Wednesday 31 October 2018

Alan Evans Appointed HMRC General Counsel

 

New HMRC General Counsel and Solicitor appointed


Alan currently works as the Legal Director at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and has built an extensive legal career over almost 30 years - working in the City, at the European Commission, and across a number of government departments.

This appointment has been formally ratified by the Prime Minister, following an extensive recruitment exercise, which sought candidates from across the Civil Service and externally to government.

Chief Executive, Jon Thompson said:
I’m delighted to welcome Alan to HMRC, where he will take up a key role within the Executive Committee at a critical time for the department. Alan brings with him a huge amount of experience from his time in government, and within the legal profession.

I would like to extend my thanks to David Bunting, who has very ably led the Solicitors Office and Legal Services Group as interim General Counsel and Solicitor since Gill Aitken’s departure in June.
Alan Evans will formally take up the role from 1 January 2019.

I have done a brief Google for him, and can't find anything???

Remarkable to be so absent from the web!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Tuesday 30 October 2018

HMRC Regains Preferred Status In Bankruptcies



In 2002 the insolvency regime changed in 2002 under the Enterprise Act, when HMRC had their right as a preferential creditor removed and were ranked alongside unsecured creditors.

Now it is back to the future, as the government plans to give HMRC preferred status in bankruptcies, which would put HMRC back on the same footing as preferred creditors such as banks.

The measure is designed to bring in around £600m, but R3, the insolvency trade body, is quoted by the FT warning it could be “a retrograde and damaging step to UK plc if not thought through carefully.”

It said the measure could amount to “a tax on creditors” who would collect less in an insolvency and this could hit small businesses, pension funds, suppliers and lenders, as well as making borrowing for small businesses harder to come by.

"If not thought through carefully" is the hallmark of the government's approach to tax!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Monday 29 October 2018

The Budget Live - #Budget2018



Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Happy Budget Day!



Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Thursday 25 October 2018

HMRC Too Aggressive, and Mel Stride Afraid To Face The Lords



What an utter disgrace!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Wednesday 24 October 2018

Mel Stride Running Scared of The Lords



Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Lords Give HMRC a Well Deserved Kicking


The Lords have been holding a hearing on Making Tax Digital, and are far from impressed.

Lord Lee is quoted by Accountancy Daily:
"The evidence we have had is absolutely overwhelming in that there is huge under-preparedness. The firm impression we have at the moment is that we are heading for a giant car crash."
For good measure Baroness Noakes was of the view that MTD will not make the slightest difference to yield:
"It has been put to us that all you have required people to put things on a particular kind of spreadsheet, which is what they do at the moment, and then it transfers over to the nine boxes, and that there is nothing which will change what they do in their businesses.

I cannot get to where there will be any difference in yield because you have mandated that somehow spreadsheets have been linked to an API."
It seems to me that the Lords have a better handle on things than HMRC and the Commons!


Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Is Enabling a Major MTD Rip Off


Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Tuesday 23 October 2018

MTD is Shite!



Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Monday 22 October 2018

HMRC's Football Mania



A spokesperson from HMRC is quoted by Citywire:

"HMRC carefully scrutinises the individual image rights arrangements between football clubs and their players to make sure the right tax is being paid in the UK.

We are carrying out visits to every Premier League club and most football league clubs, along with their players. We're currently making enquiries into 198 footballers, 44 football clubs and 29 agents for a range of issues, including image rights abuse."

All very well and jolly, maybe. However, avoidance is not illegal and greater rewards would be had from pursuing evasion as noted last week.


Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Friday 19 October 2018

AA's To Get 4%+ Pay Rise?



As per a loyal reader:
"Intranet reply from Jon Thompson in his blog :..."We are upping the AA pay by at least 4% this coming year"

Why you may ask ??


Because the pay is so low in HMRC that the department is forced to pay an in-year increase to AA grade staff just to meet the same national minimum wage it is the department’s job to enforce
."
Is this for real?

I can't find an outside source?

