Capital gains tax relief on selling assets to raise cash for Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) investments was rubber-stamped as permanent by Chancellor George Osborne in his Budget 2014 speech.
According to specialist web site seis.co.uk, Osborne introduced SEIS in his Budget 2012 to help entrepreneurs raise start-up cash after the banks turned their back on funding new start businesses.
Part of the generous tax breaks is a 50% CGT exemption on the disposal of assets, which the Chancellor has renewed annually.
After pleas from investors and entrepreneurs, he has decided to make the relief permanent.
Stuart Smith of seis.co.uk also writes that documents released alongside the Budget Speech, the Treasury also disclosed more changes to SEIS, the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Venture Capital Trusts (VCT).
More tax reliefs explored
“The government will also explore options for the tax reliefs to apply where individuals make investments as convertible loans, and to better target high-risk investment will change the eligibility criteria of venture capital schemes to avoid subsidising low-risk activities that already benefit from certain government programmes,” a Treasury spokesman told seis.co.uk.
“The Chancellor wants to encourage investors to put money into social enterprises. The government will set a rate of 30% income tax relief – the same as the rate for EIS and VCTs for Social Investment Tax Relief. This rate will allow eligible social enterprises to receive a maximum of around £290,000 investment over three years.”
Also in Budget 2014, says Smith the Chancellor promised cash to help cutting edge technology breakthroughs.
New centres for catapault centres for developing cell therapy and graphene applications will be established.
Graphene investment
According to the site, “Graphene is heralded by scientists as a wonder material that will revolutionise technology as a conductor and membrane. It’s based on a compound derived from graphite.”
Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, of Manchester University, won the Nobel Prize in physics for their work with graphene.
Osborne also confirmed funding for a new Alan Turing Institute to for developing big data and algorithm software applications.
“Alan Turing, the code breaker who lived in my constituency, who did more than almost any other single person to win the war, and who was persecuted for his sexuality by the country he helped save,” said Osborne in his speech to MPs.
“Now, in his honour, we will found the Alan Turing Institute to ensure Britain leads the way again in the use of big data and algorithm research. I am determined that our country is going to out-compete, out-smart and out-do the rest of the world.”
