Main News Feed Archives - Page 157 of 237

Latest advice helps companies preparing to unfurlough staff

by Iain McIlwee | 5 Jun, 2020 | Main News Feed

The complex question of how to bring workforce safely off furlough and back to work is examined in detail in the latest guidance to be issued by the CICV Forum in Scotland.

With the Scottish Government authorising a phased easing of the lockdown rules, the Forum’s comprehensive 22-page document, Returning from Furlough, provides a practical step-by-step overview of how employers should bring workers back to full employment.

It is the latest in a series of initiatives from the Forum, which has been at the forefront of construction advice throughout the pandemic, becoming the first port of call for many enterprises seeking clarity.

Fiona Harper, Director of Employment and Skills at Forum member SELECT, said: “The past few months have been a particularly stressful time for both employers and employees, but we are now approaching the stage where firms may be looking at the process of how to ‘unfurlough’ their staff.

“Our latest guidance, therefore, looks in detail at the options that all parties face now that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been extended until October and employers will be asked to begin to share the burden of paying salaries with the UK Government.”

The latest guidance covers a wide range of issues and examines subjects such as:

the timeline for bringing furlough to an end
when it can be ended
the steps to keep furloughed workers safe
measures to ‘unfurlough’ workers
‘unfurloughing’ and ‘re-furloughing’
potential refusal to return
mental health of staff.
The document also supplies useful letter templates covering the long-anticipated restart, as well as any health and safety preparations and a questionnaire to help gather information about the process.

Iain McIlwee, CEO of Forum member of the Finishes and Interiors Sector, said: “This is an excellent guide that brings real clarity to an incredibly complex subject. Whilst it is targetted at Scotland, it is relevant for all in the UK. One thing we are learning in recent weeks is that restarting is more complex than stopping and it is simple and clear guidance like this that is essential to helping companies feel their way forward. The CICV has been one of the positives that I have drawn from recent weeks, it has been open and collaborative and drawn on the strengths of the group. Huge thanks to Vaughan of the SBF who chaired it, to Fiona and the other members of this sub group for a job well done.”

The Forum, made up of trade associations, professional services bodies, companies and individuals, stepped into the fray immediately in March with advice on how to operate safely while carrying out emergency or essential work. It has since then been drawing on the collective expertise of its members to maintain a steady supply of information and practical advice to the sector as well as carrying out surveys, producing animations and posters, hosting webinars and making appeals to Government Ministers.

You can download the Guide via the FIS COVID-19 Employment Toolkit (see section on Furloughing)

Domestic reverse charge VAT for construction services – delay in implementation announced

by Iain McIlwee | 5 Jun, 2020 | Main News Feed

Domestic reverse charge VAT for construction services – delay in implementation announced

Following pressure from the industry (including a letter signed by FIS in the Telegraph last weekend). HMRC have announced that the introduction of the domestic reverse charge for construction services will be delayed for a period of 5 months from 1 October 2020 until 1 March 2021.

A domestic reverse charge means the UK customer who gets supplies of construction services must account for the VAT due on these supplies on their VAT return, rather than the UK supplier. This removes the scope for fraudsters to steal the VAT due to HMRC and follows similar measures introduced in response to criminal threats for mobile telephones, computer chips, emissions allowances, gas and electricity, telecommunication services and renewable energy certificates.

The domestic reverse charge for building and construction services was originally planned to come into force on 1 October 2019, but it has already been delayed for a year in response to industry concerns.

In a statement published to day HMRC have reported: “To help these businesses overcome the effects that the coronavirus pandemic has had on them and give them more time to prepare, the introduction of the reverse charge has been delayed for a period of 5 months until 1 March 2021.”

In this statement they go on to report that HMRC remains committed to the introduction of the reverse charge and has put in place a robust compliance strategy for tackling fraud in the construction sector using tried and tested compliance tools.

In the intervening period, HMRC will continue to focus additional resource on identifying and tackling existing perpetrators of the fraud. It will also work closely with the sector to raise awareness and provide additional guidance and support to make sure all businesses will be ready for the new implementation date. The additional amendment to require end users and intermediary suppliers to notify their sub-contractors of their end user or intermediary supplier status in writing is designed to make sure both parties are clear whether the supply is excluded from the reverse charge. It reflects recommended advice published in HMRC guidance and brings certainty for sub-contractors as to the correct treatment for their supplies. If followed, it will remove a concern that HMRC may seek to challenge the reverse charge treatment where a business that qualified as an end user or intermediary supplier had not given any notification of their status.

