Coutts Private Office director departs

CityWire: Coutts Private Office executive director James Biggart has left the bank.   Biggart joined the private office team at Coutts in 2011 and was responsible for ultra-high net worth clients and family businesses.

Full story: http://citywire.co.uk/wealth-manager/news/coutts-private-office-director-departs/a858885?ref=wealth-manager-new-latest-news-test1-list

EY has appointed Katherine Bullock to lead its UK and Ireland private client services practice outside of London

ICAEW: The team offers tax planning and compliance advice to individuals and their businesses, as well as cross-border services.  Bullock said the practice has "great plans for helping our clients really maximise the UKs economic upturn, working across our worldwide network with our global colleagues to support those with international interests." Bullock previously headed PwC's client team and has over 25 years' experience.

Full story: http://economia.icaew.com/news/november-2015/ey-hires-regional-leader-of-uk-private-client-services

UK Autumn Statement may target tax reliefs

STEP: The Chancellor's Autumn Statement will appear on Wednesday 25 November. Most tax specialists predict it will be harsher than previously expected, for two reasons. First, the Chancellor has failed to push through legislation cutting tax credits for the low-paid, so that the public sector borrowing requirement will be larger than planned at the time that Finance Bill (no.2) 2015 was drafted. Second, that Finance Bill also contained a measure precluding increases in the rates of the three main taxes – income tax, national insurance contributions and value-added tax – for this parliament. This means the public sector borrowing requirement (PSBR) deficit cannot be reduced by adjusting these rates.

Full story: http://www.step.org/news/uk-autumn-statement-may-target-tax-reliefs

City minnow Welbeck Solutions named as Britain’s biggest seller of tax avoidance products

Evening Standard: A little-known City firm has been exposed as Britain’s biggest seller of tax avoidance products.

Full story: http://www.standard.co.uk/business/city-minnow-welbeck-solutions-named-as-britain-s-biggest-seller-of-tax-avoidance-products-a3121021.html

UK non-dom changes unfair, unreasonable, disproportionate

International Adviser: Plans that would effectively end the UK’s non-domicile status for tax purposes have the potential to do more harm than good and could be contrary to EU law, according to the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Full story: http://www.international-adviser.com/news/1026036/uk-dom-changes-unfair-unreasonable-disproportionate

Autumn Statement: tax avoidance and business top agenda

Accountancy Live: Wednesday sees the Chancellor deliver a combined autumn statement and spending review, following on from two Budgets earlier in the year, with predictions suggesting a focus on tax avoidance, pensions and business taxes, and warnings against making the tax system unnecessarily complex and hitting businesses too hard, reports Pat Sweet.

Full story: https://www.accountancylive.com/autumn-statement-tax-avoidance-and-business-top-agenda

HMRC operation overhaul questioned by experts

International Adviser: HM Revenue & Customs’ plans to modernise its operation, consolidating 170 offices into 13 regional centres has seen tax experts question its motives.

Full story: http://www.international-adviser.com/news/1025913/hmrc-operation-overhaul-questioned-experts

Largescale philanthropy increases in UK by £200m

Private Client Adviser: As well as giving more money than ever before, philanthropists are also developing structured and long-term ways of donating their time and expertise.

Full story: http://www.privateclientadviser.co.uk/news/charities/largescale-philanthropy-increases-uk-%C2%A3200m

Leading Trusts and Private Client lawyer joins Mourant Ozannes

Mourant Ozannes: Mourant Ozannes is pleased to announce the recruitment of prominent trusts and private client lawyer, Tony Pursall, as a partner in the firm's International Trusts and Private Client practice. Tony will be based in the London office, and will join the firm as soon as he is free to do so under his existing contractual arrangements.

Full story: http://www.mourantozannes.com/news/news/leading-trusts-and-private-client-lawyer-joins-mourant-ozannes.aspx

HMRC Wins £5.5m Non-Residence Tax Appeal

iExpats.com: A landmark ruling has overturned a leading UK expat non-resident tax case with a damning indictment of how a lower court considered their verdict.

