Sensible measures protect the NNL workforce keeping the lights on

News story

We are sharing stories of people working on the Sellafield site throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Today we feature National Nuclear Laboratory’s Andy Haile.

As a manager in the National Nuclear Laboratory’s (NNL) operating Active Handling Facility on the Sellafield site, Andy Haile has had to consider measures to protect his own safety and that of his colleagues.

He has continued to attend work since the coronavirus lockdown began, as he explains:

One of the key roles of our facility is to support the EDF programme. That means we need to operate to keep the country’s lights on. As coronavirus hit, it quickly became clear we needed to make some changes to help keep everyone safe.

The first change we made was reducing those who needed to come to work to a minimum. We’d ordinarily have around 100 employees at work, but we’ve reduced this to a quarter of those. Despite this, we still needed to make other changes – after all lockers aren’t 2 metres apart.

We’ve also reduced the number of maintenance jobs taking place, and split jobs up, so fewer people are likely to be in an area at a given time. We’ve staggered start times so people were able to access work more easily.

It has been strange coming to work – I sometimes worry I’ve walked past a no entry sign when there’s no one around me, but of course there are fewer people around.

Our team has been fantastic. They understand that things are surreal and scary, but that we need to continue our essential mission. To help, they are doing all they can to ensure they, and others, are safe.

People have been changing their bait times, to avoid putting pressure on the canteen and you see people checking their exit is safe before they leave a room.

We know that more people will be coming back to site and our NNL facilities, in the near future. But we also know that we have to take small, gradual steps when doing so. The team have been great at giving feedback on what is working and what needs tweaked. This feedback is essential.

Andy recognised that things are unlikely to get back to how they were for quite some time, and NNL are looking at the ‘new normal’.

The biggest concern when more people are back at work will be how people get to work. I think we need to continue to encourage people to work from home when they can. Even if employees do need to come on to site, they should only come here for that specific piece of work. When it’s done, they should leave again. That’s not how we’ve previously worked.

After all, working from home is the safest option, if you can, and it’s the one that protects those of us who do need to be on the site.

Published 19 May 2020

Government to publish paper on group-based offending

The Home Secretary has announced that the government will publish a paper into group-based child sexual exploitation in order to better understand the characteristics of group-based offending and help deliver justice for victims.

The paper, to be published later this year, will outline the insights gained from this work and focus on how agencies can learn lessons from the past to tackle group-based offending and safeguard vulnerable children.

The Home Office will set up an external reference group of experts to review the research before its publication.

The work was commissioned by the previous Home Secretary to better understand the scale and nature of group-based child sexual exploitation, including the characteristics of offenders, victims and the context in which these crimes are committed.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

Victims of these sickening child sex abuse groups have told me how they were let down by the state in the name of political correctness.

What happened to these children remains one of the biggest stains on our country’s conscience. It is shameful.

I am determined to deliver justice for victims and ensure something like this can never happen again.

The Home Office continues to support and drive improvements in the police response to child sexual abuse, which will be discussed at the virtual Hidden Harms Summit on Thursday.

The event will bring together government, law enforcement and the charity sector to work together to protect vulnerable people during the lockdown, including children at risk of sexual abuse.

Last September, the government announced an additional £30 million to take down the worst offenders and safeguard victims.

The Home Office will shortly publish the first of its kind cross-government Child Sexual Abuse Strategy to improve the UK’s response to tackling this abhorrent crime.

It will set out how we will work across all agencies – including government, law enforcement, safeguarding and industry – to stop offenders in their tracks, and to help victims and survivors rebuild their lives.

UK Government and Prince of Wales urge workers to pick fruit and veg for Britain

Press release

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack welcomes the move to save the Scottish strawberry

The UK Government and Prince of Wales have urged students and furloughed workers to apply for seasonal farm work.

As part of efforts to support British farmers and growers to recruit workers throughout the harvest period, the UK Government launched the Pick for Britain website in partnership with industry to help match up available opportunities with local jobseekers.

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack said:

Many of Scotland’s farms, in particular our soft fruit growers, rely on seasonal labour. As we near peak harvest time I urge jobseekers to sign up for this crucial work at the Pick for Britain website or the GOV.UK Find a job platform.