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Thursday 18 October 2018

HMRC's Focus on Avoidance Rubbished In Finance Sub Committee



Kudos to the Lords Finance Sub Committee for nailing a few issues!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Wednesday 17 October 2018

Tribunal Rules Against HMRC - No Valid Determination of Penalties by HMRC



HMRC lost a First Tier Tribunal in September because they couldn't prove that a series of fines were issued by a real live HMRC officer!

ICPA reports that recruitment business Expion Silverstone Ltd, had filed late returns for the first three quarters of the 2016-17 financial year. Consequently, HMRC issued the company with three penalty assessments, all on 19th April 2017, for £250, £500 and £1,000.

S.100(1) Taxes Management Act 1970 states that an officer of the Board [HMRC] may make a penalty determination, and the onus of proof lay with HMRC to justify the imposition of the penalties.

The only evidence HMRC put forward was a computer printout. This was insufficient, as the Revenue did not constitute an officer, nor a real officer at that. The Tribunal therefore issued directions to HMRC requiring them to provide the following evidence:
  1. name of the officer who made the penalty determination;
  2. details and evidence of how and when that officer made the determination;
  3. the process by which the HMRC computer was then instructed to send notification to Expion Silverstone Ltd; and
  4. how the determinations were subsequently recorded on Expion’s computer records.
After being granted an extension of time by the Tribunal to comply with the direction, after two months all the Revenue could offer was:
“Although HMRC has been granted a time extension it is still not possible to provide a detailed response to these directions. These penalties were automatically issued by HMRC’s computer systems therefore we cannot provide a named person in respect of individual cases. 

The computer recorded the penalties and issued penalty notices on 19/04/2017 in accordance with HMRC’s policy in respect of late filing of Employment Intermediary returns.”
Why did HMRC take two months to come up with an answer that was obvious to all from the beginning?

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Tuesday 16 October 2018

HMRC Gagging For New Powers


The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) is of the view that HMRC has not made a strong enough case to either remove safeguards on his third-party data requests or to extend hefty daily penalties to many more cases.

Currently, before HMRC can issue a notice to a third-party for material it deems ‘reasonably required’ for its enquiries, it must get taxpayer or tribunal permission.

However, in a HMRC consultation on its civil information powers, the department says it is concerned at the length of time it can take to obtain approval from a tribunal.

HMRC believes that a radical solution would be to remove altogether the requirement for either tribunal or taxpayer-approval before a third-party notice is issued.

ATT is quoted by Contractor UK:
We do not believe that HMRC have provided sufficient evidence to justify the erosion of important safeguards for both taxpayers and third parties.

The safeguards were] introduced for two reasons -- to protect the privacy of taxpayers and to prevent undue burdens being imposed on third parties.”
Not content with removing safeguards, HMRC also wants to extend tribunal-determined penalties -- of up to £1,000 a day – to every type of information notice that taxpayers and third parties can be issued with.


Who in theri right mid would trust HMRC with these additional powers/fines?

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Monday 15 October 2018

HMRC Dishonours Negotiated Agreement



My thanks to the loyal reader who posted this behind the scenes account of how HMRC screw up and dishonour negotiations:
"At a meeting a few weeks ago, the senior HMRC staff who have been engaged in a FIVE YEAR negotiation with a major multinational were being beaten up by the CEO and CFO to explain why a deal everybody (foreign tax authorities included) had been happy with 3 months ago was now a non runner.

All they did was to mumble about "Governance Procedures" and look deeply miserable.

As far as we could make out, it had gone up the food chain and a summary been served cold to beings unfamiliar with the history and complexities.

And one or more of them had bellowed "I like it not!!!" because despite offering a large net cash gain for the UK Treasury over the coming years, a large current year offset and smaller repayment in respect of prior years would result.

So off to Litigation it is. HMRC will lose because their original stance was based on a near complete misunderstanding of the facts and a refusal to listen.
"
This is not the way to handle things!

See you in four or five years.


Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Thursday 11 October 2018

HMRC's Great British Bake - Off!


