I have received the enclosed response from Highways England about the M4 King Street Lane – Bridge Concrete Repairs.
I have stressed the importance of this route to a local traffic system under great pressure and asked them to think again Ā about how they can minimise disruption.
I had the pleasure of attending the West Forest Sinfonia concert at Reading University Great Hall yesterday.
Philip Ellis the Conductor gave an excellent talk telling us about the harmonic brilliance of Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky and Stravinksy who all figured in the programme.
The Orchestra performed the Cinderella Suite, , the letter scene from Eugene Onedin and the Rite of Spring with huge skill. The audience was impressed by the performance and gave warm applause at the end.
I would like to thank the organisers, musicians and all involved in producing such a memorable concert.
When I was asked at a meeting to support a 7.5% increase in the precept or tax for the Fire Authority I said I needed to see the financial case and to see their budget. They did not haveĀ this available at the meeting but promised to send it to me.
They did not do so, so I reminded a senior person from the Authority a week ago on Friday. He confirmed the original exchanges and promised they would send me the details. They have still not done so.
They wanted the Berkshire MPs to support their case for a much higher thanĀ permitted precept increase to government. I am unable to support a case they have not made to me, with no budget information about what they currently spend and what they need to spend extra money on.
I have received an update on assistance the UK Government is providing to the Australian Government to help tackle the Australian Bushfires:
We now know the sums per pupil for each of our local schools for 2020-21.
The secondary schools all receive an average increase of 4.8%, well ahead of inflation, as they need. It takes them all to Ā£5000 per pupil or higher, with the exception of Bohunt. As the Secretary of State has promised that all schools would receive the minimum of Ā£5000 I am querying this figure.
I visited the new Wokingham Cinema on the edge of Elms Field on Saturday and was shown round.
It is an excellent new facility for the Town, with 3 screens. Each of the rooms have large comfortable seats with plenty of leg room. There is Ā a food and drink service and a large bar area
It is well worth a visit, with a range of up to date film releases available for your entertainment. I wish them well with the venture.
On Friday Berkshire MPs and others were invited to a presentation by the Berkshire Fire service about the planned new Emergency services facility for Theale and about their future budgets. Laura Farris and I were the two MPs who joined the meeting.
We were told that Berkshire Fire service has recently been placed in the lowest quartile for local tax levied to help pay for it, and in the top quartile for performance. I congratulated them on these achievements.
We were asked to support a 7.5% increase in the local tax to pay for the service next year. The government is proposing a 2% cap, with the need for a referendum of taxpayers for a larger rise. We were told that the 7.5% increase would raise an additional Ā£1.7m implying a base budget of Ā£22.7m a year.
We were not given the budget figures or an explanation of what the extra money would buy so I suggested they sent me the details so I could consider it properly. They did say the new Theale facility soon to be built would be more efficient offering savings on budgets like energy which should help keep the tax down.
I am urging the Council to do more work on the housing target for the next local Plan. Before discussing where new homes might be placed we need to discuss and agree how many are needed. The new number would best be considerably lower.
We should define a sustainable rate and defend more of our green spaces and rural areas from development. There will need to be a negotiation with the government, but first we require an informed paper on how many is sustainable and how many are needed. I am happy to contribute to this but it will have to be an official document from the Council as the Planning Authority.
The Government is launching a review of changes to off-payroll working rules today. I repeat below what they have sent out. I will continue to press for urgent change as I appreciate the problems this is currently causing:
The Government is launching a review of changes to off-payroll working rules today to address any concerns from businesses and affected individuals about how they will be implemented.
The review will determine if any further steps can be taken to ensure the smooth and successful implementation of the reforms, which are due to come into force in April 2020. As part of this, the review will also assess whether any additional support is needed to ensure that the self-employed, who are not in scope of the rules, are not impacted.
Off-payroll working rules, known as IR35, were introduced in 2000 to ensure that someone working like an employee, but through a company, pays similar taxes to other employees.
The reforms, announced in the 2018 Budget, are designed to tackle non-compliance with off-payroll working rules by making medium and large organisations in the private and third sectors responsible for determining the tax status of contractors.
The review will focus on the implementation of these reforms, which are due to come into force on 6 April 2020.
The government will launch a separate review to explore how it can better support the self-employed. That includes improving access to finance and credit, making the tax system easier to navigate, and examining how better broadband can boost homeworking.
Todayās announcement fulfils a commitment made by Chancellor Sajid Javid on November 30th last year.
Financial Secretary to the Treasury Jesse Norman said:
We recognise that concerns have been raised about the forthcoming reforms to the off-payroll working rules.
The purpose of this consultation is to make sure that the implementation of these changes in April is as smooth as possible.
The review, which will conclude by mid-February, will engage with affected individuals and businesses on their experiences of the implementation of these reforms.
As part of the review, the Government will hold a series of roundtables with stakeholders representative of those affected by the reform, including contractor groups and medium and large-sized businesses, to understand how the government can ensure smooth implementation of the reforms. The Government will also carry out further internal analysis, including evaluation of the enhanced Check employment status for tax (CEST) tool and public sector bodiesā experience of implementing the reform to the off-payroll working rules in 2017.
The off-payroll working rules do not affect the self-employed, as only those working like employees are in scope. As part of the review, the Government will explore whether there are any further steps it could take to support businesses in correctly determining employment status.
In parallel to the review, HMRC will continue its comprehensive programme of education and support activities, proactively helping customers to prepare for the reform to off-payroll working rules in April 2020. This will include one-to-one engagement, webinars and workshops alongside targeted communications and support for customers, and their representatives to help them prepare for implementation on 6 April 2020.
The local Police Commander has confirmed to me they are pressing ahead with recruiting and training an additional 17 police officers for our local area, out of the total increase of 183 for Thames Ā Valley Police as a whole. I look forward to their arrival and wish the local force success in their work against crime.