The High Court has granted leave to a taxpayer to appeal a District Court decision declining to dismiss charges of evading or attempting to evade assessments of payment of tax by him or another person. The High Court rejected the taxpayer’s submissions that the fact of his bankruptcy meant that he could not be liable for the charges brought against him. The Court held that a bankrupt could be charged for evading or attempting to evade the payment of GST when that bankrupt had operated a company that had charged and received GST on taxable supplies.

Facts

The corporate insolvency statistics for Q2 2022 paint a worrying picture for UK businesses. With inflation at a 40-year high, fuelled by soaring gas and electricity bills, food prices and wage increases, the cost of living crisis is taking hold across the economy.

On 22 July 2022, the English High Court sanctioned Houst Limited’s (“Houst” or the “Company”) restructuring plan (the “Restructuring Plan”), which significantly, is the first time a Restructuring Plan has been used to cram down HM Revenue & Customs (“HMRC”) as preferential creditor.¹

Background

How has HMRC managed its metamorphosis from benevolent supporter of businesses during the pandemic to hard-nosed tax collector?

A recent law, which came into force on 21 July 2022, amends the regulation for the accounting professions with regard to their professional practice and the anti-money laundering prevention.

The law was enacted after the Constitutional Court ruled in two judgments that various provisions of the law relating to the audit profession and the anti-money laundering law were against the constitution.

Hereafter we discuss the impact of the new law on auditors, certified public accountants and the unregulated tax advisors.

Having trouble reading this email? View it in your browser August 2022 SHARE THIS In this edition of Restructuring Watch, we reflect on: • The first restructuring plan to cram down HMRC. • Recent government reports on certain UK restructuring processes and learnings from the first six-months of the National Security and Investment Act 2021. • Government consultations on a crypto special administration regime and prospective additions to the cross-border recognition and insolvency framework. • A reminder of the recent important milestone in the Galapagos cross-border insolvency battle.

In April 2022, the ATO began writing to batches of company directors in relation to unpaid liabilities informing them about the risk of their personal liability for unpaid company tax debts. If not actioned, directors are at risk of receiving a Director Penalty Notice (DPN).

These letters pre-DPN will continue to be sent to directors of companies if that company has not met its obligations for all or either of PAYG withholding tax, Superannuation Guarantee Charges (SGC) and GST. So far, approximately 80,000 of these letters have been sent out.

Houst Limited's (the Company) restructuring plan (under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006) (RP) was recently sanctioned at the High Court on 22 July 2022.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Two years on: review of CIGA permanent measures

On 22 July 2022 and after the judge ordered a delay for more evidence, the English court sanctioned the restructuring plan proposed by Houst Limited (Houst). Houst is an SME that is concerned with the provision of property management services for short-term/holiday lets. Its business was badly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, meaning it was both cash flow and balance sheet insolvent when proposing the plan.