Horror movies reflect our worst nightmares. The Day of the Triffids and The Little Shop of Horrors were classic examples involving man-eating plants. For those of us who dream tax, there has always been ‘The Company that Purchased its own Shares’, not a Hollywood Blockbuster, but a Tax Brainbuster. The plot is quite simple. A…
‘Power without responsibility – the prerogative of the harlot throughout the ages.’ Thus wrote Rudyard Kipling, author of the Jungle Book, in reference to the British Press. In a similar vein, ‘Leisure without taxation – the prerogative of the tourist in Israel throughout the ages,’ just about sums up the historic approach of the Israel…
"For our last number, I'd like to ask your help. The people in the cheaper seats, clap your hands. And the rest of you, if you’d just rattle your jewelry." John Lennon's immortal words at London's Royal Variety Performance in November 1963 reflected the weltanschauung of the time - Britain was careering towards a General…
The trouble with studying for an Economics degree was that every Tom, Dick and Maths geek relegated the perceived syllabus to three years of reading the Economist and watching the Money Programme. They reckoned they understood everything much better than I did, while (they thought) I had no idea how to prove zero (they…
My first suspicion that authority wasn’t all it was cracked up to be was at the age of 10, when I saw Lionel Bart’s newly released Oliver! Between the catchy numbers and faux-dirty actors there were two clear messages – the inhumanity of the workhouse system and Mr Bumble’s ‘The law is a ass,…
The annual silly season is upon us, when the media inundates an unsuspecting public with frivolous news stories to replace the serious ones about Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and the Women’s Soccer World Cup. I was tempted to join in, but the international tax field has been awash with important updates over the last month.…
At Penguin Books’ 1960 obscenity trial in the matter of DH Lawrence’s steamy novel ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’, the prosecuting counsel famously asked the jury of randomly picked men and women, ‘Is it a book that you would even wish your wife or your servants to read?’ The jury found in favor of the publishers, and…
Underdog Andy Ruiz's technical knock-out of world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in their fight on June 2 was one of sporting history's great surprises. Similarly, civil court cases against the tax authorities are rarely won by the underdog, generally ending with a knock-out - technical or otherwise - of the assessee. There was an exception…
The biggest debunker of conspiracy theories has to be what the British call 'the thirty year rule' for the declassification of secret documents. It is not that the released documents reveal the truth (the really juicy ones are locked up for far longer); it is, rather, the realization that the behind-the-scenes machinations of government way…
Back in the days when there were twelve pence to a shilling and twenty shillings to a pound, there was an urban myth of a retired Maths teacher who runs into his worst student as the latter climbs out of a Rolls Royce. The younger man embraces his old nemesis, proceeds to thank him for…
Tax Break 