Patisserie Valerie, having suspended its shares over a potential fraud, has also warned investors of an HMRC winding up petition it faces over £1.14m in unpaid tax.

HMRC said Patisserie Holding’s principal trading subsidiary, Stonebeach, owes it the money, and has set a hearing date of 31 October to seek a court order to liquidate the firm and its assets.

HMRC advertised the petition last Friday. However, rather oddly, Patisserie’s board said it has only "become aware” of it yesterday.

City AM quotes the stock market update:
The company and its advisers are in communication with HMRC with the objective of addressing the petition.


The company continues to engage with its professional advisers to understand better the financial position of the group and will make further announcements in due course.”
This does not bode well for Pat Val!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Wednesday 10 October 2018

HMRC Misleading The NHS


Oh dear it seems that HMRC is misleading (deliberately? Surely not!) the NHS wrt IR35 contractor rules.

Tax experts and lawyers have called into question HMRC’s grasp of the laws surrounding IR35 and expressed fear that HMRC has misled the public sector on implementing the Off-Payroll legislation, following the exposure of a controversial webinar delivered to the NHS.

Working through intermediaries: implementing IR35 guidance in the NHS’ was delivered by HMRC’s policy advisor on IR35, Mark Frampton, to NHS Improvement in September 2017.

Leaked to ContractorCalculator by the Independent Health Professionals Association (IHPA), the hour-long webinar may help explain the reportedly huge number of blanket inside IR35 assessments since the Off-Payroll tax took effect, with experts slamming HMRC’s guidance as ‘misleading’ and ‘inaccurate’.

Martyn Valentine, director of employment status specialists The Law Place. is quoted by ContractorCalculator:
Frampton’s comments on employment status case law is a matter of concern.

The guidance issued to Trustees appears geared toward finding almost all NHS locums within scope of IR35."
IHPA secretary-general, Dr Iain Campbell said:
"The consequence of this guidance to NHS Trusts has already resulted in a reduction in locums prepared to work in hospitals, leading to rota gaps not being filled, and a worsening of the winter crisis and endangering patient care.
Stephen Mhiribidi, head of legal at the IHPA, added his voice to the discussion:
Many locums are much slower to take shifts that entail significant travel, subsistence and accommodation costs, and rota gaps are increasing on a daily basis. Indeed, some trusts have found themselves in the red on the risk register as a direct consequence of this."
Speaking during the webinar, Frampton commented:
If you look at the terms and conditions, and the way that an individual works, and they work in broadly the same way as an employee, then they should be taxed broadly in the same way as employees.
Except that is wrong!

Valentine said:
Frampton is wrong here, and this is a dangerous statement, both for locums and the NHS itself.

The legislation actually requires that IR35 be assessed on a case-by-case basis, with multiple factors outside of the contractual terms taken into account.” 
The result of this misleading advice will be that genuine contractors will stop working for the NHS.

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Tuesday 9 October 2018

Margaret Hodge Makes a Fool of Herself



There is precious little chance of HMRC being made to improve its performance if politicians are as woefully ignorant of the basics of finance as Hodge!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Monday 8 October 2018

The Outdated Tax System Isn't Fit For Purpose


Elaine is right, the tax sytem isn't fit for purpose and fgor HMRC to waste its time and the time and money of taxpayers trying to force 21st century earning practises into a mid 20th century model is not just daft it's WRONG!!!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Friday 5 October 2018

Jon Thompson Given Public Drubbing by PAC



Jon Thompson, chief executive of HMRC has been given a public drubbing by MPs for failing to tell 100,000 small businesses how to prepare for a 'no deal' Brexit.

Thompson was given a dressing down in a letter from parliament's Public Accounts Committee, which has been made public.

Committee chair Meg Hillier said she was "concerned and disappointed" about the lack of communication with small businesses from the department, and asked for an urgent update on how HMRC plans to make them aware of potential changes to how they trade.

She also criticised a further delay to HMRC's new customs declarations service, which is not likely to function properly until after Brexit.