I am in no doubt British workers and students will seize the opportunity to feed the UK and help the economy in these most challenging of times. Together, the UK Government, industry and workers will save the Scottish strawberry and our other delicious produce.

The UK Government has already confirmed that those who have been furloughed from their jobs due to the coronavirus and who are contractually allowed to work for another employer can take on this seasonal work while continuing to receive 80% of their salary from the government.

Interested parties should continue to check the Pick for Britain website regularly as it will continue to be updated with new opportunities as the demand for fruit and vegetable pickers grows over the coming months.

British workers will continue to have the opportunity to make some extra money and help to feed the nation right up until the autumn months.

Industry best practice guidance is available for growers to help ensure workers are safe and protected in their roles during the pandemic.

Published 19 May 2020

Turkmenistan celebrates State Flag Day and Constitution Day

World news story

Her Majesty’s Ambassador Mr Hugh Philpott, OBE congratulated the people and government of Turkmenistan on local TV.

Her Majesty's Ambassador Mr Hugh Philpott, OBE congratulated the people and government of Turkmenistan through local TV — Her Majesty’s Ambassador Mr Hugh Philpott, OBE congratulated the people and government of Turkmenistan through local TV

On the occasion of the Constitution and State Flag Day of Turkmenistan, British Ambassador Mr Hugh Philpott warmly congratulated the people and government of Turkmenistan. As the state flag is the symbol of nations, the British Ambassador wished unity, harmony and well-being to the people.

Please, enjoy the British Ambassador’s congratulatory message on the Embassy’s Facebook channel.

Published 19 May 2020

Check the tax rules on waiving your income or donating to charity

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are choosing to give up part of their income to support their business or employers, or donate to charity.

HMRC is keen to support people who choose to waive – or give up – part of their income, particularly when it comes to understanding any tax implications.

Employers, directors and employees have several options to support a business or employer, including:

waiving their salary or bonuses before they’re paid
waiving the right to any dividends
giving salary or dividends back to their employer after they’ve been paid

To donate to charity, people can use:

Supporting a business or an employer

Waiving salary or bonuses before they are paid

A ‘waiver of remuneration’ happens when an employee gives up rights to remuneration and gets nothing in return.

If an employee and employer agree to a reduction in the employee’s remuneration before they are paid, for example to support company cashflow during the pandemic, then no Income Tax or National Insurance contributions (NICs) will be due on the amount given up.

This is provided the agreement is not part of any wider arrangement to divert the amount to a particular recipient or a cause. For example, if it was waived on condition that the sum would be donated to a particular charity, this would still be liable to tax.

Waiving dividends

Directors or other shareholders, including employees, are able to waive their right to be paid a dividend.

For this to be effective, a Deed of Waiver must be formally executed, dated and signed by shareholders and witnessed and returned to the company.

The waiver must be in place before the right to receive a dividend arises. For final dividends, this is before they are formally declared and approved by the shareholders. For interim dividends, the waiver must be in place before the dividends are paid.

Giving salary or bonuses back to your business or employer after they have been paid

It is possible to give back salary or bonuses to a business or employer after they have been paid.

However, it is not possible to claim back the Income Tax and NICs that would already have been deducted from the salary or bonuses on payment.

Bonuses must be waived before the date they are due to be paid. If they are waived on or after the due date then tax will still be payable on them, even if the bonus is not paid over.

Donating to charity

Payroll Giving

Payroll Giving is a way of giving money to charity without paying tax on it. It must be paid through PAYE from someone’s wages or pension.

If you’re an employee, you should select a registered charity to donate to, and let your employer’s payroll department know.

Employers should contact a Payroll Giving agency to set up a scheme. The donation will be taken from employees’ pay before Income Tax but after National Insurance. Any registered charity in the UK or the EU recognised by HMRC for tax purposes can receive donations through Payroll Giving.

Gift Aid

Donating through Gift Aid means charities and community amateur sports clubs can claim an extra 25p for every £1 donated.

This means that if you make a donation to an eligible charity, the charity can claim back from HMRC the basic rate tax you would have paid on the amount. This is a way of giving to charity tax efficiently even after you have been paid.

Further help

HMRC has a dedicated helpline available to support any of our customers affected by coronavirus (COVID-19).