Philip Fisher

4 weeks ago | britishtheatreguide.info | Philip Fisher

Depending upon your optimism quotient, describing UK Theatre as a global success story is great news, but reporting that it is under threat must be deeply worrying. These are the messages being propagated by The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) and UK Theatre in what they justifiably describe as “a landmark report”.

4 weeks ago | accountingweb.co.uk | Philip Fisher

Some readers may have spotted an unusual tax-related story in the media last week. A group of former players have exchanged the football field for a trip to Parliament. The likes of Andy Cole, Michael Thomas and Danny Murphy were attending the high-profile launch of a newish all-party Parliamentary group, The Investment Fraud and Fairer Financial Services Committee. The past footballers’ beef was about what has been described as “financial grooming” of Premier League stars.

1 month ago | accountingweb.co.uk | Philip Fisher

First tier tribunal cases can often seem relatively trivial but nobody could accuse the dispute between HMRC and Industria Umbrella Ltd (in liquidation) of falling into that category, since the hearing documents consisted of 624 pages and the authorities documents, 775 more. Even so, the scheduled four-day appeal in March was eventually decided by Judge Natsai Manyarara without a hearing, which may have saved considerable pain to all concerned but still resulted in a lengthy decision.

1 month ago | britishtheatreguide.info | Philip Fisher

Arts Council England has found itself between a government rock and an arts hard place, struggling to survive in its current form. From the point of view of potential beneficiaries, drastic funding cuts and questionable decisions, often influenced by political considerations rather than artistic excellence, have drawn widespread opprobrium.

1 month ago | accountingweb.co.uk | Philip Fisher

We are currently in the season of governmental reports on HMRC performance, few of which offer praise or confirmation that all is well with our taxing authority. The latest, issued on 16 May, comes from the National Audit Office (NAO) and focuses on HMRC’s efforts to maximise the tax-take from the wealthy. Its definition of affluence may cause pause for thought, since the bar sits at earnings of more than £200,000 per annum or assets of £2m.