The letter is quoted by City AM:
"I am both concerned and disappointed...you have made little progress.

You gave us no assurance that HMRC has a plan to ensure that businesses are aware of what they will need to do.

We are particularly concerned about the 100,000 small traders that HMRC can not engage directly with, as you do not know who they are.

I would be grateful if you could write to the Committee as soon as possible with an update on the level of business understanding and preparedness for changes to customs rules and procedures in the event of no deal."
Hillier also accused HMRC of being underprepared for changes to how businesses would pay VAT on EU imported goods after Brexit - with bills expected to be paid quicker.

Thompson told the committee his team had only just started to work with software developers to create the new system.

WHY ONLY START NOW??????

Hillier said:
"The potential move to postponed accounting is something that was foreseeable and it is reasonable to expect you to have been better prepared for it."
An HMRC spokesperson said:
“HMRC has well-developed plans to ensure that there will be a functioning customs, VAT and excise system in the unlikely event of a no deal. We have engaged with business representative bodies who will be a key partners in reaching businesses to ensure that they understand any implications for them.

We have always said the timeline for implementing the Customs Declaration Service is tight, but that we would operate the current system (CHIEF) in tandem throughout the transition. We have made good progress to ensure that the UK has a customs system capable of handling any potential volume of customs declarations after March 2019.
BOLLOCKS!

Oh, and in other news, Thompson has deleted his Twitter account.

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Thursday 4 October 2018

HMRC Is a "Paragon" - The Video



Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Is a "Paragon" of "Smart" Working



I am delighted to report that HMRC has been declared a "paragon".

It seems that, according to a report from the public-service-focused think tank Reform, HMRC's recent progress in embracing new technology, introducing new hubs and offering staff flexible-working opportunities offers a blueprint for other Whitehall departments, .

According to Public Technology, HMRC's implementation of “smarter working” principles has seen 25,000 of the department’s close-on 70,000 staff receive tablet computers so that they can work wherever they are, at a time of their choice.

HMRC is also at the forefront of the government Hubs Programme, and is targeting the consolidation of its operations to 13 regional hubs by 2027 – a huge scaling down from the 600 offices it had in 2005 and the 144 it operated in the last financial year.

The Reform report notes that HMRC’s new Croydon hub, which opened in September last year, offers different types of workspaces – such as shared spaces for collaboration, quiet zones for intense work, and videoconferencing so that staff can participate in meetings without being in the building.

Report co-author Daniel El-Gamry said the experience of HMRC showed that it was vital for staff needs rather than new technology to be in the driving seat.
User-centred design is crucial because it embeds a culture of empathy with the employees’ actual needs, identifying their routine work challenges to create relevant solutions,” he said. “Therefore, rather than technological change being driven from the top, it is tailored around the needs of individual staff members.”
The report said initiatives such as HMRC’s distribution of tablets gave staff “more authority and autonomy” on how and when they worked.

HMRC permanent secretary Jon Thompson said the report showed the department was making “excellent progress” towards becoming a smart working organisation.
We’re improving the service that we give to taxpayers and the experience for our people working in HMRC.
Hat tip to Thompson, he actually avoided the use of the "C" word and referred to us as "taxpayers"!

The report also noted that HMRC was still 50% over the Cabinet Office’s target for space allocation per staff member – which it said was six square metres, according to the government’s The State of the Estate in 2016–17 report.

Well then, everything appears to be prefect!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Wednesday 3 October 2018

Troup Cleared - Jobs For The Boys



Sir Edward Troup, former permanent secretary at HMRC, has been cleared to start a new part-time role as an external senior tax adviser at management consulting company McKinsey, although he is not permitted to give EU tax administrations Brexit-related advice.

The advisory committee on business appointments (ACOBA) has said that there are ‘some risks under the government’s business appointment rules’ with Troup’s new role at McKinsey.

One concern was that the appointment could be seen as a reward for decisions made in office, particularly as HMRC paid McKinsey £680,000 to help design a Brexit customs arrangement.

