Tax / HMRC crackdown on footballers using tax schemes

Miles Dean, head of international tax at Andersen Tax, examines whether it was foreseeable that HMRC and the courts would end up not only attacking tax avoidance schemes (and winning), but also shutting down an industry that had gone out of control?
17 Jan 2020

Tax / Tax transparency essential to tackle $600bn avoidance bill

Businesses need to provide more transparent reporting on tax to give shareholders and the public a better understanding of their tax policy and wider contribution to society
17 Jan 2020

Tax / Self assessment: what expenses can you claim when self-employed?

It is important to distinguish between business and personal expenses when completing annual self assessment tax returns. David Redfern, managing director of DSR Tax Claims, explains the categories of business expenses self-employed workers can use to offset tax liabilities
17 Jan 2020

Tax / Flybe confirms time to pay arrangement over £10m APD tax arrears

Flybe has rejected claims that it owed HMRC over a £100m in airline passenger duty (APD) arrears, stating that the unpaid tax is closer to £10m
17 Jan 2020

Accounting / Carillion collapse creates hospital cost overruns

One year on from the collapse of Carillion, the National Audit Office (NAO) has published a report revealing substantial cost and time overruns on progress on two hospitals which the outsourcer was building at the time
17 Jan 2020

Tax / Self assessment deadline looms

Around five million taxpayers are yet to file their tax returns before the 31 January deadline
17 Jan 2020

Insight / Mazars global reports hike in fee income to €1.77bn

Mazars, the international accounting and audit network, has reported a 10.4% hike in revenue to €1.77bn (£1.51bn) for year end 2019, marking record organic growth spurred by expansion in China
17 Jan 2020

Insight / People in the news: Hurst, Mercer & Hole, Beever and Struthers

In this week’s accountancy career moves, partner appointments at Hurst, Mercer & Hole, partner promotion at PwC and senior audit hires at Beever and Struthers and DTE
17 Jan 2020

Insight / Accountant fined for pension enrolment failure

A former accountant accused of misleading The Pensions Regulator (TPR) after he failed to enrol a client’s staff into a pension has been ordered to pay £4,987
17 Jan 2020

Insight / ACCA launches student wellbeing hub

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has launched a new wellbeing hub to provide mental health, lifestyle and community support for students, in response to requests for additional help with exam stress
17 Jan 2020

Insight / Charity pair in doghouse over accounting failures

The charity watchdog has disqualified a married couple who were former trustees of a dog charity for serious misconduct, which meant over £300,000 in donations was unaccounted for
17 Jan 2020

Tax / Global anti-money laundering fines top £6bn

A record number of anti-money laundering (AML) penalties were handed down worldwide last year, totalling over $8bn (£6.2bn), with the US authorities taking the lead, imposing twice as many fines as UK regulators
17 Jan 2020

Technical Alerts

Accountancy & Audit / IFRS calls for new GPF members

16 Jan 2020

Insight / LLPs: disputes and freezing out partners - part 1

Operating as a limited liability partnership (LLP) has its own set of challenges and dispute resolution can be one of the trickiest areas, especially when somone is being frozen out of a partnership. Lydia Danon, partner at Cooke, Young & Keidan explains potential pitfalls
16 Jan 2020

Audit / FRC revises audit standards to meet latest ISA (UK) 540

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has updated eight audit standards to reflect ISA (UK) 540 (Revised) – Auditing Accounting Estimates and Related Disclosures, focusing on auditor liability, fraud, going concern, joint audit and management challenge
16 Jan 2020

Audit / Insurance giant AIG hires Mazars for UK audit

Mid-tier audit firm Mazars has been lined up to take over the audit of AIG UK, the subsidiary of the listed US insurance giant AIG, breaking a 40-year PwC audit relationship
16 Jan 2020

Tax / Maturing child trust funds will retain tax free status

Holders of child trust fund accounts will be able to transfer their funds tax free when they start maturing in September, marking the scheme reaching 18 years
16 Jan 2020

Insight / Student loans repayment system overhauled

The government has promised a major revamp of the student loans repayment system, with the introduction of an online service designed to prevent overpayments at the end of the loan term
16 Jan 2020

Accounting / International reporting: 2020 and beyond

With the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) focusing on disclosures, management commentary and improving the quality of financial reporting in 2020, Jeroen Van Doorsselaere examines the IFRS standard setter’s work plan
16 Jan 2020

Insight / RSM invests in creditor services expansion

RSM is beefing up its creditor services business with a £100k plus investment, including substantial investment in products, people and premises, in anticipation of increasing activity as the UK economy comes under strain
16 Jan 2020

Insight / Financial stress worst in retail

One in five businesses are financially stressed, with more than 1,000 companies in situations of acute distress
16 Jan 2020

Tax / HMRC to support taskforce on waste crime

HMRC has signed up to a new government taskforce dedicated to tackling serious and organised waste crime, such as dumping hazardous materials on private land and falsely labelling waste so it can be exported abroad to unsuspecting countries
16 Jan 2020

Insight / £300k VAT fraud puts farmer in jail

A Wiltshire farmer has been jailed for three years and five months for a £300,000 fraud involving false VAT claims for farming supplies
16 Jan 2020

Technical Alerts

15 Jan 2020

Tax / Flybe saved by deferral of £106m flight tax bill

The government has caved into pressure from regional UK airline carrier, Flybe, which was flying in the face of potential administration, delaying payment on a £100m plus tax bill for airline passenger duty
15 Jan 2020

Insight / Regulator kicks off inquiry into governance at football charity

The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into the Professional Footballers’ Association Charity (PFAC) following concerns about governance and trustee conflicts of interest
15 Jan 2020

Insight / EY chief Steve Varley takes on global sustainability role

Steve Varley, senior managing partner at EY, is stepping down as managing partner of the UK firm to take on a role as global vice chair for sustainability at the Big Four network
15 Jan 2020

Tax / Tips for taxpayers: Making Tax Digital for VAT

Nine months since the launch of Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT, late adopters have only filed once under the new system, some not even using accounting software due to the soft landing penalties regime. Philip McNeill and Dr Sarah McNeill explain the key compliance issues
15 Jan 2020

Insight / Businesses must act on climate change, says World Economic Forum

Governments must work together to pressure business to take action on climate change because ‘the longer we wait, the more painful the transitional period will be’, are the findings of the latest World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report
15 Jan 2020

Tax / Non-doms invest record £1bn using tax break

Non-domiciled individuals are putting record amounts into a government tax break designed to encourage investment in UK businesses
15 Jan 2020

Insight / Ex-BHS owner owes pension scheme £9.5m

Following a lengthy legal battle with the regulator, entrepreneur Dominic Chappell has been ordered to pay £9.5m into two pensions schemes connected to the collapsed high street chain BHS, which he bought for £1 in 2015
15 Jan 2020

Accounting / Government fails to monitor £17bn spend on business support schemes

The government is spending £17bn a year on dozens of schemes to support business, but its activities are poorly co-ordinated and overly complex, meaning it cannot clearly demonstrate which schemes deliver value for money
15 Jan 2020

Technical Alerts

Accountancy & Audit / EFRAG Update December 2019

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