism sectors, from 20% to 5%, would remain until 31s March next year, rather than 13th Jan - uary. Dorset Chamber chief exec - utive Ian Girling said: “Many firms will welcome the new measures although some may be concerned they will miss out. “It is encouraging to see all SMEs [small and medium size enterprises) included although some may have legitimate concerns about meeting the stringent criteria, as will large businesses which face greater hurdles in order to qualify. “Dorset’s hard-pressed tour - ism and hospitality will wel - come the extension of the re - duced VAT rate although many will feel the Chancellor could have gone further before a long winter. ” Nicola Bailey, development manager for Hampshire & Isle of Wight Federation of Small Businesses, said there were

BILLIONAIRE New Forest businessman Sir Jim Ratcliffe has changed his primary resi - dence to the tax haven of Mo- naco. The founder and chief exec- utive of petrochemical giant IENOS, Sir Jim owns a man - sion on the Solent foreshore near Beaulieu and had pre- viously listed his base as the United Kingdom. But documents on Compa - nies House show Sir Jim has now officially switched to Mo - naco. People who live in the prin- cipality for at least 183 days a year do not pay any income or property taxes, while in the UK the highest tax rate is 45% on annual income above £150,000. A spokesman for INEOS said: “Unfortunately we can - not comment on the personal details of our directors or em - ployees.” Sir Jim, who was knighted in 2018 for his services to busi - ness and investment, is not the first ultra-wealthy Briton to make the move; previous - ly businessmen Sir Phillip Green, Simon and David Reu - ben and Matalan boss John Hargreaves have done so – as has Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton. THE Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is on the hunt for two business leaders to join its Solent Skills Adviso- ry Panel. Solent LEP is a business-led collaboration between pri- vate, public and education sectors, where influential pri - vate and public sector leaders act as champions for their ar - ea’s economic success. The LEP formed its Skills Advisory Panel last year which brings local employers, skills providers and other key stake-

Nicola Bailey

many measures announced which would “make a real dif - ference”. “It’s particularly encouraging to see that all small businesses will be able to access the new job support scheme without facing excessive paperwork, with a guarantee of help for the next six months,” she said. “We look forward to more details on the successor to the self-employment income sup - port scheme. It’s right to pro - vide support to the self-em - ployed equivalent to that offered to employees, and the scheme should be opened up to those excluded from the first round of support measures. Ms Bailey added: “We are concerned that the Chancellor had nothing to say today on support for those who were left out of the first round of support measures, not least the new - ly self-employed and company directors. The government ur - gently needs to come forward with an emergency relief pack - age for these groups which have dutifully paid their taxes and deserve help too. “Equally, local lockdown grants in all four nations should now be extended to firms forced to closed that were counting on reopening in the coming weeks but now face the most difficult of winters. Ross McNally, Hampshire Chamber chief executive and executive chairman, said: “The new jobs support scheme will mean that many people can be paid for shorter hours, still do - ing worthwhile and viable jobs, rather than face immediate re - dundancy. “Businesses can now make decisions in the light of a clear structure of support to get them through to next summer.”

Sir Jim Ratcliffe

The latest figures produced by the Bloomberg billionaire’s index suggest Sir Jim’s per - sonal fortune has increased during the coronavirus pan- demic to £17.5bn. Earlier this year the ardent Brexiteer was estimated to be the fifth richest Briton by the Sunday Times, which put his fortune at £12.1bn. The same publication reported he had been the UK’s third highest individual tax pay- er in 2017/18, paying around £110m. holders together, to share knowledge on skills and la- bour market needs. It is especially interested in hearing from senior business leaders working in sectors in- cluding life science and health- care, transport and logistics, and clean/green tech. Applications will close on 9th October. For further information visit https://solentlep.org. uk/get-involved/solent-lep- panel-membership/ or email info@solentlep.org.uk

Firm’s 32-year safety award run In front with colleagues, and with the trophy from RoSPA, are Gerry Somers, left, Trant Engineering’s managing director UK, and David Foster, head of safety, health, environment and quality at the firm.

