<div class="editor-cover-image" data-dimensions="780:300" data-pmr-editor-image="" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://leaders-council-web.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/store/8d588e17263715f313c77dd1a036cc16.jpg&quot;);"></div>

 <div data-pmr-editable="" class="medium-editor-insert-plugin"><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-61982431">The UK government has confirmed</a> that tariffs on steel imports will be extended for two more years having been due to expire, a move which the international trade secretary said was “in the national interest”. The recent increase in energy prices has left British steel firms facing an acute financial squeeze, and ministers have moved to deter businesses from importing steel from elsewhere to avoid dealing further blows to domestic steel producers.The UK steel industry turns over £2 billion per year and provides jobs for around 34,000 people. Industry body UK Steel had also warned that if the government were to end import tariffs on steel, it could see the domestic industry lose out on £150 million.The import controls seek to protect the UK market from being saturated by an excessive supply of cheaper steel from abroad, by imposing tariffs when a certain quota has been reached.While international trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan and prime minister Boris Johnson have talked up the need for import controls to protect British steel firms, there are concerns that the decision could breach international law by contravening the UK’s international legal obligations as set out by the World Trade Organisation [WTO].Yet, Trevelyan said: “However, from time to time, issues may arise where the national interest requires action to be taken.“The government is actively engaged with interested parties, including those outside the UK on the future of the UK safeguards and has listened to the concerns raised.”Steel import controls were first introduced in 2018 by the EU in response to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration in the US. The UK chose to adopt import controls of its own once Brexit was fully enacted.The measures currently cover 15 different steel categories. Controls regulating the supply of 10 of these were already in place until 2024, while limits on a further five were due to expire at the end of June 2022 before the government announced the two-year extension.Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@yasinb3da">yasin hm</a> on Unsplash</div>

The UK government has confirmed that tariffs on steel imports will be extended for two more years having been due to expire, a move which the international trade secretary said was “in the national interest”.

UK extends tariffs on imported steel

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 <div data-pmr-editable="" class="medium-editor-insert-plugin"><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-politics-61980607">Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions in the absence of Boris Johnson,</a> deputy PM Dominic Raab has reiterated the UK government’s insistence that “now is not the time” for another Scottish independence referendum.Instead, Raab suggested that Scots wanted to see Westminster and Holyrood “work together” and address “the challenges we face as one United Kingdom”.Raab was responding to a question tabled by the Scottish National Party’s [SNP] leader in Westminster, Ian Blackford, who asked whether the UK government will continue to make the case for a “failing” system of Westminster rule in Scotland.On Tuesday, Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon [pictured] put forward her plans for a new referendum on Scottish independence and set a target date of October 19, 2023.Blackford told the House of Commons that the first minister of Scotland had “set the date and started a campaign” for independence and that the SNP will make “the positive case” for a breakaway in “the weeks and months ahead.”The SNP leader in Westminster also hit out at the UK government for failing to address major issues such as the cost-of-living crisis and for seeking to break international law by overriding parts of its Brexit deal with the EU relating to trade in Northern Ireland.Raab hit back by accusing Blackford of “airbrushing history” and pointing out Scotland’s own huge tax burden and the poor performance of Scottish schools compared to those in England and Wales under the SNP’s governance of the country.While Raab reiterated that the UK government would continue to resist calls for indyref2, north of the border Sturgeon has said that the independence push will not be deterred.She has already asked Scotland’s Lord Advocate to take the case to the Supreme Court to determine where Holyrood stands on holding a legal referendum without consent from Westminster.Should the Court rule against the Scottish government, she has vowed that the SNP will fight the next general election solely on independence and treat it as a “de facto referendum”.<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-61980405">Sturgeon said:</a> “Scotland can't become independent without a majority of people voting for it. I hope we can resolve these things in a referendum, that is the proper way of doing it. But if all routes to that are blocked then the general election will become the vehicle for people to express their view.“The issue of practical reality is that when a majority vote for independence, I hope in a referendum, that will have to be followed by a negotiation with a UK government to implement that decision."Image by <a href="By Scottish Government - Independence Referendum: transfer of power demanded, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=101945290">Scottish Government on Wikimedia Commons</a></div>

Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions in the absence of Boris Johnson, deputy PM Dominic Raab has reiterated the UK government’s insistence that “now is not the time” for another Scottish independence referendum.

