I share this from the Good Law Project, just published:
Way back in April 2017, we announced we were going to take on HMRC's failure to assess Uber to VAT which corroded public trust, not only in HMRC, but in politics more generally.
And it's been quite the scrap…
There have been lows — like us spending the money we raised in the crowdfunder trying to get a protective costs order and failing.
And there have been highs — like us persuading the High Court late last year that a fairly spineless HMRC was allowed to do what the legislation plainly allowed it to do and tell us it had (at last) assessed Uber.
There have been further lows — as last week when the Court of Appeal refused us permission to bring our judicial review against HMRC.
But ultimately we triumphed. Uber's US accounts now confirm that HMRC has assessed Uber to VAT on fares — both prospectively and retrospectively.
And that's all we ever wanted.
It's been a long, bumpy (and expensive) ride — if you'll allow me the metaphor — but we have reached our destination. I am so proud that together we have forced HMRC, belatedly, to act — Uber has now been asked to pay the £1.5bn of tax they owe the public purse.
We couldn't have done it without your support. So thank you.
I'd also like to thank the lawyers — George Peretz QC, Jack Anderson, Hui Ling McCarthy QC, Christopher Knight, David Greene, Vikram Sachdeva QC, and Alex Rook — who helped out, most for even less than the smell of an oily rag, along the way.
I well remember having a pint or two with Jo Maugham to discuss this way back in 2016 or early 2017. The question then that remains the relevant one now is why did it take an angry lawyer to force HMRC to fact and collect tax that was very obviously owing? Why didn't they want to collect £1.5 billion?
What was it about Uber that made them steer clear?
I'd love to know the answer.
But I'm also delighted that this is going to happen now.
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Hurrah. But why do I and hundreds of others have to pay to make HMRC do their b………job.
Maybe search in who are the non execs? or?
So that’s £1,500,000,000 that they didn’t have yesterday. Now can they feed hungry children? Or do they know it’s irrelevant?
Where is it confirmed that HMRC have collected £1.5 billion as claimed?
The 10Q form linked on the Good Law Project site only references VAT or HMRC in a contingency note. The estimated liability is not quantified and the same note has featured in previous filings.
HMRC explained to Parliament nearly 3 years ago why they hadn’t raised an assessment against Uber; they had lost Secret Hotels and 5 other cases on the same principal v agent issue.
See Q89 here – https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmpubacc/456/456.pdf
Perhaps it would be wise to hold off celebrating until HMRC have successfully defended their assessment at FTT and quite possibly in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court?
Ask Jo
Excellent news – I hope this gets more into the public domain.
MMT has taught us that in the first instance the ability to create money is the ability to impose two flows, an influx one and a reflux one. Richard Murphy has taught us to pay equal attention to both flows.
Wynne Godley’s Sectoral Balances Accounting has taught us there is further subtlety in these flows that for non-government sector net saving to occur there has to be one money creating agency that doesn’t fully reflux and that a country’s money creation is affected by foreign trade.
Spot on
Bloody hell Helen – please slow down – say that again……………..and slowly.
The other point I would make is that currency can be lost or destroyed. When a Bullingdon Club member burns a £50 note in front of a homeless person, a proper economist will insist that £50 worth of benefits need to be cut or £50 of extra tax needs to be raised. Otherwise the books will not balance.
When I worked there – admittedly over 5 years ago – I overheard a senior manager telling a Large Business inspector – “Whatever you do .. don’t upset the customer”. I felt like saying – if they are customers maybe we should try and sell them an assessment !
And we always say, I ain’t a customer – I never chose to do business here 😉