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Why Is Inclusive Leadership Important | Quastels Round Table Podcast

Why Is Inclusive Leadership Important | Quastels Round Table Podcast

Inclusive leadership has become a cornerstone for organisational success in today’s diverse and dynamic workforce. A discussion hosted by Dipti Shah, featuring Lynn Perry (CEO of Barnardo’s) and Sir Peter Wanless (ex-CEO of the NSPCC), highlighted the transformative power of inclusive leadership. Their insights offer a roadmap for embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) into core organisational culture, fostering a more engaged and purpose-driven workforce.


Organisations across sectors are grappling with challenges with employee disengagement, staff retention, and attracting top talent. This phenomenon, often referred to as “quiet quitting”, reflects a deeper issue of emotional detachment among employees. Lynn Perry and Peter Wanless explain why inclusive leadership is critical to addressing these issues, creating environments where employees feel valued and motivated.

Inclusive leadership goes beyond policies and checklists—it involves embedding EDI principles into every aspect of the organisation, ensuring that diversity is celebrated, equity is prioritised, and inclusion is felt at all levels.

Key Components of Inclusive Leadership

Development and Training: Structured EDI training and emerging leadership programmes support underrepresented employees with the skills and confidence to progress.

Representation: Lynn Perry highlights the need for targeted leadership programmes for underrepresented groups, such as women and employees of African, Asian, and Caribbean heritage, to ensure diversity at all levels.

Psychological Safety: Both leaders emphasise initiatives such as 360-degree feedback and reciprocal (upward) mentoring. These programmes allow senior leaders to learn from employees’ lived experiences, fostering mutual understanding and growth.

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Ethically Fixing the Luxury Fashion Supply Chains

Ethically Fixing the Luxury Fashion Supply Chains

The End of Fast Fashion?

The conversation begins with a bold question: Is fast fashion becoming yesterday’s news? Rachel reflects on how fast fashion, driven by low costs and disposable consumer habits, is being disrupted by regulatory changes and shifting consumer expectations. Marcus highlights the role of European legislation in enforcing accountability, noting that compliance with ESG standards is no longer optional for companies aiming to remain competitive.


LLUK: Preserving Skills, Promoting Sustainability

Rachel shares LLUK’s inspiring mission to preserve traditional manufacturing skills in the UK. Based in Maidenhead, Berkshire, her company employs skilled artisans and collaborates with fabric producers to support luxury brands in sourcing ethical, high-quality materials. This commitment is crucial as the UK grapples with a decline in manufacturing skills. Marcus commends LLUK’s dual focus on empowering local communities and aligning with international ESG goals.

Why ESG is a Game-Changer for Fashion?

Marcus, drawing on his extensive experience in ESG, underscores its transformative impact on the fashion supply chain. “Governance is about more than compliance—it’s about building trust and demonstrating responsibility at every level,” he explains. Rachel agrees, illustrating how LLUK incorporates transparency and fairness into every aspect of their operations, from worker wages to the end consumer’s experience.

The conversation touches on consumer education, with both speakers agreeing that younger generations are driving the demand for sustainable practices. Rachel notes, “Our customers value ethical sourcing, and brands that fail to adapt risk reputational damage.”

Repair, Repurpose, Reimagine

A standout topic in their discussion is LLUK’s repair and repurposing service, which extends the life of garments and reduces landfill waste. Rachel envisions a future where luxury brands incorporate repair services as standard, fostering customer loyalty and sustainability. Marcus supports this view, linking it to broader ESG trends, where companies are expected to think beyond profit margins and invest in long-term solutions.

A Call to Action for the Industry

The podcast concludes with a shared vision for the future: a fashion industry that balances profitability with ethical practices.

Rachel and Marcus agree that businesses must prioritise sustainability to meet the demands of regulators and consumers alike.

