Pre Budget Report date set

The Chancellor's Pre Budget Report, which should signal the future direction he takes for small businesses, is scheduled for Thursday, December 2.

In last March's Budget, the Chancellor indicated that the Treasury would be producing a discussion paper on the taxation of small owner-managed businesses, to be released at the time of the Pre Budget Report.

In the Budget 2004, paragraph 5.95 of the 'Red Book' said that: ‘To ensure that targeted tax incentives support the Government’s objectives for growth, enterprise and productivity, the Government proposes to consider the issues raised by the interaction with the tax system of definitions of income of self-employment, and the remuneration paid to owner-managers, in a discussion paper which will be issued at the time of the 2004 Pre-Budget Report.’

This has already come in for criticism from some professional bodies for the lack of consultation with outside organisations during its preparation.

The Pre Budget Report sets out the proposed agenda for the next Budget. Last year's PBR will be remembered by small businesses for trailing, in paragraph 5.91, a measure 'to ensure that the right amount of tax is paid by owner managers of small incorporated businesses on the profits extracted from their company'.