Jersey is issuing a press release today on the evidence presented by Senator Frank Walker to the Senate Finance Committee Hearings on ‘Stashing Cash Offshore’ on 3 May. The evidence was in writing and is, to put it nicely, spin in its highest form.
Let me quote the press release (which is not so far on [...]
Accountancy Age has reported that:
The government has decided to drop the controversial instances of the term ‘HMRC thinks’ from the finance bill. The wording, which was used in the bill in relation to tax penalties, was strongly criticised by the tax profession for opening up the possibility that HMRC would not have to base a [...]
I am unambiguous about the ethical duty of accountants is to promote tax compliance. This is to ensure that a company pays the right tax in the right place at the right time, where ‘right’ means that the economic and geographic substance of the transaction accords with the taxation and locational identity it is given [...]
Accountancy Age report that Chris Oates of Ernst & Young has said:
The contacts I have across the major accountancy firms indicate that just a few hundred people have actually notified the Revenue that there is tax to pay
Well, that’s hardly surprising. Firstly you’d expect the Big 4 to have their clients under control. Second, if [...]
I was sent this:
Many companies are organised in group structures. However, intra group transactions and the group’s transactions with related parties often lack transparency seen from the perspective of investors, shareholders and other stakeholders. This can make it difficult for them to assess the true risks of investing in the companies.
I couldn’t agree more. Who [...]
The ICAEW has produced a report called ‘Reporting with Integrity’. In the press note the ICAEW says:
Building consensus amongst market participants on the meaning of integrity and how to promote it will help reduce the likelihood of business scandals, reputational damage and loss of confidence in markets. This is the focus of a new report [...]
The FR has a piece on petrodollars being invested in the UK.
There are serious issues arising from this - not least the fact that most are routed through tax havens. But I liked the concluding comment:
“The UK just has the best regulatory regime - it’s opened up on tax and we’ve found it the easiest [...]
I’ve been reading the report of the Financial Stability Forum on hedge funds. The UK and USA might be resisting Germany’s call for more regulation of this sector, but the FSF makes a compelling (if muted) case for regulation. As their press release says:
Given the importance of strengthening protection against systemic risks, the FSF makes [...]
As Simon Sweetman notes at AccountingWEB, the Revenue have published a report on charitable giving. As he concludes:
it seems that tax reliefs make little difference, with most givers professing not to understand them.
I read the report a week or so ago and came to the same conclusion, although my over-riding impression was that the analysis [...]
At its Board Meeting last week FASB was presented with a staff Memorandum which included a discussion (starting on page 5) on the future of segment reporting.
This is a vital issue at this moment. The European Commission is about to start an impact assessment of IFRS 8, adopted by the IASB last year. IFRS 8 [...]
