Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

The latest Clay Shaw Butler Money Matters column from the Carmarthenshire Herald. By Mark Jones, director of Carmarthen-based Clay Shaw Butler chartered accountants and business consultants. Organisation is everything when it comes to keeping on top of your tax affairs, both in business and personal life. Having a reliable calendar is crucial to making sure you do not miss any important deadline dates. Here at Clay Shaw Butler, we have constructed a tax calendar to help you with key deadlines and milestones. Here are some of the up and coming events you need to be aware of - September 2016 Monday 19 PAYE, Student loan and CIS deductions are due for month to 5th September 2016. This deadline is relevant to employers who have made PAYE deductions from their employees' salaries and to contractors who have paid subcontractors under the CIS. Employers are required to make payment to HMRC of the income tax, national insurance and student loan deductions. Contractors are required to mak...

The latest 'On Song' column (about the choral scene in West Wales) from the Carmarthen Journal and the Llanelli Star - The ‘boys’ of Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir are back at their twice-weekly rehearsals after their summer break and getting ready for their next big concert. Côr Meibion Llanelli will be staging their annual concert at Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli, at 7pm on Saturday, September 24. Tickets can be obtained through the Ffwrnes Theatre box office or through the Theatrau Sir Gar website. The choir’s special guests will be Penrhyn Male Choir from North Wales. The two choirs are ‘old friends’. Côr Meibion Llanelli performed with Côr Penrhyn at one of the first events to be staged at the new Bryn Terfel Theatre at The Pontio arts centre in Bangor earlier this year. Côr Penrhyn are paying back the favour by journeying south for the Côr Meibion Llanelli concert. “We have a great relationship with the boys of Côr Penrhyn,” said Llanelli choir secretary Fred Elias. “...

The latest Phil Evans column from the South Wales Evening Post. Comedian Phil Evans is from Ammanford. He is known as the man who puts the ‘cwtsh’ into comedy. www.philevans.co.uk -------------------- It’s over: That’s it then! Summer is over. Barbecues will be consigned to the garden shed until next June and the Factor 20 will make way for The X Factor. Well, maybe not in my house.... You probably noticed we’ve just had the last Bank Holiday of the summer. It seems like we had over a dozen this year. I’ve never known a summer so jam-packed . . . By the way, Jeremy Corbyn, there’s no such expression as ram-packed - with music festivals, comedy festivals, literary festivals, food festivals, cider festivals and family fun days. They were like London ‘buses - bright red and no standing on the upper deck. Just kidding! If you missed one, there were at least three following on right behind it. Even the dampest, muddiest festival featuring music acts that hadn’t had a hit since ...since....

The latest Clay Shaw Butler Money Matters column from the Carmarthenshire Herald. By Mark Jones, director of Carmarthen-based Clay Shaw Butler chartered accountants and business consultants. Anyone who has had to deal with putting a child through university will understand that student loans can be complicated. It’s a bit of a test for mums and dads, but the end results are so worth it. But what happens when student life is over and everyone has to put thoughts to repaying loans? Well, the tax guys at HMRC have issued updated guidance to employers on how to deal with student loan deductions via the PAYE system. Employers should familiarise themselves with the guidance which has been updated to reflect the introduction of plan 2 loans which are repayable from a different threshold but at the same nine percent basis. With effect from the 2016/17 tax year there are two plan types for student loan repayments: plan 1 with a threshold of £17,495 (£1,457 a month or £336 per week)  pla...

The latest Phil Evans column from the South Wales Evening Post. Comedian Phil Evans is from Ammanford. He is known as the man who puts the ‘cwtsh’ into comedy. www.philevans.co.uk -------------------- Happiness! Happiness! The greatest gift that I possess. I thank the Lord that I possess, more than my share of happiness! So sang Ken Dodd back in 1964. And after making people laugh for more than 60 years, Doddy has learned that if you bring happiness to other people, it’ll make you happy too. Why else would he still be taking his “Happiness” tour around packed theatres at the age of 88? It’s not as if he needs the money . . . as some of us remember! Four years after Doddy’s song reached Number 14 in the charts, The Beatles suggested that “Happiness Is A Warm Gun”. I don’t suppose a song with that title would get much radio airplay in 2016 and as I’m partial to the occasional pastry, taken fresh from the oven, I prefer to think that happiness is a warm bun. It’s not easy to c...

The latest 'On Song' column (about the choral scene in and around Llanelli) from the Llanelli Star and the Carmarthen Journal - The busy ladies of Côr Curiad are planning Christmas already. A special Christmas-themed evening at Stradey Castle is already a sell-out. So, the ladies are staging a second performance on Thursday, December 1. Côr Curiad, along with accompanist Craig Oldham, will be staging a festive evening of Christmas songs, Carols, Mulled Wine and mince pies set in the beautiful surroundings of Stradey Castle. Guest performers include Sarah Lewis-Meredith, Steffi Lewis-Meredith and Rhiannon Taylor-Searle. All proceeds from the event are in aid of Ty Bryngwyn Hospice in Llanelli. Meanwhile, Llanelli Choral Society members are looking forward to performing at St David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire on Saturday, October 15. The event is being billed as a Journey of World Music. It will also feature the Hywel Girls Choir and the Hywel Boy Singers, the Angelicus Choral a...

The latest Clay Shaw Butler Money Matters column from the Carmarthenshire Herald. By Mark Jones, director of Carmarthen-based Clay Shaw Butler chartered accountants and business consultants. Small businesses now have a better understanding of their duties under the Government’s pensions auto-enrolment programme. That’s according to the latest research by The Pensions Regulator, TPR. The research is based on surveys carried out between February and April 2016. It showed the understanding among small employers of their duties under pensions auto-enrolment saw a significant rise from 68% to 81%. The Executive Director of Automatic Enrolment, Charles Counsell said: “More than 9 in 10 small employers are now aware of automatic enrolment, and there is now almost universal engagement from business advisers helping their clients to carry out their duties. “This is the first employers’ survey since large numbers of small and micro employers have begun to visit TPR’s website for help in meetin...