Link: M&S in £30m tax battle with Inland Revenue
AccountancyAge.com first revealed that the high-street favourite would challenge the Revenue in November last year, since then the case has attracted large amounts of media attention.
M&S is now expected to refer the case to the High Court in an attempt to get the decision overturned. European tax experts expressed their surprise at the Special Commissioners ruling.
Peter Cussons, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, and spokesperson for international tax at the Chartered Institute of Taxation, said the conclusion is disputable.
‘Not all the relevant case law was considered and some of the case law considered was arguably misconstrued,’ he said. ‘We strongly believe that if the M&S case can be referred to the European Court of Justice, it will ultimately rule in favour of the taxpayer.’
A spokesperson for M&S said the company was ‘disappointed’ not to have won the case. ‘We stongly believe that the current UK tax legislation involved in this case is in contravention with EU law and intend to appeal to the High Court,’ said the spokesperson.
Related reading
Markets expected to respond positively to US policy changes
Markets can be expected to respond positively to US policy changes on the horizon, according to investment director at a boutique investment business
Condensed Finance Bill provides opportunity to ‘rethink’ micro-enterprise allowances, says ATT
The ATT had previously expressed concern that the legislation was overly complex and created unnecessary complications within the practical working of the new allowances
Patent Box scheme saves businesses record high of £875m in corporation tax
Introduced in 2013 to encourage R&D investment, the scheme allows UK businesses to pay only 10% corporation tax on profits derived from any UK or certain EU patents
Brexit knocks UK’s appeal as business destination in KPMG rankings
Yet, KPMG’s annual survey shows that the UK is still an attractive place to do business, despite falling in rankings in tax competitiveness and FDI appeal
