Your Local Independent 212

Page 8 October 2026 AD SALES 01204 478812 BUSINESS TO ADVERTISE CALL 01204 478812 £ CHORLEY head- quartered Panache Cruises has topped the £1million (A$2m) sales mark in Aus- tralia less than three months after opening down under. The luxury cruise retailer appointed expe- rienced industry profes- sional Juliana Nasmith as head of sales and oper- ations ahead of opening its Sydney office. It now employs eight staff at the site. The Australian launch for Panache followed the opening of a US office in 2024. Juliana said: “Reach- ing A$2m in sales within our first few months is a fantastic milestone, par- ticularly as we are build- ing the Panache Cruises brand from the ground up in Australia. What has been most encourag- ing is how strongly Aus- tralian travellers have responded to our highly personalised approach. “Luxury cruise is a considered purchase, and clients really value having an expert who takes the time to under- stand what they want, guide them through the options, and look after the finer details. It gives us a lot of confidence in the opportunity ahead.” Juliana said Panache, which is on a mission to become the world’s larg- est luxury cruise retailer, was seeing strong demand for luxury and ultra-luxury cruising. She added: “Another interesting trend is that people are planning well ahead. For many of our clients, the conversation isn’t simply ‘where can I go this year?’ “They are thinking about their next two or three major trips, which creates a great opportunity for us to build long-term rela- tionships rather than simply facilitate a sin- gle booking. “We are very positive about the remainder of 2026. There is significant momentum in the Aus- tralian cruise market, particularly at the lux- ury end, and we believe there is still plenty of room for growth. “For us, 2026 is very much about continu- ing to build awareness of Panache Cruises in Australia, growing our team and client base, and demonstrating what makes our approach different. The first few months have given us a very strong foundation, MORE than 600,000 high earners across Britain could be caught by pension tax rules by 2032, according to new analysis. It suggests that the number forced to reduce their pension con- tributions will increase by more than a fifth over the next five years. The figures were revealed in a Financial Times report, highlight- ing that the number of taxpayers affected by the pension tapered annual allowance will continue to rise as fiscal drag pulls more people into the system. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) data reveals around half a million earners are already affected by the taper in the current tax year ending in April, accord- ing to research carried out for the newspaper by pension consultancy Barnett Waddingham. And if the thresholds do not change, that figure could climb by 114,000 people by 2032, the anal- ysis shows. That would take the total num- ber of higher earners caught by the taper to more than 600,000. The pension tapered annual allowance reduces the amount some higher earners can contribute to their pension while still receiv- ing tax relief. For most taxpayers, the standard annual pension con- tribution allowance is £60,000. However, once an individual’s adjusted income, which combines taxable earnings and pension con- tributions, exceeds £260,000, that figure starts to fall. The allowance continues taper- ing until it reaches a minimum of £10,000. And anyone who exceeds their available allowance could face an additional tax charge. The £200,000 income threshold at which the taper starts has been frozen since 2020. The standard annual pen- sion contribution allowance was increased from £40,000 to £60,000 in 2023, partly offsetting the impact of the frozen threshold. Tyron Potts, head of pensions research at Barnett Waddingham, CRUISE COMPANY IS TOPS DOWN UNDER Growing sales: Julliana Nasmith and James Cole and we’re excited about where we can take the business from here.” James Cole, chief executive and founder of Panache Cruises, said: “The Australian market is very different to the UK, which is why we decided to open an office in Sydney. “We were delighted to recruit someone of the experience of Jules and she’s doing a great job, along with the team. The cruise market in Aus- tralia is growing quickly and we can only see it growing further. “The sales are in line with expectations and we are targeting sales of A$10m in our first year.” Pension savers face ‘tax trap’ told the Financial Times: “For high earners, annual allowance taper- ing can swiftly and stealthily erode pension tax relief, so understand- ing your adjusted income and how the taper applies will be essential to avoiding an unexpected tax bill.” And he warned that a single bonus or one-off payment could be enough to push someone above the threshold. However, not all experts see a problem. Sir Steve Webb, former pensions minister and partner at consultancy LCP, told the news- paper: “A combination of a much higher starting allowance and a gentle taper mean that the impact is marginal for most people.” And he said that the frozen threshold “is likely to be much less of an issue than it used to be”. Holiday pay records are causing headaches THOUSANDS of employers in the UK are struggling with new ‘onerous responsibility’ over holiday entitlement and pay compliance, an expert has warned. The issue follows the govern- ment’s April introduction of the Fair Work Agency and new rules. Employers now have to main- tain holiday entitlement and pay records and keep them for six years, in line with National Min- imumWage records. Records must contain annual entitlements, when leave is taken and what employees are paid for each period of leave, includ- ing any pay in lieu of holiday upon termination. The principle is simple, but the working reality is more complex, says H-J Dobbie, Head of HRCon- sultancy at Bolton accountancy and business advisory firmAzets. She said: “Typically, HRwill deal with holiday entitlement calcula- tions and payroll will deal with holiday pay. “But with the new onerous responsibility requiring all the data to be in one place and easily accessible, it means HR and pay- roll will need to workmore closely together than ever before.” Holiday for workers with varia- ble hours and variable pay can be calculated using the ‘percentage method’, and holiday for workers with fixed hours and fixed pay is straightforward, H-J said. But she warned this is not the case when it comes to workers with fixed hours but variable pay. She added: “For example, if they regularly work overtime, receive allowances or commission or are paid shift premiums. The calcu- lation for these workers, based on the ‘calendar method’, is so com- plicated that employers often don’t know where to start. “Employers are in a state of panic as they don’t know how much will be owed to employees when the extent of the underpay- ments is known, especially as they may have to go back as far as two years to make good with their workers. “They are terrified the newFair Work Agency will impose hefty fines or open criminal investiga- tions even though they are trying to do right by staff.” Warning: H-J Dobbie