If you have a spare 30 minutes over the weekend, and have been wondering why the Cumbrian economy has languished over the last ten years, listen to Radio Cumbria interviewing George Beveridge, “interim chair” of Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership.
This link will take you to BBC iPlayer. The interview itself is 2 hours 28 minutes 35 seconds into the programme (2:28:35).
Alternatively, fast forward to 2:54:29 when he answers my question on the internet, Twitter and the Cumbria LEP website. I especially liked his comment about “updating” the website with details of the Growing Places Fund which was announced nearly three months ago!
P.S Coincidentally the website has been updated this afternoon!
After (only) 16 weeks and numerous reminders, HMRC have responded to my Freedom of Information request asking how much they paid Moira Stuart for the Self Assessment advertising campaign by saying
I can confirm that HMRC will be providing you with a further response. I expect you should have the response by this Friday.
Bearing in mind they should have replied within 20 working days (unless there’s a good reason), this exemplifies, once again, HMRC’s “couldn’t care less” attitude to the public, as personified by Dave Hartnett.
Earlier today I wrote
Harry Redknapp has made tax fun and has allowed me to talk to football supporters for the first time in my life and be knowledgeable too!
The editor of AccountingWEB thought it good enough to include in their story on the Harry Redknapp case, which has had to be pulled because the comments may have been in contempt of court. And you thought accountants were boring!
I have never known so many people of differing backgrounds and interests follow a tax case so closely. Yesterday I found myself reading tweets from James Pearce, the BBC Sports News Correspondent, who is at the court. Every so often, he has to leave the courtroom so that he can send a tweet, Twitter and presumably the use of smartphones are forbidden in the courtroom itself.
I was so impressed with his coverage of events that I added him to my Twitter list, TaxTweets, so thatI could read his tweets easier. Bearing in mind this list includes HMRC, Taxation magazine and The Tax Journal I thought I should at least tweet him and tell him, never expecting an answer.
Leaving aside the question of ‘Where do I get the money from?’, the date for paying your (Self Assessment) tax is approaching fast.
To pay online you’ll need your Self Assessment reference and a note of the amount you have to pay.
Log on to your internet banking and select ‘HM Revenue & Customs’ from your bank/building society’s beneficiary list (which is sometimes called a ‘payee list’) or use HMRC’s bank account details to set up a manual instruction. When using your bank or building society’s beneficiary list, take care in selecting the correct HMRC entry for the payment you want to make.
If you’ve lost your Self Assessment reference number, also referred to as your unique taxpayer reference (UTR), you’ll find this on your payslip and on any correspondence sent to you by HMRC – including the ‘Notice to complete a Tax Return’ if you file online, or on your paper tax return.
The reference number is made up of 11 characters, for example: 1234567890K. You can make sure you have the correct reference by using HMRC’s Self assessment reference checker.
HMRC have made a blank payslip available online for all those taxpayers who pay by cheque and have lost their personal payslip.
The form can be completed and printed here.
HMRC have issued a press release today titled
There’s just one week left to send your 2010/11 tax return to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), if you want to avoid a penalty.
Obviously what HMRC say is correct but the important part of the message is hidden in the final paragraph and, to add insult to injury, states how wonderful HMRC are!
HMRC’s systems are able to cope with these large volumes of online returns
Don’t fall for this. HMRC’s systems are quite likely to fail and you may be unable to submit your return on time if you leave it until January 31. Worse still, it isn’t out of character for HMRC to use this press release to refuse any requests for a penalty to be cancelled, on the basis of “we told you so”.
Don’t take the risk submit it sooner rather than later.
The deadline for applying for an Activation Code was yesterday and without one you can’t submit an online Tax Return.
Typically HMRC aren’t very helpful as what you should do next. Click on Do it online today on the HMRC homepage and you’re told
You must send your tax return online by midnight on Tuesday 31 January 2012.
Unfortunately you don’t have many options left and you may well have to pay the £100 penalty but these suggestions may help:
- Apply for an Activation Code, you may be lucky and receive it before the deadline which will allow you to submit your return online.
- Don’t whatever you do submit a paper return as you will incur a penalty of £100 automatically. The deadline for paper returns was 31 October 2011.
- Ask a friendly accountant if they will submit your tax return on your behalf. Strangely we (accountants) can submit a Tax Return for anyone as long as we have their Unique Tax Reference (UTR). They’ll charge you but commercial sense would suggest a fee of less than £100! And don’t forget that if you’re self employed you can claim tax relief on this, reducing the fee by about 30%. The £100 penalty doesn’t qualify for tax relief.
If you’re completing your own Self Assessment Tax Return and you haven’t submitted a Tax Return online before, you must first register to use HMRC Online Services.
You’ll need to do this today. This will allow HMRC time to send an Activation Code to you before you start using the service.
The HMRC website has the full details
Some days I think April Fools’ Day has come early.
Today was one of those days, when I read in the Westmorland Gazette that Lancaster University has launched an enterprise centre which aims to use artistic ideas — including those of the Lakeland poet — to improve businesses.
My younger son told me years ago that Coleridge was in the habit of climbing to the top of fells and then setting off in a straight line, regardless of the terrain. Once he was stuck on a ledge for a whole night. I did, however, mention that Coleridge was a huge fan of Kendal Black Drop, an opium based drug, which probably accounted for his strange behaviour.
Yet again, I find myself saying if you want to offer advice
just help us (small businesses) make more money and have fewer financial problems.
The North West Evening Mail has launched a campaign to save Furness Enterprise which is closing because of lack of funds.
I will not be signing this petition for the following reasons:
- Furness Enterprise’s annual accounts for the year ended 31 March 2010 (see Note A below) showed a turnover of £1.7m which I understand ‘supported’ 18 jobs. Unfortunately the 2011 accounts do not show turnover, but if Furness Enterprise’s income has been reduced to 30% of the 2010 figure, because of cuts, that is still nearly £500,000. Surely they can carry on, albeit in a much reduced manner?
- If they are in the business of ‘helping Furness businesses’ common sense would suggest they should be able to help themselves survive in these changed circumstances?
- When all is said and done they are still a quango.
- Like all quangos they are spending taxpayers’ money which may explain why the Chairman had a consultancy agreement with the company for £25,000 per year (see Note B below).
- The directors’ pay and benefits totalled £ 87,000 in the year ended 31 March 2010 (see Note C below), bearing in mind that there were probably only two directors being paid (the Chairman, Stephen Murray, and Harry Knowles). All the other directors were from local councils, public bodies and private businesses. And hopefully, as the Chairman was already receiving £25,000 per year (see 4 above), not too much of the £87,021 was his!
Notes
A) Turnover
B) Consultancy
C) Director’s pay and benefits
