@gregwrightYP 1/5 It was not just the loan charge, but by then the outcome of the Rangers case. Whilst legitimate doubts could exist prior to then, that was not the case from 2017.
2/5 Of course, I cannot generalise. But I heard the recordings featured some weeks back on @Moneybox and from what I heard the schemes were now evolving: (1) from lawful avoidance (or what could be argued to be lawful avoidance) (2) to outright shams.
3/5 Perhaps decades of govt inaction engendered an unjustified confidence amongst these promoters.
Cynics might disagree, however ...
4/5 Cynics might say that decades of govt inaction and close ties to the govt engendered a very justified confidence that these promoters would be allowed to get away with it. (Per @Jesse_Norman they've done nothing wrong.)
5/5 Either way, in such circumstances, it would be easy for such promoters to get carried away with their own sales pitch.
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I agree with much of your reflections on the loan charge. But I would like to challenge two comments you made. In the meantime, I wish you well as you embark upon your life post-CIOT Presidency.
Comment 1:
“the tax position was sufficiently clear after December 2010 for taxpayers to have been aware of the position and their responsibilities. This is hard to argue with …”
Comment 2:
“if any further relief is to be available to such taxpayers, their campaign needs to shift to focus onto the mis-selling element”
The following thread will set out my summary responses to the briefing statement given to MPs in response to NC1 and NC31.
This should be read with my even more concise summary in an earlier tweet.
On NC1, the briefing note carefully sidesteps the well-known flaws in aspects of the Morse Review.
It also implies that a Government report would be adequate. It forgets the whitewash report given in early 2019 which, despite its flaws, was still effectively debunked by Morse.
On NC31 – bullet 1
•Emphasises avoidance and offshore trusts for political effect.
•Ignores the fact that the loan charge has done nothing to curb these schemes.
This might be a longer response than you intended. But I think it would be unfair of me to give you one that neatly fits into 280 characters or fewer. At least, when I finish this, I will be off Twitter at least until next week - so no need to digest it all at once.
1. I am on the record as having said (and I continue to say) that my professional experience tells me that it will often be unwise for taxpayers to provide documentation to HMRC to which they are not entitled.
2. In other words, it does not matter how comfortable you are with your position, there is no need to give HMRC material on a purely voluntary basis. And taxpayers who do often regret it later on.
1/x I feel it appropriate to speak out if, as is the case here, I believe MPs are being misled. Of course, I do not know who drafted the objections. I will assume it was by HMRC/HMT.
2/x For present purposes, I am focusing on NC31.
These briefing objections are just wrong.
3/x The objection notes the fact that the clause “would require HMRC to make an assessment of what a taxpayer knew or thought at the time of submitting their tax return”.
It LETS HMRC exercise their full range of administrative powers (enquiries/assessments) to challenge loan schemes provided (as they mostly did) HMRC took timely action under Taxes Management Act 1970.
NC31 LETS taxpayers have their constitutional day in court to pursue whatever arguments they make about their arrangements.
It ALLOWS them to access the full range of statutory safeguards available to all other taxpayers when facing HMRC challenges.
It LETS the Tribunal decide.
The loan charge is designed solely to remove those statutory safeguards, in order to cover up decades of HMRC failings.
NC31 REMOVES the inherently unfair loan charge from most taxpayers allowing the protections conferred by statute to have the effects as intended by Parliament.