Indyref2: Prospects of Section 30 order rebuffed at PMQs

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 <div data-pmr-editable="" class="medium-editor-insert-plugin"><a href="http://www.leaderscouncil.co.uk/members/luke-woods">Luke Woods</a> is the managing director of APPTIQ Ltd, an app development company which designs and builds bespoke apps for businesses. <a href="https://www.apptiq.co.uk/2021/01/30/how-can-a-mobile-app-help-my-business/">Writing on the APPTIQ blog</a>, Woods explores how a mobile application can form an additional level of connection between businesses and their client base and ultimately benefit everyone. The question around how a mobile app can help businesses is one that we get asked all the time, and it is an interesting one. To be honest, the answer is very broad because it depends on your industry, the size of your business and what you’re trying to achieve. So, most of the time, our answer would simply be: “it depends on your business.”However, as a general rule of thumb, the way a mobile app can help a business is that it creates an extra level of connection with either your staff or your customers, based on what your app will do.It is a way of people becoming much more hands-on in interacting with your company. They have your brand in their pocket, on their phone, which they use all the time.Another great benefit of an app is that it offers a sort of subconscious marketing. Research has shown people generally spend on average between three hours and 15 minutes and four-and-a-half hours on their phones every day, so as they frequently scroll through, they will be seeing the app multiple times a day. They may not always use it, but they will subconsciously always see the app on their phone.It also builds a level of trust in your brand. Some of the critical factors in marketing are building trust, developing an understanding of your product, and being memorable. This is exactly how an app can help a business. It’s all about bringing that extra layer of connection with whoever your app is aimed at, be it staff or customers or both. It means anyone can pick up their phone and be virtually interacting with your business within a matter of seconds. It’s much quicker than, obviously, having to go on the internet, search a URL for your website, and then try and send you an email. They can just go straight to an app, and they can get the information they need or contact the company immediately. The person knows exactly who they’re dealing with because when they click on the app, it is that company, it is you!They know who you are, and they know what they are doing. It is quicker, there are faster transactions and it is all much smoother.The beauty of it is that it can be done at any time, at the user’s convenience. Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@esen_aza">Azamat E</a> on Unsplash</div>

Writing on the APPTIQ blog, company MD Luke Woods explores how a mobile application can form an additional level of connection between businesses and their client base, and ultimately benefit everyone.

APPTIQ Ltd boss outlines how a mobile app can help your business

<div class="editor-cover-image" data-dimensions="780:300" data-pmr-editor-image="" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://leaders-council-web.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/store/6c21c77f95fb84ae529f73338b259f51.jpg&quot;);"></div>

