Tughans Solicitors

Government announces plan to wind down the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

On Friday evening the Chancellor announced further details on how the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will wind-down before closing at the end of October. The key points are as follows.   The Scheme will close to new entrants on 30 June 2020, and claims can only be made for employees who have been furloughed for... Read More

Returning to the Workplace: Health & Safety Guidance for Employers

It is currently anticipated that we will see some of the restrictions on businesses being relaxed over the coming months with employees returning to the workplace where possible. The UK Government has already confirmed that those working in the construction and manufacturing industries in England and Wales can return to work if the required health... Read More

WEBINAR: Legislative Changes that will Impact your Cash Flow

On Tuesday 18 May, Tughans teamed up with Digital DNA to deliver a webinar providing an overview of some key support measures and strategies available to help NI businesses manage cash flow during the coronavirus lock down. It is based on an original Tughans article, which you can access here. The webinar was hosted by DDNA... Read More

WEBINAR: The Impact of Coronavirus on Manufacturing

This webinar first aired on Friday 24 April 2020, hosted by Kirsty McManus (NI Director, IoD) and features Tej Parikh (IoD Chief Economist), Stephen Kelly (CEO, Manufacturing NI), Anna Beggan (Employment Partner, Tughans), James Donnelly (Corporate Partner, Tughans) and Andrew Kirke (Contracts & IT Director, Tughans). PLEASE NOTE THAT THE PRESENTATION WITH Q&A LASTS 60... Read More

Update on the Future Fund

The UK Government has now provided some further detail around the Future Fund which opens for applications from Wednesday 20th May. Rather than reiterate some of the basic eligibility criteria as outlined in my previous article (available here) I thought it would be useful to provide a quick summary of the key updates.   Application... Read More

Can an employer commence a redundancy process whilst staff are on furlough?

The employer must have a valid ground for redundancy e.g. that unfortunately, the business will close, or can identify a clear reduction in work to be undertaken by employees. If there is a genuine risk of redundancy, the Company could commence consultation whilst staff are furloughed.   The employer must review how many staff are... Read More

Director’s duties during lockdown

The Business Secretary, Alok Sharma announced on 28 March 2020 plans to amend insolvency legislation in England and Wales to allow breathing space for directors to include the temporary suspension of the wrongful trading provisions from 1 March 2020 for three months which would apply retrospectively. However, these provisions are yet to come into force... Read More

Guidance for employers on the easing of lockdown measures

On Sunday 10 May, the UK Prime Minister announced the Government’s plan for the next stages of dealing with the Coronavirus outbreak. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has since supplemented this with guidance for employers on making workplaces “Covid Secure”. On Tuesday 12 May, the Northern Ireland Executive published its plan... Read More

Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS)

The government has today launched the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), a new addition to its package of financial measures to specifically support small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. The BBLS is delivered by lenders accredited by the British Business Bank and is now open for applications until 4 November 2020, with the government retaining... Read More

Managing employee requests to be placed on furlough

An employee at a business, which is permitted to operate during the current lockdown, has advised that he is not happy to attend work due to a medical condition. Jack Balmer provides advice on how to manage the employee’s request to be placed on furlough.   Your starting point should be to clarify the employee’s... Read More