However, although Troup had some official contact with McKinsey while at HMRC, he was not involved with McKinsey regarding any paid advice that the business provided to HMRC. He also had no influence in contract letting or contract management as this was down to CEO Jon Thompson.

Therefore, the committee concluded that Troup’s new role was not a reward for decisions made while in office.

As per Accountancy Daily, the committee has allowed Troup to start the new role as long as the following conditions are met for two years from his last day in Crown service:
  • he should not draw on any privileged information available to him from his time in Crown office;
  • he should not advise EU tax administrations where that advice would be directly relevant to Brexit-related issues;
  • he should not work on UK tax affairs;
  • service he should not work directly or indirectly on the tax affairs of McKinsey or any of its clients other than overseas tax administrations;
  • he should not work on any matter which involves any dealings with any part of UK government or HMRC:
  • he should not provide advice to McKinsey or its partners or clients on a bid or contract relating directly to the work of HMRC; and
  • he should not become personally involved in lobbying the government on behalf of McKinsey or its clients.
Troup must also inform the committee if he plans to expand or change his role as he may have to make a new application to the committee.

Troup left HMRC on 15 January 2018.

Working for HMRC can be the springboard to a glittering career! 

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Tuesday 2 October 2018

HMRC Challenged Over Breach of Human Rights



The Loan Charge Action Group has taken up the cudgels against HMRC, on behalf of contractors who used tax avoidance schemes, and have branded looming fines “grossly unfair” and a breach of human rights in an official legal challenge. 

HMRC has targeted around 50,000 self-employed people with a “loan charge”, set to hit in April, which those liable claim will see them forced into bankruptcy.

The dispute arises from the contractors’ use of complex arrangements, popular and widely accepted to be legal in the early 2000s, in which much of their salary was paid in the form of supposedly tax-free loans.

The Loan Charge Action Group claims workers were unwittingly led into the schemes by unscrupulous promoters or employers, who required them to be paid in this way.


The contractors will also be hit by the loan charge, which rolls all the loans received into a single tax year meaning the bill could be more than the actual tax liability. It also does not clear the original unpaid tax bill.

The LCAG is requesting a judicial review of the charge saying it is a breach of the European Convention of Human Rights and that the Government did not carry out proper impact assessments.

HMRC has admitted that a small number of people may face bankruptcy.

Robert Venables QC, acting on behalf of the group, said the loan charge was “disproportionate”.

He is quoted by the Telegraph:
"The loan charges are being applied in cases where there was no tax avoidance in the first place and taxpayers are being taxed on non-existent benefits and non-existent income.

This is to all intents and purposes retrospective legislation. It is grossly unfair, arbitrary, oppressive and unjust.”
Richard Horsley, of the LCAG, said:
Hardworking law-abiding people and their families face losing everything due to this unfair retrospective draconian tax grab.

The Loan Charge Action Group represent and have been dealing with many desperate self-employed and formerly self-employed people who never broke the law and never sought to conceal their tax arrangements.”
An HMRC spokesman said it had no comment on the legal action but that HMRC “wants to do all we can to make it simple for people to get out of these schemes and we’re here to help those who want to”.

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Monday 1 October 2018

Mel Stride's Dirty Hands


As loyal readers know, HMRC and the government continue to press ahead with changes to IR35 (relating to loan charges) which amount to a retrospective tax grab going back twenty years.

Mel Stride (Financial Secretary to The Treasury) is quite gung-ho in his support for the retrospective tax grab.

Given Stride's support for this measure, indeed he has opined that tax avoidance is wrong (note it is not illegal), I would have thought that he would be squeaky clean himself.
"if some time ago, you entered into one of these disguised remuneration schemes, where you're basically avoiding tax, there is no reason why we shouldn't collect that money."

However, he isn't squeaky clean at all!

My advice to politicians is as follows, if you intend to start lecturing us on the morality or otherwise of tax matters you need to have clean hands and be seen to have clean hands yourselves!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"