Client Update June 2015

Telephone system - an apology

We are sorry for any inconvenience caused to clients who have been trying to contact us by telephone. With the increase in our staff numbers we had pushed the old system to its limit and it collapsed 2 weeks ago. The new system is now up and running and normal service has been resumed.

The Economy

The UK economy is growing, unemployment is falling and inflation is extremely low. This is almost too good to be true; the major concern is the deficit together with the prospect of rising interest rates. The Budget on July 8 will attempt to address the former and the Bank of England has the tricky job of dealing with the latter. It is strongly rumoured (once again!) that higher rate tax relief on pension contributions will be withdrawn in the Budget, please contact us or your IFA immediately if you require advice prior to Budget day.

The Country’s finances are influenced by events elsewhere in the world and by the time you read this the situation in Greece may well have been resolved (unlikely) or just “parked” for another 6 months (probable)

New partner in Edmund Carr

We are delighted to announce that Tom York will be stepping up to partnership with effect from 1 January 2016. Tom has been with us for some 12 years; this is a popular appointment both inside and outside the firm. We wish Tom every success.

Tax department

We have two new members joining our tax team in the next few days. Alistair Fergus worked for the NatWest tax department in Chelmsford for 20 years and Amanda Dodd worked in the same department for 27 years; they became available when the Bank made a policy decision to close these departments nationally.

New director of ECFS

We are delighted to announce that Kevin Bray was appointed as a director of EC Financial Services Limited on 1 April 2015. Kevin has added to our expertise in a number of areas and has contributed significantly to the growth of the business. We wish Kevin every success.

ECFS new staff

We have recently appointed two new employees to our Financial Services division and they start in early July. Stephen Franklin has been in banking for most of his working career and latterly ran his own business. Julie Walters also has a wealth of experience in banking and has recently been providing services to high net worth individuals.

These two members of staff will add significantly to the range of skills and expertise that we have in our financial services subsidiary.

Company Secretarial offer

Our offer of company formations for £25 plus VAT has been extended until 31 December 2015. This covers the complete incorporation package and many clients have already taken us up on this opportunity.