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Autumn Budget – The Quastels’ Take

Autumn Budget – The Quastels’ Take

Billed as a ‘once in a generation event’, the hotly anticipated Autumn Budget has been the subject of intense speculation for what seemed an eon in the private wealth sector and our clients. Looking at the announcements broadly, then, it was a Budget for which, for all intents and purposes, we prepared ourselves: large tax rises, more borrowing and commitment to increased public spending and investment.

We set out below our initial thoughts on the key proposals affecting our clients.

NON-DOMICILES

The surprises came in the form of tempered measures and concessions, in attempts to stem the stampede of foreign HNWs for the departure gates at Heathrow, including:

  • a tapering of the Inheritance Tax ‘tail’ on worldwide assets of between three to ten years, depending on the length of residence in the UK; and
  • an extension of the ‘Temporary Repatriation Facility’ to three years, at a reduced rate of 12% for the first two years and 15% for the third year, for those who have previously claimed the remittance basis.

Although these measures are more ‘moderate’ compared to previous proposals, , the scrapping of protected status for trusts settled by non-domiciliaries, with no grandfathering provisions will not be warmly embraced.

Whether taxpayers and their advisors will agree with the Chancellor that the new residence-based regime is ‘internationally competitive’, will be evaluated more accurately through the passage of time.

CAPITAL GAINS TAX AND INHERITANCE TAX

At the height of the pre-budget frenzy, it was speculated that Capital Gains Tax (CGT) rates would be aligned with Income Tax rates and that that various Inheritance Tax (IHT) reliefs would be removed.

Clients and their advisers gained some comfort that the rates announced for CGT (an increase of the main rate from 10% to 18% for basic rate taxpayers and from 20% to 24% for higher rate and additional rate taxpayers, to align with residential property rates) were more conservative when held up against media speculation.

Business Asset Disposal Relief and Investors’ Relief is also set to rise from next year, making it more costly for those selling their companies.

Whilst fears that Business Property Relief (BPR) and Agricultural Property Relief (APR) would be removed entirely did not come to pass, the restriction of 100% relief to the first £1,000,000 of combined business and agricultural property, with values in excess of this amount only benefitting from 50% relief from April 2026, has been met with robust responses.

For many businesses, the £1,000,000 cap is likely to be insufficient for even the smallest of operations and IHT will be an existential threat to the continuity of businesses. In sectors such as farming with high capital values and increasingly low yields, for example, it will be a real concern that IHT could lead to the breakup of farms.

Unused pensions and death benefits payable from a pension which largely sit outside an individual’s estate for IHT purposes, will also become subject to IHT from 2027.

However, the rules surrounding gifting remain unchanged for now, and it is likely that gifting onto the next generation will be accelerated and will form an important part of succession planning where feasible.

WEALTH TAXES

Whilst the UK does not levy a tax on wealth per se, many may view the newly proposed levies as such.

The Government has committed to applying VAT to private school fees from 1 January 2025. VAT for the supply of services (education in this case) will be subject to where it is delivered and it is unclear whether this will deter international students from UK independent schooling due to the higher fees.

The Chancellor, in a mocking quip to the former prime minister Rishi Sunak, also confirmed a 50% uplift in air passenger duty (APD) for trips by private jet from 2027/28.

In a commitment to support first-time buyers of property in the UK, it was also announced that the Stamp Duty Land Tax surcharge on additional property will rise from 3% to 5%. This surcharge also applies to those purchasing buy-to-let residential properties.

CONCLUSION

It has always been crucial for HNW/UHNW individuals and families to seek advice on wealth protection and planning opportunities as early as possible. However, with unused pensions being brought into scope of IHT and the restriction of full BPR and APR subject to a cap, many who would have considered themselves to be of more moderate wealth or who have business operations, will now need to give serious thought as to gifting and succession planning during their lifetimes.

For non-domiciled individuals, the Budget has provided certainty on the abolition of the current tax regime, but it remains to be seen whether the four-year foreign income and gains regime, will be a sufficient sweetener for prospective inpatriates whom the Government hope to become long-term taxpayers.

Please do contact the Private Wealth & Tax team to understand the implications for you and/or your clients.

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