In response to this statement Iain McIlwee, CEO of Finishes and Interiors Sector stated “On the one hand it is good news we have a delay, but I am still baffled by the unblinking need to carry on regardless. For me HMRC have found a way to solve a problem that just shifts burden away from HMRC and onto industry, create new admin and uncertainty. Government must realise that cashflow is critical in construction, whenever this is introduced it creates an air bubble for specialists – simply kicking the can down the road doesn’t make this go away. Draconian tax measures are not what is needed right now, we need to be learning from the COVID response and the successes and failures of schemes like CBILS in conjunction with procurement practices that support liquidity – if we don’t get this in place many more businesses will fail and Reverse Charge VAT may well be the tipping point”.

You can read in full the Revenue and Customs Brief 7 (2020): domestic reverse charge VAT for construction services – delay in implementation here

To access The FIS Implementing Reverse Charge VAT Toolkit – click here

Cladding remediation fund opens

by Clair Mooney | 4 Jun, 2020 | Main News Feed

Building owners can now register their interest for the £1 billion Building Safety Fund for the remediation of unsafe non‐Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding. The deadline for registering interest is 31 July 2020 and anyone that goes on to apply for funding would be expected to start construction work on site before 31 March 2021.

This fund, which is in addition to the £600 million fund for the remediation of ACM cladding, applies to residential buildings over 18 metres in both the private and social sectors and has been designed to address some of the financial obstacles to remediation being carried out quickly.

Information about the specific systems that are eligible for the fund can be found in Annex A to the fund prospectus. Funds will be allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis and there is no limit on the amount that individual building owners can apply for.

Trade Credit Insurance backed by £10 billion guarantee

by Iain McIlwee | 4 Jun, 2020 | Insurance, Main News Feed

Finishes and Interiors Sector (FIS) this morning welcomed the announcement from Business Secretary Alok Sharma that Government is able to provide guarantees of up to £10 billion to Trade Credit Insurance schemes for business-to-business transactions.

Trade Credit Insurance, provides essential cover to hundreds of thousands of business-to-business transactions, will receive up to £10 billion of government guarantees, ministers announced today. Business Secretary of State Alok Sharma said:

“Trade Credit Insurance is a daily necessity for hundreds of thousands of businesses across the UK – particularly those in non-service sectors such as the manufacturing and construction sectors. Our £10 billion guarantee gives peace of mind to businesses, allowing them to continue to trade and maintaining liquidity in supply chains. This reinsurance scheme is an important step as we carefully set about firing up our economy as we emerge from the pandemic.

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, John Glen said:

“Billions of pounds of business turnover is supported by Trade Credit Insurance each year. This reinsurance scheme will see the government and insurers working closely together to ensure that the vast majority of this cover remains in place. This means that businesses and supply chains can continue to be protected at this pivotal time as we begin to kick start the economy.”

Chief Executive of the Finishes and Interiors Sector, Iain McIlwee added:

“The guarantees will provide much needed reassurance to manufacturers and distributors and support them in extending credit to contractors in the Finishes and Interiors Sector. A key risk identified in our planning was concern that credit agreements could shorten at a time when cash is already short. Cash flow will be critical over the next few months and whilst many have opted not to or been knocked back by schemes like CBILS, the removal of lines of credit traditionally available to them would have been catastrophic. I know there has been some hard work put in to this through the Construction Leadership Council and we are grateful to our colleagues at the Construction Products Association and Builders Merchant’s Federation who have done a lot of the heavy lifting”.

Trade Credit Insurance underwrites an estimated £350 billion of economic activity of more than 630,000 businesses in the UK each year. It insures suppliers selling goods against the company they are selling to defaulting on payment, giving businesses the confidence to trade with one another.

The full statement from the Minister is available here.

Government guidance for further education and skills providers

by Clair Mooney | 2 Jun, 2020 | Main News Feed

On 24 May the Prime Minister announced that secondary schools could provide some contact for Year 10 and Year 12 students to help them prepare for exams next year, with a quarter of these students in at any point. For further education (FE) settings (including general further education colleges, sixth form colleges, and other providers) the equivalent approach applies and FE settings should plan on the basis that from the week commencing 15 June, they can broaden the number of 16 to 19 learners (equivalent to Y10/Y12 in schools and sixth forms) attending on site delivery.

Covid-19 Education and skills training provision further education providers

Construction Leadership Council Proposals set out a Roadmap for a post-Covid-19 revival

by Iain McIlwee | 1 Jun, 2020 | Main News Feed, Transformation

The Construction Leadership Council’s Covid-19 Task Force has laid out a roadmap of proposals that will help to secure the future of construction businesses nationwide, while setting the industry on a sustainable path towards recovery.

