I continue to be the lead client service partner for several of our most significant clients, which takes up 40% of my time.
The next 20% is spent managing the group and driving forward the various teams, and another 20% of the time is focused on hiring new talent. This has been the biggest challenge for us recently as our team is going through a rapid period of growth.
The remaining 20% is more strategic, looking proactively for opportunities. The recent development of Big Four firms spinning off their advisory businesses is a significant opportunity for us to attract individuals looking to develop their career with our firm.
If you could make one change to tax, what would it be?
Over the years what ought to be a simple tax deduction for the deductibility of interest on borrowing used in a business has now become so complex, with so many different tests, thresholds and calculations, that I really think it needs to be made much simpler. If you borrow money commercially to invest in your business, then you should get a tax deduction for it – basic stuff that most of us remember from our studies on a WACC calculation.
What do you know now that you wish you’d known at the start of your career?
Obviously, I wish I’d known Andersen was going to collapse. I sometimes think I shouldn’t have joined at all, but I learned so much there and it was a fantastic place start a career and learn about UK tax. That said, that period of time was certainly stressful both professionally and personally. For younger readers, it was this event which led to the development of LLPs for professional service businesses to limit liability risk for partners.
Are there any new rules that are causing a particular problem?
When the anti-hybrid rules were introduced, there were over 140 pages of legislation with guidance notes that exceeded the length of the legislation, which just told you how complex they were. They remain very difficult to understand and inaccessible unless you have access to some of the top tax advisers in the country. I don’t think this set up is helpful when looking at it from a macro level and thinking about how to encourage small business growth. If you haven’t already guessed, the current interest deductibility rules are also a bit of a bugbear for me.
Has a recent tax case caught your eye?
This one was obvious for me: HMRC v NCL Investments Ltd and other [2022] UKSC 9. I remember reading the lower court decisions on the beach in Corfu, after a client called me with a specific question around the deductibility of an expense, as this was the case most closely related to that decision. We had a debate in our team and concluded that the facts were consistent, so the client claimed a deduction. The Supreme Court has subsequently proven that to be the right answer, so the law is now final and HMRC will now I presume revise its guidance.
What issues have been clients been raising recently?
Most of our clients have been wrestling with supply chain issues and rising inflation. These two factors are changing our clients’ business models. Everyone is having to wrestle with how their business model works in a higher inflationary environment, and business models are adapting with co-sourcing, near sourcing and onshore sourcing all now prevalent.
And finally, you might not know this about me but...
I’m a masters level squash player, I play squash in the British Open and Closed championships for my age group. In the past, I’ve managed to get through to the last sixteen of those championships and I made my first regional semi-final last year. I’ve been playing since I was 14; more than anything it is a great stress reliever, it keeps me fit and healthy and helps me to continue working at an intense pace in the job that I’ve got today, which I think might just be the best UK tax job.
I continue to be the lead client service partner for several of our most significant clients, which takes up 40% of my time.
The next 20% is spent managing the group and driving forward the various teams, and another 20% of the time is focused on hiring new talent. This has been the biggest challenge for us recently as our team is going through a rapid period of growth.
The remaining 20% is more strategic, looking proactively for opportunities. The recent development of Big Four firms spinning off their advisory businesses is a significant opportunity for us to attract individuals looking to develop their career with our firm.
If you could make one change to tax, what would it be?
Over the years what ought to be a simple tax deduction for the deductibility of interest on borrowing used in a business has now become so complex, with so many different tests, thresholds and calculations, that I really think it needs to be made much simpler. If you borrow money commercially to invest in your business, then you should get a tax deduction for it – basic stuff that most of us remember from our studies on a WACC calculation.
What do you know now that you wish you’d known at the start of your career?
Obviously, I wish I’d known Andersen was going to collapse. I sometimes think I shouldn’t have joined at all, but I learned so much there and it was a fantastic place start a career and learn about UK tax. That said, that period of time was certainly stressful both professionally and personally. For younger readers, it was this event which led to the development of LLPs for professional service businesses to limit liability risk for partners.
Are there any new rules that are causing a particular problem?
When the anti-hybrid rules were introduced, there were over 140 pages of legislation with guidance notes that exceeded the length of the legislation, which just told you how complex they were. They remain very difficult to understand and inaccessible unless you have access to some of the top tax advisers in the country. I don’t think this set up is helpful when looking at it from a macro level and thinking about how to encourage small business growth. If you haven’t already guessed, the current interest deductibility rules are also a bit of a bugbear for me.
Has a recent tax case caught your eye?
This one was obvious for me: HMRC v NCL Investments Ltd and other [2022] UKSC 9. I remember reading the lower court decisions on the beach in Corfu, after a client called me with a specific question around the deductibility of an expense, as this was the case most closely related to that decision. We had a debate in our team and concluded that the facts were consistent, so the client claimed a deduction. The Supreme Court has subsequently proven that to be the right answer, so the law is now final and HMRC will now I presume revise its guidance.
What issues have been clients been raising recently?
Most of our clients have been wrestling with supply chain issues and rising inflation. These two factors are changing our clients’ business models. Everyone is having to wrestle with how their business model works in a higher inflationary environment, and business models are adapting with co-sourcing, near sourcing and onshore sourcing all now prevalent.
And finally, you might not know this about me but...
I’m a masters level squash player, I play squash in the British Open and Closed championships for my age group. In the past, I’ve managed to get through to the last sixteen of those championships and I made my first regional semi-final last year. I’ve been playing since I was 14; more than anything it is a great stress reliever, it keeps me fit and healthy and helps me to continue working at an intense pace in the job that I’ve got today, which I think might just be the best UK tax job.
.jpg?sfvrsn=335a554c_0 "300 x 250 (MPU)")