A TOTTON engineering firm has won a top international safety award – for the 32nd con- secutive year. Trant Engineering took home the construction engineering sector gong at this year’s Roy- al Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) Awards. The firm says it is one of only two firms to have achieved this many RoSPA honours, along with ExxonMobil. Gerry Somers, Trant Engi - neering’s UK managing direc - tor, said the company “relent - lessly pursues and benchmarks best practice in health and safe- ty”. “In challenging, high-risk in - dustries there can be no margin for error because the conse- quences could be life-changing or fatal,” he added. “The RoSPA accolade, our 32nd consecutive one, is an achievement which is shared by all our staff across the UK and internationally.

“We all take health and safe - ty incredibly seriously, given what we do and where, and the company’s unswerving commit - ment to health and safety is a matter of pride to each one of us.” In its 62nd year and based at Rushington House, Trant En - gineering employs 1,000 people and is involved in projects in the energy, nuclear, oil and gas, defence and process and water industries. It works at up to 30 oper - ational sites across the UK, Singapore, Falkland Islands, Ascension Island and Channel Islands, including at oil refin - eries and power stations. Cli - ents include ExxonMobil, the Ministry of Defence, Nation - al Grid, Wessex Water and the Nuclear Decommissioning Au - thority. Nearly 2,000 enter the RoSPA Awards each year in what is the UK’s longest-running health and safety industry honours.

Julia Small of RoSPA said they also receive entries from organisations around the world, “making it one of the most sought-after global accolades in health and safety”. “RoSPA wants every employ - ee, wherever they are, to work safe in the knowledge that they will be going home unharmed and healthy at the end of every day,” she said. “The RoSPA Award win - ners are vital to help achieve this goal, as by entering they are driving up standards and setting new benchmarks for organisations everywhere. Cur - rently, around seven million people are directly impacted by the RoSPA Awards, but the scheme’s influence is even wid - er.” Trant Engineering has also twice been named the best in Great Britain for looking after the safety of its staff – the Sir George Earle Trophy, which is RoSPA’s top accolade.

LEP on lookout for advisory panel business leaders

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Ian Girling

Here to help all New Forest businesses!

The New Forest Business Partnership became a Community Interest Company (CIC) in September 2020. This means we are an independent company, focused on activities which benefit the whole of the New Forest business community. We continue to be a not-for-profit organisation, but by becoming a CIC, we are now able to apply for and receive funding to help us support you and your business. More information about the Partnership can be found on our website nfbp.org.uk

The Kickstart Scheme The NFBP has applied to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to be an Employers’ Representative for the Kickstart Scheme, which provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds. Funding is available for 100% of the National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week, plus associated employer NI contributions. There is also £1,500 per job placement available for setup costs, support and training. Email contact@nfbp.org.uk if you would like us to help you apply.

Upcoming Events Our programme of training and networking events run thought the year and is open to everybody. All our events are currently online so it’s easy to come along and find out how the NFBP can help you and your business. Wednesday 7 October

Further upcoming events are listed on our website: nfbp.org.uk/events. Book your place now! The New Forest Business Partnership supports all New Forest businesses large and small and increases the opportunities for you to develop. Membership of NFBP is great value, including attending events at cost, meeting and networking with other local businesses and raising your business profile through the NFBP e-news, social media and annual awards.

Thursday 8 October Social Media training: Preparing for the unexpected - why you need a social media crisis plan. Whether it’s the unpredictable or something out of your hands, your business needs to be equipped to respond. With the right social media tools and an action plan, you can feel confident and tackle whatever arises. £10

Thursday 15 October Social Media Training: Keeping in Touch - how to improve your social media engagement. The more engaged your audience is, the more other people will see your posts and the faster you will achieve your social media goals and make more conversions to sales. We discuss strategies that will turn ‘likes’ into ‘leads’. £10

Business Support Hour: Tom Dodd, Marketing Manager of entrustIT in Ringwood, presents on Connecting Securely - a cyber security update for you and your business. FREE