Roadmap to Recovery details the key actions that industry, clients and Government that will support the recovery of the £413 billion UK construction and built environment sector. Front and centre is the premise that, employing over 3m workers across the UK and exporting billions of pounds of products and services, the construction sector construction is uniquely placed to drive the national economic recovery.

The strategy aims to increase the level of activity, accelerate the process of industry adjustment to the new normal and build capacity in the industry to deliver strategic priorities, including: increasing prosperity across the UK; decarbonisation; modernisation through digital and manufacturing technologies; and delivering better, safer buildings.

There are 3 phases to the roadmap, which it is suggested are delivered over a two year period:

Phase 1: Restart – increase output, maximise employment and minimise disruption (0-3 months)

Restart is now well underway, with various Government interventions in placed focussed on supporting cashflow and both phased return to work plans in place across the UK with H&S Guidance reflecting requirements across the home nations. The Roadmap recognises concerns about training and retaining apprentices and the need to urgently develop a talent retention scheme, reacting to a potential short-term dip in employment. Beyond this, the focus is on both client and industry behaviours and the need for relief measures such as those provided for by PPN02/20 and equivalent public sector procurement measures in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The recovery plan emphasises the importance of Public and private sector clients committing to following Government and CLC guidance on responsible contractual behaviour and recommends widespread adoption of the Conflict Avoidance Pledge. It highlights too the need for renewed industry commitment to ensure prompt payment to firms within the supply chain.

In a recent FIS survey, it was concerning that only 12% of respondents reported that they can continue to operate profitably in all cases under new site operating procedures. This concerning situation is recognised in the Roadmap which recommends the urgent need to undertake work on cost planning related to operating under new site procedures and to share this across the public and private sectors.

Phase 2: Reset: drive demand, increase productivity, strengthen capability in the supply chain (3-12 months)

A key theme of reset is to build on elements highlighted in the restart phase to define new ways of working to embed better and more collaborative business models and contractual terms into the sector. The theme of productivity looms large and the Roadmap identifies that new approaches will be needed to compensate for the loss of productivity due to restrictions and the importance of encouraging investment in particularly digital and offsite capabilities. The Roadmap highlights the importance of ongoing work on competency and better collaboration. It also identifies the need for stimulus with Housing and Building Safety as priority areas. The FIS has recently written to the Construction Minister highlighting Schools and accelerating the Building Safety Programme – this is picked up in the Roadmap referencing supporting towns, homes and employment to level up the UK, and invest in developing the infrastructure chapters of local growth plans.

The Roadmap also flags up the importance of delaying the Reverse Charge VAT (as reported in the Telegraph this weekend).

Phase 3: Reinvent: transform the industry, deliver better value, collaboration and partnership (12-24 months)

Seizing the opportunity to secure a better future for the construction sector is central to Phase 3. This phase is very much about tangible outcomes from a period of change and ensuring the potential of digital and offsite solutions are realised and that step changes are made in terms of the embracing net zero carbon targets and ensuring that collaborative procurement models ensure that the sector meets the requirements of the new building safety regime. It also recognises the need to modernise the training and qualifications system for construction to ensure that this is fit for purpose, and will support the delivery of the skills that the industry will need in future such as those related to the delivery of net zero carbon, and the multi-skilling of the construction workforce to increase flexibility and adaptability

The ultimate outcomes will be a more capable, professional, productive and profitable sector, which delivers better value to clients, better performing infrastructure and buildings, and competes successfully in global markets.

Iain McIlwee CEO of the Finishes and Interiors Sector, “This is a great start from the CLC and it is encouraging that this Roadmap is not a huge departure from a journey that in many ways we have already started. It builds on and re-emphasise a lot of the concepts we are familiar with from the Construction Sector Deal and locks in learnings from the work of the Building Safety Review. It has been a tough few months for everyone and it is clear that there is more challenges ahead as the industry starts to open up, but it is good to finally start looking a bit further ahead. We look forward to working with the Minister and colleagues from across the construction sector to ensuring that the spirit of collaboration is upheld and we are all held to account to ensure that the industry emerges stronger. The Roadmap starts to show us the way, but it also recognises construction is a complex ecosystem and it is beholden now on sectors such as ours to look at the detail as it applies to our community and ensure we develop sub-sector specific plans and look at behaviours and activities that align us with CLC’s overarching Recovery Plan and the one industry sentiment that underpins it”.

The task force is now engaging with Government to test how the plans proposals might be delivered. FIS is an active member of the CLC Advisory Group and participates in weekly updates where members views are carried forwards.

The roadmap to recovery plan can be downloaded here.