Latest news with #JamesTimpson
Scottish Sun
16-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Cobbler Timpson will face millions in losses after Chancellor's National Insurance tax raid
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) COBBLERS chain Timpson has warned it will face a multi-million-pound hit from the Chancellor's tax raid — just months after its boss quit to join the Government. The family-owned firm, known for its history of hiring former offenders, saw CEO James Timpson step down to become Prisons Minister in July to work on reforming jails. 2 Timpson has warned it will face a multi-million-pound hit from the Chancellor's tax raid Credit: Alamy 2 James Timpson stepped down as CEO to become Prisons Minister in July to work on reforming jails Credit: Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing St In the company's first set of accounts since the General Election, it says: 'His time in Government will be a loss to the business.' Timpson reported sales rose by 4.5 per cent last year to £347million, while profits jumped by 26 per cent to £48million. But the company said its record year would be difficult to match in the face of big increases in the minimum wage and 'a swinging increase in our contribution to National Insurance'. The firm, which already pays above the Living Wage rate, said it would face £12million of extra costs from Rachel Reeves' changes to NI. The admission is awkward given Lord Timpson's ministerial role. The Labour peer did not return a request for comment. Timpson is often held up as an example of a good employer. It has 17 holiday lodges for staff to take breaks, and it spent £711,000 last year on training recruits with a criminal record. Ex-offenders make up 12 per cent of its workforce. Accounts show it paid the Treasury £108.2million last year in VAT, employment taxes and business rates on its shops. Martin Lewis issues warning for 700,000 workers as National Insurance hikes have 'direct impact' on take home pay RIVAL DOC BID A TUSSLE for NHS doctor surgery landlord Assura has taken a fresh twist after healthcare investor Primary Health Properties made a £1.68billion offer yesterday. It is higher than the £1.61billion accepted from private equity firms KKR and Stonepeak Partners. Assura will consider the new offer. RICH TAX PUSH THE UK's richest are paying less tax than they should, a watchdog says. The National Audit Office said HMRC had earned £5.2billion from tackling 'non-compliance' from well-off taxpayers in 2023/24. That was more than £1billion higher than projections — confirming more avoidance than expected.
The Sun
16-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Cobbler Timpson will face millions in losses after Chancellor's National Insurance tax raid
COBBLERS chain Timpson has warned it will face a multi-million-pound hit from the Chancellor's tax raid — just months after its boss quit to join the Government. The family-owned firm, known for its history of hiring former offenders, saw CEO James Timpson step down to become Prisons Minister in July to work on reforming jails. 2 2 In the company's first set of accounts since the General Election, it says: 'His time in Government will be a loss to the business.' Timpson reported sales rose by 4.5 per cent last year to £347million, while profits jumped by 26 per cent to £48million. But the company said its record year would be difficult to match in the face of big increases in the minimum wage and 'a swinging increase in our contribution to National Insurance'. The firm, which already pays above the Living Wage rate, said it would face £12million of extra costs from Rachel Reeves' changes to NI. The admission is awkward given Lord Timpson's ministerial role. The Labour peer did not return a request for comment. Timpson is often held up as an example of a good employer. It has 17 holiday lodges for staff to take breaks, and it spent £711,000 last year on training recruits with a criminal record. Ex-offenders make up 12 per cent of its workforce. Accounts show it paid the Treasury £108.2million last year in VAT, employment taxes and business rates on its shops. Martin Lewis issues warning for 700,000 workers as National Insurance hikes have 'direct impact' on take home pay RIVAL DOC BID A TUSSLE for NHS doctor surgery landlord Assura has taken a fresh twist after healthcare investor Primary Health Properties made a £1.68billion offer yesterday. It is higher than the £1.61billion accepted from private equity firms KKR and Stonepeak Partners. Assura will consider the new offer. RICH TAX PUSH THE UK's richest are paying less tax than they should, a watchdog says. The National Audit Office said HMRC had earned £5.2billion from tackling 'non-compliance' from well-off taxpayers in 2023/24. That was more than £1billion higher than projections — confirming more avoidance than expected.
Sky News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
Minister does not rule out US-style 'supermax' jails for most dangerous offenders following alleged Rudakubana attack on prison officer
Why you can trust Sky News US-style "supermax" jails could be built to house the most dangerous offenders following a spate of alleged attacks on staff, the prisons minister has said. James Timpson told the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that "we shouldn't rule anything out" when asked if the most dangerous criminals should be placed in top security prisons. It comes after Southport triple killer Axel Rudakubana allegedly threw boiling water from a kettle at an officer at HMP Belmarsh on Thursday. Police are now investigating. 2:36 Before that, three prison officers were also allegedly attacked by 28-year-old Hashem Abedi - the brother of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi - with hot cooking oil and "improvised knives", potentially made from a baking tray. Speaking from HMP Preston for a special programme of the Politics Hub, Mr Timpson told Sophy Ridge: "We inherited a complete mess in the prison system. "Violence is up, assaults on staff is up. But for me, we shouldn't rule anything out." He added: "What we need to do is to speak to our staff. They're the experts at dealing with these offenders day in, day out. " Mr Timpson - who was the chief executive of Timpson Group before he was appointed prisons minister last year - said the violence in prisons was "too high". 1:06 He continued: "The number of people when you have prisons are so full, and the people in there are not going to education or into purposeful activity. "You get more violence and that is totally unacceptable. Our staff turn up to work to help turn people. "They want to turn people's lives around. They didn't turn up to work to get assaulted. It's totally unacceptable." Reflecting on the crisis facing the UK prison system ahead of the government's sentencing review, Mr Timpson said a major problem was the high rate of reoffending, saying "80% of offending is reoffending". He said people were leaving places like HMP Preston "addicted to drugs, nowhere to live, mental health problems - and that's why they keep coming back". Asked whether every prison had a drugs issue, he replied: "100%." "If we want to keep the public safe, we need to do a lot more of the work in here and in the community. But also we need to build more prisons." Put to him that making more use of community sentences - thought to be one of the recommendations in the government's sentencing review - might be considered a "cushy option" compared to a custodial sentence, Mr Timpson said: "There are some people in this prison tonight who would prefer to be in prison than do a community sentence - but that's not everybody. "Community sentences need to be tough punishments outside of prison, not just to help them address their offending behaviour, but also the victims need to see punishments being done too and for me, technology has a big part to play in the future."