 <div data-pmr-editable="" class="medium-editor-insert-plugin"><a href="http://www.leaderscouncil.co.uk/members/mike-legassick">Mike LeGassick</a> is a director and behavioural investment coach at <a href="https://manningandco.co.uk/">Manning &amp; Company</a>, a long-established financial advice practice based in Ivybridge, Devon. LeGassick recently joined Scott Challinor on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2mQ3k4k--M">The Leaders Council Podcast</a> to highlight and clarify some key aspects of investing that from an advisor’s perspective, every investor ought to be aware of.One issue that was discussed on the show revolved around the tendency for investors to make hasty decisions - usually at times of volatility within the marketplace in the wake of a national or global event of influence - which often do not prove to be the right choices in the long-term.Lifting the lid on what causes investors to suddenly become uncomfortable, cash-out and run, LeGassick [pictured] shared his view that the major driver is a confusion between volatility and a permanent loss of capital.LeGassick said: “The biggest mistake that most investors make is panicking and doing the wrong things at the wrong time for the wrong reasons. That might be fuelled by media frenzy such as what they read and what they see on the TV. But panicking is the easy excuse, you must look at what causes the panic. I’ve done this job for over 30 years now and without a shadow of a doubt, the thing that causes the majority of investors to panic is basically confusing volatility with a permanent loss of capital.The Manning &amp; Company boss went on to share the story of a rollercoaster as an analogy, which he often uses to explain the nature of investment and volatility to investors.“I basically say to all new or experienced investors that come and work with me: ‘Have you ever been on a rollercoaster?’. Most of them will see ‘Well yes’ and they either loved it or will never do it again.&nbsp;"If you cast your mind back to the first time you might have been on a rollercoaster, you will probably have had mixed emotions, you’ve set yourself in the chair, brought the bar down over your chest and tightened it up. Then you get the mixed emotions of apprehension and a bit of excitement. Then comes the anxiety because as you’re slowly going up to the top of the rollercoaster, there are already people thinking ‘What am I doing here? Why am I doing this to myself?’. They then get to the top and people are screaming ‘Get me off!’ or whatever.“Then as the rollercoaster drops down, goes over the upside-down loops and more, first-time riders are maybe thinking ‘I’m going to die, get me out of here!’. There’s a lot of up and down, a steep upward incline, a steep downward spiral, and then you come back up to the beginning again. When you get to the end, you’ll either queue up again or never go on again."LeGassick then elaborated on his analogy, informing us that the ups, downs and loops of the rollercoaster were akin to the volatility of investing."The rollercoaster is like the volatility of investing. If you managed to get yourself out of your seat when upside down and mid-loop, then you’re probably looking at a permanent loss. So, what you need to understand with investing is not to get out of the rollercoaster when upside down. It’s the worst possible thing, and likewise investors tend to panic and do the wrong things at the wrong time rather than waiting it out.“I would say 70 per cent of what I do with my clients is managing people’s behaviour and educating them to make sure they don’t get blindsided by the mistakes that investors make. If I can make sure that my clients and whoever I speak to don't fall foul of those common mistakes, then there's a far better chance they'll get a far better outcome.”Listen to the extended interview with Manning &amp; Company’s Mike LeGassick on The Leaders Council Podcast below.<div class="medium-insert-embeds">
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Investment guru Mike LeGassick recently joined Scott Challinor on The Leaders Council Podcast to highlight and clarify some key aspects of investing that from an advisor’s perspective, every investor ought to be aware of.

Investment guru Mike LeGassick talks key investment aspects that all investors should know

Leaders Council roundtable discussion on the topic of financial regulation. The discussion will be chaired by our chairman Lord David Blunkett.

Policy Roundtable - Financial Regulation

Leaders Council roundtable discussion on the ongoing issues surrounding
the housing shortage, future building regulations &amp; business recovery after
the covid-19 pandemic.   The discussion will be chaired by our chairman Lord David Blunkett.

Policy Roundtable - Future Building Regulations & Housing 

You may consider yourself highly motivated, but what constitutes motivation and how can you leverage even more from others? This session aims to explore the research into how we are all motivated and it will help you to get the very best from your team.

Motivation changes over time and this session will also be discussing these undulations, why they occur and how you can manage them.---The interactive workshop will be led by Steve Woolland, Director of Coaching and Training at wctd. Steve is an Accredited Performance Coach, Consultant and Leadership Trainer with key skills in behavioral change.

Business and Leadership Coaching - Influencing Others

Simon Curtis is the managing director and owner of Cloud Electronics, the UK leader in amplification, mixer-amplifiers, and zone-routing audio tools in the realm of commercial and domestic installations.

In Conversation: Simon Curtis

Karen Lowen is the founder and director of three micro business, namely accountancy practice Turl &amp; Co Ltd; manufacturer and monthly subscription box retailer Witchbox Ltd; and accountancy software company Dod-dle Corporation Ltd. Karen is also a qualified public speaker having been awarded Competent Communicator by Toastmasters International, has published written technical articles, and is a Mensan.

In Conversation: Karen Lowen

Karen Lowen

Paul Hines is the director and owner of Progress Windows Ltd, a company which specialises in the supplying and fitting of windows, doors, conservatories, and roofline to domestic or commercial properties throughout the Midlands, based in Hinckley.

In Conversation: Paul Hines

Richard Dorney is a director at Strongmind Resiliency Training, a specialist provider of training in mental health awareness, resilience, and trauma management.

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