IR35 - Eamonn Holmes loses against HMRC

OUT OF HOURS BULLY'S TRUCKSTOP BAR (INTERACTIVE)
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aol.co.uk/entertainment/202 … psZWE-34r#

Eamonn Holmes could face an enormous tax bill after he lost a court case against HMRC.

The 60-year-old TV and radio presenter - who has hosted This Morning with wife Ruth Langsford on Fridays and during school holidays since 2006 - claimed he worked freelance for ITV, but a tribunal ruled he was effectively employed by the network.

A spokesperson for Holmes said in a statement to Contractor Calculator: "Eamonn has always considered himself a self-employed freelancer and has never knowingly avoided paying taxes. He is taking the time to understand the extensive document detailing the outcome.

“Like many people across the country and from many different professions, he is seeking to comprehend what this means; and simply wishes for clarity and consistency across the guidelines so that people don’t suffer the same confusion over these retrospective IR35 rulings.”

The former GMTV and Sky News Sunrise presenter was paid for his work on This Morning via his company, Red, White and Green Limited.

But tribunal Judge Harriet Morgan concluded that there was sufficient mutuality of obligation (MOO) and, “at least a sufficient framework of control to place the assumed relationship between ITV and Mr Holmes in the employment field”.

Holmes is consulting with his lawyers before he makes a decision to appeal the ruling, which applies to the 2011/12 and 2014/15 tax years.

Holmes, who received an OBE in 2018, has previously said he was a “test case” in HMRC’s crackdown on freelance workers, claiming if they won against him they would “go after everyone else.”

He said: "I was in a court in central London for a week in June. I’ve been freelance for 28 years and that’s been okay.

“Now they’ve said it’s not okay. They have reinvented the rules in the past couple of years. There is nobody more freelance than me, but they are trying to prove our jobs are regular and guaranteed. They could go at any moment.”

As well as his current presenting role on This Morning Holmes hosted a weekly radio show on TalkRadio from January 2018 to February 2020. He and wife Langsford also wrote a joint coumn for Best magazine.

Last year Lorraine Kelly dodged a £1.2million tax bill for her ITV work after a judge ruled she’s performing “the role of a friendly, chatty and fun personality”, rather than appearing as herself.

The HMRC has pursued other stars over the use of personal service companies and former BBC Look North presenter Christa Ackroyd lost an appeal and was ordered to pay a £420,000 tax bill.

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carlston49:
Last year Lorraine Kelly dodged a £1.2million tax bill for her ITV work after a judge ruled she’s performing “the role of a friendly, chatty and fun personality”, rather than appearing as herself.

That’s called “Being damned with faint praise”. :stuck_out_tongue:

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WTF has this got to do with our industry forum :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :unamused: :unamused:

W G’s a F

Rich broadcaster trying to fiddle the books, there’s probably loads more of them,
glad if he’s been found guilty of fiddling the books and he’s got caught.

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pierrot 14:
WTF has this got to do with our industry forum :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :unamused: :unamused:

W G’s a F

Rich broadcaster trying to fiddle the books, there’s probably loads more of them,
glad if he’s been found guilty of fiddling the books and he’s got caught.

Indeed, seems a tad circumlocutory to me.

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pierrot 14:
WTF has this got to do with our industry forum :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :unamused: :unamused:

W G’s a F

Rich broadcaster trying to fiddle the books, there’s probably loads more of them,
glad if he’s been found guilty of fiddling the books and he’s got caught.

Self employed drivers

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pierrot 14:
WTF has this got to do with our industry forum :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :unamused: :unamused:

W G’s a F

Rich broadcaster trying to fiddle the books, there’s probably loads more of them,
glad if he’s been found guilty of fiddling the books and he’s got caught.

I think it’s because an amount of drivers are mayhe coming under the same kind of scenario as Eamon in the coming months…

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There’s gonna be an awful lot of LTD drivers who will be consulting their accountants pretty ■■■■ fast, especially as more and more cases come to court. IR35 regs don’t only affect drivers, my adopted daughter is a supply nurse working on a LTD basis. She’s just been told by HMRC that she works solely for the NHS regardless of which authority she is at the NHS are her only employer. They’re stinging her for nearly £30k which she can’t afford

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk

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It makes perfect sense to move towards everyone being PAYE unless actually paying themselves from a company that they own, rather than this “Ltd Sole Trader” loophole, which I reckon is about to be closed for good.

“Companies” are supposed to be worked by many people and employ many people NOT employ a single person and not be accountable even to oneself for tax purposes.

Gone Chancellor Phillip Hammond decided to “Leave White Van Man Alone” - but it would seem that this new Conservative government has other ideas for those people who think they can make like MPs when it comes to “offsetting everything for tax”…

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would think hes got a chauffeur who lives in the grounds

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corij:
would think hes got a chauffeur who lives in the grounds

We know it won’t happen,but aren’t MPs self-employed by one employer namely HMg, so they should all face being dragged before court for tax evasion, maybe people should write to there mo, or send a letter to HMRC regarding MPs and Ir35.

