A north-east engineering firm has announced that it will be creating more job opportunities, after a government grant has allowed them to embark on more research into offshore wind technology.

Umbrella company contractors with skills in this sector will be pleased to hear that Offshore Group Newcastle (OGN) North Sea Ltd will be creating up to 1,000 new long-term jobs, due to the £640,250 grant it received from the Department of Energy and Climate Change's Offshore Wind Component Technologies Development and Demonstration Scheme. 

 The firm has said that it will be building a prototype steel-jacketed foundation later this year, at its site in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear.  It is hoped that 17 per cent of all UK electricity production will be provided by offshore wind by 2020.

 Contractors working through an umbrella company within this sector may find that their skills are high in demand for this massive project.

 Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said: "The coalition is determined to drive ambitious green growth and this is putting our money where our mouth is.

"This cash shows we are delivering on our commitment to support innovation and offshore wind.

 "Making wind turbines more efficient is common sense and will help bring down the costs, making them more attractive to build and helping us increase the amount of electricity we get from clean, green sources.

"It's great to see OGN North Sea Ltd stepping up to the challenge to ensure offshore wind energy is produced in the most cost-effective way."

Contractors may benefit from £500m GlaxoSmithKline investment

Those working through an umbrella company in the pharmaceutical sector, may find an increased number of job opportunities are made available due to Britain’s biggest drug maker announcing it will invest more than £500m in the UK.

The company, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has predicted that this investment across its manufacturing sites, will create a further 1,000 jobs in the UK, many being made available for those working as an umbrella company contractor.

The company announced Ulverston in Cumbria as the location for the first new GSK manufacturing facility to be built in the UK for almost 40 years.  Investment will also be made at the company’s two manufacturing sites in Scotland at Montrose and Irvine.

Umbrella company contractors in the pharmaceutical industry, will be pleased to hear that these investments represent one of the largest commitments to the UK life-sciences sector in recent years. 

The recent tax incentives announced in the Budget are the reasons behind the massive investment, as the Chancellor revealed that the government will decrease the amount of corporation tax charged on profits generated from UK-owned intellectual property.

GSK’s CEO Sir Andrew Witty said, “We can confirm that we will build GSK’s first new UK factory for almost 40 years and that we will make other substantial capital investments in our British manufacturing base.  In total, this will create up to 1,000 new jobsover the lifetime of the projects.  

“We are also actively considering other investments in our UK manufacturing network which would create further jobs and reinforce the UK’s international competitiveness and as a world leader in life sciences.”

Contractor job vacancies continue to grow in 2012

Umbrella company contractors will be pleased to hear that latest findings have revealed job vacancies for contractors has seen a boost from January.  This comes as positive news as it was initially believed that the growth was short term due to the traditional post-Christmas boost – yet it has continued into the year.

The research, which was carried out by recruitment agency Adecco, found that umbrella company contractors in the IT, telecoms and the public sector, were among those in particular believed to benefit in the coming months.

The research showed that there was a three per cent rise in IT job vacancies, with the industry seeing a continued record of growth.

The pubic sector has seen a two per cent increase in contractor job vacancies, despite the fact that this industry has seen quite a decline recently.

Steven Kirkpatrick, Managing Director of Adecco, said, 
“This data gives a great confidence boost for the year ahead, and seems to have disproven any suggestion that January’s positive results were just a flash in the pan. With each passing month, confidence is building in the job market and this is extremely encouraging to see.

“As expected, there has been a slight decline in advertised temporary roles compared to January’s traditional increase; however, the decline is minimal and supports the results of our research which found that the introduction of the Agency Worker Regulations has had little impact on the way that UK businesses operate and recruit.”

HM Revenue and Customs have introduced new penalties which will affect Limited Company Contractors who do not file their self-assessment forms on time or are late paying the tax due; the changes come into force for all 2010/2011 returns and all those thereafter.

The new penalties are as follows:

• an initital £100 fixed penalty which will apply even if there is no tax to pay or if the tax has been paid on time
• after 3 months - additional daily penalties of £10 per day; up to a maximum of £900
• after 6 months - a further penalty of 5% of the tax due, or £300 whichever is the greater
• after 12 months - another 5% or £300 charge, whichever is the greater. In serious cases the penalty can be increased to 100% of the tax due

The new penalties for paying late are 5% of the tax unpaid at 30 days, 6 months and 12 months and interest will be charged on top of these penalties

Deadlines for self-assement returns are 31st October for paper and 31st January for online returns.