Full story: http://www.iexpats.com/hmrc-wins-5-5m-non-residence-tax-appeal/

Lucian Freud archive given to nation in lieu of £2.9m in inheritance tax

The Guardian: Extensive trove of sketchbooks, letters and drawings will be exhibited in National Portrait Gallery as family seek to reduce tax liability.

Full story: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2015/nov/16/lucian-freud-archive-national-portrait-gallery-inheritance-tax

HMRC grows Affluent Unit in tax avoidance crackdown

International Adviser: A sharper focus on offshore banking activity and tax avoidance has seen HM Revenue & Customs grow its Affluent Unit by more than 50% in the past two years.

Full story: http://www.international-adviser.com/news/1025929/hmrc-grows-affluent-unit-tax-avoidance-crackdown

HMRC reveals tax office shake-up

BBC News: The UK's tax authority is to close 137 local offices and replace them with 13 regional centres, raising fears over job losses.

Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34796299

EY launches legal trainee scheme

ICAEW: EY has announced that it will be offering legal training contracts for aspiring solicitors, as its UK law practice continues to grow.

Full story: http://economia.icaew.com/news/november-2015/ey-launches-legal-trainee-scheme

Britain's £34bn uncollected 'tax gap' is no worse than other countries', says HMRC tax head

The Independent: The amount of tax going uncollected in the Britain is no worse than in other countries around the world, a senior official at the tax authority has said.

Full story: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/britain-s-34-billion-uncollected-tax-gap-is-no-worse-than-other-countries-says-hmrc-tax-head-a6728401.html

Taxman urges people to use Twitter and 'web chats' rather than call

Daily Telegraph: Lin Homer, HMRC's chief executive, says taxman will 'always struggle' answering calls as she apologises to 'unacceptable poorly' customer service.

Full story: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/11986963/Taxman-urges-people-to-use-Twitter-and-web-chats-rather-than-call.html

KPMG hires ex-Barclays advisory boss as family office head

CityWire: KPMG has hired Catherine Grum to spearhead the launch of a dedicated family office service.

Full story: http://citywire.co.uk/wealth-manager/news/kpmg-hires-ex-barclays-advisory-boss-as-family-office-head/a853251?ref=wealth-manager-private-office-list

PAC: tax evasion prosecution “woefully inadequate”

ICAEW: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has demanded that HMRC increase the “woefully inadequate” number of criminal prosecutions of offshore tax evasion.

Full story: http://economia.icaew.com/news/november-2015/pac-tax-evasion-prosecution-woefully-inadequate

HMRC waives 'correct and complete' declaration for agents' online IHT returns

STEP: Practitioners who submit an online inheritance tax (IHT) return on behalf of a client no longer need to provide a declaration that the information is 'correct and complete to the best of their knowledge and belief'.

Full story: http://www.step.org/news/hmrc-waives-correct-and-complete-declaration-agents-online-iht-returns

HMRC leaves taxpayers scratching their heads

Moneywise: Half of all telephone calls to HM Revenue and Customs go unanswered - meaning many people with questions about the complicated UK tax system are being left adrift.

Full story: http://www.moneywise.co.uk/news/2015-11-05/hmrc-leaves-taxpayers-scratching-their-heads

Capital gains tax take rises 43pc in a year

The Daily Telegraph: Higher property and share prices, plus tougher rules, mean capital gains tax is the fastest-growing source of tax revenues.

Full story: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/tax/11971060/Capital-gains-tax-take-rises-43pc-in-a-year.html

The mega-haven

The Economist: The world is becoming less welcoming to tax dodgers. That is the conclusion of the latest Financial Secrecy Index, published every two years by the Tax Justice Network (TJN), an NGO. It looks at various measures of financial transparency and information-sharing in more than 90 countries, then weights them according to the level of financial services each country provides to non-residents. Most countries’ scores have fallen since 2013, indicating greater transparency. Among the biggest improvers are the Cayman Islands, once a notorious tax haven, and Luxembourg, which tax campaigners used to call Europe’s “death star” of financial secrecy.

Full story: http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21677647-index-financial-secrecy-highlights-american-hypocrisy-mega-haven