Tory tax plans, the double-dip and the UK’s business Oscars – entrepreneur roundup

Tuesday, March 02, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Economy, Tax | Tags: links, recession, technology, awards, health, National Business Awards, acquisitions, development, leaders, staff, leadership, training, budget deficit

Every month we pick out the most popular and relevant entrepreneur-related stories from the web plus, from this month, we’ll also be including a story a month from the business sectors we work with. So, for those of you working in the health and/or technology sector, check out the video for our first story on the wireless future of medicine and how smartphones will soon be taking over from the doctor’s stethoscope…

Eric Topol: The wireless future of medicine:  A fascinating TEDMed talk by cardiologist Eric Topol, who says we’ll soon use our smartphones to monitor our vital signs and chronic conditions. In this video, he talks about consumer-driven healthcare and presents several of the most important wireless devices in medicine’s future. He also tells us how we’ll soon be able to monitor heart rhythm, blood pressure, oxygen, temperature, and all our vital signs by smartphone, as easily as checking emails on the move.

Tories plan radical tax changes for business if elected: The Conservatives are allegedly working on a new, automated bank-based system said to remove employers’ duty to deduct and pay income tax, and saving business up to £5.5bn on admin costs in the process. (Article requires a quick Business Matters sign-up.)

75% of UK firms fear a double-dip recession – 41% say budget deficit is top priority: So says the British Chambers of Commerce, which surveyed more than 400 firms. Top priority for business (41%) is for the next Government to reduce the £178bn budget deficit. (Interestingly, 13 per cent suggested the Government focus on making the tax system more competitive.) Governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King wants the deficit to be ‘high on the to-do list of the next government’, according to the BBC’s Stephanomics blog, talking about the weakness of the UK recovery. Meanwhile, political blogger Guido Fawkes seems to be firmly in the double-dip pessimists camp: “With neither the Conservatives or Labour offering policies to kick-start consumer spending and GDP growth, we could be in a lot of trouble…”

“Hawkish” UK entrepreneurs on acquisitions war path: Recent findings by Grant Thornton found that 21% of UK entrepreneurs are positively focused on M&A – that’s 7% higher than the global average – with more than a quarter planning to grow their businesses this way in the next three years (mostly via domestic acquisitions).

The UK’s business Oscars – call for entries: The National Business Awards UK are now open for entries (by 30 June 2010) from young entrepreneurs up to FTSE100 companies. The 11 categories include Entrepreneur of the Year, Employer of the Year, Excellence in Marketing, a Corporate Responsibility award, the Orange Innovation Award and more – here’s the full category list.

Leadership development secrets of top companies: Want to keep your staff in shape and train them up to be the next generation of leaders? Here’s a round-up, courtesy of Harvard Business Review, of the tactics that top companies in the US follow to develop their leaders – including centralising how they manage their talent, training/mentoring by existing business leaders, finding fresh talent and so on.

How to choose a training provider: Business Matters (short sign-up required) reports on finding the right trainer for both your staff and business efficiency. Here’s a few questions to ask before you sign on the dotted line.

Read more entrepreneur links.