From 24 July 2020, the wearing of a face mask is compulsory in shops in England. The requirement is that the mouth and nose are covered, so a scarf or neckerchief tied round the lower face meets the requirement. Children under 11, shopworkers, those with breathing difficulties and some others (such as police on duty)...Read More

The Chinese company Huawei has been banned from supplying 5G network equipment in the UK, it was announced in July 2020. The ban applies to equipment made from 2021. All existing Huawei technology must be removed from UK networks by 2027. This decision reverses the government’s decision in January 2020, that Huawei could have a...Read More

The Financial Reporting Council said that only 2 out of 88 audits it reviewed were of a good standard or required only limited improvement. All seven of the largest UK accounting firms were criticised. [20.07/3]Read More

A taxpayer was excused the penalty for not paying the high income child benefit charge in time. The taxpayer paid the charge itself; he only appealed against the penalty. The taxpayer’s argument was that he had no knowledge of the charge. He was an employee, so his tax was dealt with under PAYE. Although he...Read More

Expenditure on repairing a yard was held to be revenue expenditure and not capital. The yard is used to unload articulated lorries, to move those lorries, and to store trailers. Before the work was done, the yard has not been resurfaced for many years. It was in a poor condition. In some areas, the surface...Read More

A taxpayer was unable to claim VAT input tax relief for a DIY housebuilding in respect of a mooring and houseboat. The taxpayer obtained council permission to construct a houseboat on land and to create a steel structure on rails. A crane was used to place the constructed boat on to the water where it...Read More