The don’ts of the new 3-tier system
The new 3-tier system for classifying local COVID alert status sets out what you should not do depending on the classification of your local area. At present they only apply to England. In summary they are:
Local COVID Alert Level – Very High
This is for areas with a very high level of infections.
100 towns to share £80m
The Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, has announced that over 100 towns in England will each be given up to £1 million to kick start regeneration projects and give areas a boost.
The funding to be received varies between £500k and £1m per town. The money will be available to help support
Venues required to record contact details
It has become a requirement for premises and venues across England to have a system in place to record contact details of their customers, visitors and staff. This move is intended to help trace people should a venue be linked to a coronavirus outbreak.
The government has said that further
English plastic bag charge to double
The single-use carrier bag charge came into effect in England on 5 October 2015. This introduced a minimum charge of 5p on single-use carrier bags supplied by large shops (with over 250 employees) in England.
Since then single-use carrier bags are no longer given away free when buying goods from
Fast-tracking passport applications
Due to coronavirus disruption, it is currently taking up to six weeks to renew or replace a passport online. It can take even longer if you apply by post or if applying for a first adult passport. Passport offices and the premium and fast track services are currently closed.
However, you may be
Government legal department numbers open to fraud
The Government Legal Departments (GLD) is warning that its general enquiry number (020 7210 8500) and switchboard number (020 7210 3000) are being used by fraudsters to try and extract money from members of the public.
In most of the reported cases, the fraudsters claim they are calling from the
Lost your tax reference number?
Your unique taxpayer reference (UTR) is the primary identifier for tax purposes. The number is also sometimes known as your taxpayer number or tax reference number and should be used whenever you contact HMRC or when you file your tax returns. The UTR is a unique 10 digit code. You automatically
New payments for people self-isolating
The government has announced the launch of a new trial scheme that will pay people on low incomes who need to self-isolate and are unable to work from home. The trial will start in Blackburn, Darwen, Pendle, and Oldham to ensure the process works. The trial scheme started on Tuesday, 1 September
Teenagers to get access to Child Trust Funds
Children born after 31 August 2002 and before 3 January 2011 were entitled to a Child Trust Fund (CTF) account provided they met the necessary conditions. These funds were long-term saving accounts for newly born children. The first of these children will begin turning 18 from 1 September
Eviction ban extended by 4 weeks
The government has announced a further four-week extension to the eviction ban for tenants affected by the Coronavirus pandemic. This means that landlords in England and Wales will be banned from evicting tenants until at least 20 September 2020. This takes the total ban to 6 months.
The government