New Agricultural Wages Order to Come into Effect on 1 October 2009

The Agricultural Wages Board met on 24 July 2009 to consider the representations made to its proposals (made on 17 June 2009) for a new Wages Order to come into effect on Thursday 1 October 2009.  The Board considered the representations and decided to make the Order as proposed.

The Board therefore confirms that:

• The minimum basic Grade 1 pay rate for workers over compulsory school age will increase by 1.2% from £5.74 to £5.81 per hour. 

The minimum pay rates for Grades 2-6 will increase by 2.2%.  This will increase the minimum rates as follows:

• Grade 2 from £6.26 to £6.40 per hour;
• Grade 3 from £6.89 to £7.04 per hour;
• Grade 4 from £7.39 to £7.55 per hour; 
• Grade 5 from £7.82 to £8.00 per hour;
• Grade 6 from £8.45 to £8.64 per hour.

The rates for Apprentices in Year 1 of an Apprenticeship/Advanced Apprenticeship will increase from £3.53 to £3.57 per hour and the rates for Apprentices in Year 2 will increase from £3.53 to £3.57 for 16-18 year olds, from £4.77 to £4.83 for 19-21 year olds and from £5.73 to £5.80 for those aged 22 and over.

Other rates and allowances will increase by 2.2%.

The Birth/Adoption grant will increase from £50 to £60.

The Accommodation Offset will increase from £4.46 to £4.51 per day.

Participants in certain training schemes, e.g. the Leonardo Programme and the 14-19 Diploma for Environmental and Land-based Studies will be exempt from the provisions of the Order.

The provisions for Full-Time Flexible Worker and Part-Time Flexible Worker will be amended so that these grades are not available to new entrants after the Order comes into force

Other technical and consequential drafting amendments will also be made.

HM Revenue & Customs re-organisation of Corporation Tax work

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is currently reorganising the way it handles Corporation Tax work in local offices.

During July the Corporation Tax records of companies and organisations currently dealt with by the office in Liverpool (That is those records prefixed by 423) will transfer to:

HMRC Local Compliance
CT Operations
Blackburn House
Hanley
Stoke-on-Trent
Staffordshire
ST1 3BS

Telephone: 01782 683318 – Please do not use this number for any other queries.

You will shortly receive a note on form CT 210 confirming these details.

You may receive notification of this change even if your company or organisation is currently dormant. This is because HMRC want you to know which office to contact should your circumstances change.