Daily Mirror
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
'Supermax' US-style prisons could be built in UK amid violence against staff
EXCLUSIVE: James Timpson acknowledged the severity of the crisis gripping UK jails, with recent incidents involving inmates raising concerns about safety and security Britain could see the introduction of US-style "supermax" prisons as a response to a wave of violent episodes among inmates, the prisons minister has announced. Minister James Timpson declared "we shouldn't rule anything out" when exploring the possibility of constructing high-security facilities akin to those in the US for incarcerating the most perilous criminals. According to Sky, this intervention follows on the heels of a harrowing episode at HMP Belmarsh recently, where triple child murderer Axel Rudakubana is accused of dousing a prison officer with boiling water from a kettle – an incident now being probed by the police. In another alarming event, Hashem Abedi – sibling of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi – is said to have assaulted three officers with hot cooking oil and "improvised knives", thought to be made from a baking tray. Chatting on Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge directly from HMP Preston, Mr Timpson conceded that British prisons are in crisis and demanded immediate, strong action, reports the Express. "We inherited a complete mess in the prison system. Violence is up, assaults on staff is up. But for me, we shouldn't rule anything out." Timpson, who took over as prisons minister last year following his tenure as CEO of the Timpson Group, underscored the importance of engaging with prison workers. "What we need to do is to speak to our staff. They're the experts at dealing with these offenders day in, day out." Mr Timpson has acknowledged that violence in prisons is rampant, linking it primarily to overcrowding and a lack of purposeful activity. "The number of people when you have prisons are so full, and the people in there are not going to education or into purposeful activity... you get more violence and that is totally unacceptable," he commented. "Our staff turn up to work to help turn people. They want to turn people's lives around. They didn't turn up to work to get assaulted. It's totally unacceptable." Amid plans for an extensive review of sentencing rules, Mr Timpson called attention to persistent challenges like drug dependency, homelessness, and mental health crises among those released from prisoners. He pointed out: "80% of offending is reoffending. People are leaving places like HMP Preston addicted to drugs, nowhere to live, mental health problems – and that's why they keep coming back." Confronted with questions about the prevalence of drug problems across all UK jails, the minister was adamant: "100%." He concluded: "If we want to keep the public safe, we need to do a lot more of the work in here and in the community. But also we need to build more prisons."
Sky News
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
Minister does not rule out 'supermax' prisons for most dangerous offenders following alleged Rudakubana attack
"Supermax" prisons could be built to house the most dangerous offenders following a spate of alleged attacks on staff, the prisons minister has said. James Timpson told the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that "we shouldn't rule anything out" when asked if the most dangerous criminals should be placed in top security prisons. It comes after Southport triple killer Axel Rudakubana allegedly threw boiling water from a kettle at an officer at HMP Belmarsh on Thursday. Police are now investigating. Before that, three prison officers were also allegedly attacked by 28-year-old Hashem Abedi - the brother of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi - with hot cooking oil and "improvised knives", potentially made from a baking tray. Speaking from HMP Preston for a special programme of the Politics Hub, Mr Timpson said: "We inherited a complete mess in the prison system. He added: "What we need to do is to speak to our staff. They're the experts at dealing with these offenders day in, day out. " Mr Timpson - who was the chief executive of Timpson Group before he was appointed prisons minister last year - said the violence in prisons was "too high". 2:36 He continued: "The number of people when you have prisons are so full, and the people in there are not going to education or into purposeful activity. "You get more violence and that is totally unacceptable. Our staff turn up to work to help turn people. "They want to turn people's lives around. They didn't turn up to work to get assaulted. It's totally unacceptable." Reflecting on the crisis facing the UK prison system ahead of the government's sentencing review, Mr Timpson said a major problem was the high rate of reoffending, saying "80% of offending is reoffending". He said people were leaving places like HMP Preston "addicted to drugs, nowhere to live, mental health problems - and that's why they keep coming back". Asked whether every prison had a drugs issue, he replied: "100%". "If we want to keep the public safe, we need to do a lot more of the work in here and in the community. But also we need to build more prisons." Put to him that making more use of community sentences - thought to be one of the recommendations in the government's sentencing review - might be considered a "cushy option" compared to a custodial sentence, Mr Timpson said: "There are some people in this prison tonight who would prefer to be in prison than do a community sentence - but that's not everybody. "Community sentences need to be tough punishments outside of prison, not just to help them address their offending behaviour, but also the victims need to see punishments being done too and for me, technology has a big part to play in the future."