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So Eamonn Holmes falls foul of IR35 yet Lorraine Kelly does not. Great piece of legislation (not), with many grey areas.

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HMRC were looking at this back in 1985 or 4 the construction ind had lots of owner drivers even though the bought drove and owned their trucks as with the silly WTD owner drivers were dragged into it…as they put it (for the purpose of the WTD they were deemed employees) HMRC did not carry on with it although I do not think it has been kicked into long grass

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IR35 was first introduced in April 2000.

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I’m not worried I’m paye.

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pierrot 14:
WTF has this got to do with our industry forum :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :open_mouth: :unamused: :unamused:

W G’s a F

Rich broadcaster trying to fiddle the books, there’s probably loads more of them,
glad if he’s been found guilty of fiddling the books and he’s got caught.

He has probably taken the advice of his accounts the same as many self employed drivers.
He should of joined a few trucking forums as there’s usualy a few know ■■■■ all’s who will be dodging it with there fountain of knowledge

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stuwozere1:
There’s gonna be an awful lot of LTD drivers who will be consulting their accountants pretty ■■■■ fast, especially as more and more cases come to court. IR35 regs don’t only affect drivers, my adopted daughter is a supply nurse working on a LTD basis. She’s just been told by HMRC that she works solely for the NHS regardless of which authority she is at the NHS are her only employer. They’re stinging her for nearly £30k which she can’t afford

In fairness though, the £30k is only what she would have paid in the first place if she had been PAYE. All of these tax avoidance schemes were always destined to end in “tears before bedtime” and that has been pointed up on TruckNet for some 15 years now. I’m an agency driver and I’ve always refused to work on anything other than a PAYE basis because I knew that anything else would come back and bite me on the bum some day.

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Harry Monk:

stuwozere1:
There’s gonna be an awful lot of LTD drivers who will be consulting their accountants pretty ■■■■ fast, especially as more and more cases come to court. IR35 regs don’t only affect drivers, my adopted daughter is a supply nurse working on a LTD basis. She’s just been told by HMRC that she works solely for the NHS regardless of which authority she is at the NHS are her only employer. They’re stinging her for nearly £30k which she can’t afford

In fairness though, the £30k is only what she would have paid in the first place if she had been PAYE. All of these tax avoidance schemes were always destined to end in “tears before bedtime” and that has been pointed up on TruckNet for some 15 years now. I’m an agency driver and I’ve always refused to work on anything other than a PAYE basis because I knew that anything else would come back and bite me on the bum some day.

Unfortunately as with many it was what she was advised to do at the time. She regrets it now

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk

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robbo99.:
So Eamonn Holmes falls foul of IR35 yet Lorraine Kelly does not. Great piece of legislation (not), with many grey areas.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
nothing to do with grey areas there bud.

the fact of the matter is that lorraine kelly has a fanny pass to argue with and is all mumsy,cuddly and well pumpable,whereas eamonn holmes is just a northern irish tubby. :slight_smile:

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There is one common denominator in all of these so called tax avoidance schemes, eg MSC Legislation, IR35, the loan charge to name but a few and that is HMRC do not have clear parameters as to what is right and what is wrong, so if they don’t know, then how are tax advisors and down to the working man supposed to know what is allowable and what is not. Indeed some of the now so called tax avoidance schemes have actually been a ok’d by HMRC in the past. HMRC’s own CEST tool which is supposed to give a definitive answer to a person’s employment status has proved time and time again to be inaccurate.
HMRC deem all of these people to be tax avoiders which does get the public onside because no one likes tax avoiders but HMRC have a great deal to answer for for not being clear. Regarding IR35, HMRC themselves are using contractors who are falling foul of the legislation, how farcical is that, the tax authority of the land using non compliant contractors. The private sector come April will be in a right mess, HMRC have promised in their own words not to be “heavy handed” on contractors caught out by IR35 enforcement for the first year from April this year, yet more grey areas there, what is the definition of not been heavy handed? Until government get a grip and sort out themselves and HMRC then many thousands of hard working people will be deemed to be tax avoiders.

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robbo99.:
There is one common denominator in all of these so called tax avoidance schemes, eg MSC Legislation, IR35, the loan charge to name but a few and that is HMRC do not have clear parameters as to what is right and what is wrong, so if they don’t know, then how are tax advisors and down to the working man supposed to know what is allowable and what is not. Indeed some of the now so called tax avoidance schemes have actually been a ok’d by HMRC in the past. HMRC’s own CEST tool which is supposed to give a definitive answer to a person’s employment status has proved time and time again to be inaccurate.
HMRC deem all of these people to be tax avoiders which does get the public onside because no one likes tax avoiders but HMRC have a great deal to answer for for not being clear. Regarding IR35, HMRC themselves are using contractors who are falling foul of the legislation, how farcical is that, the tax authority of the land using non compliant contractors. The private sector come April will be in a right mess, HMRC have promised in their own words not to be “heavy handed” on contractors caught out by IR35 enforcement for the first year from April this year, yet more grey areas there, what is the definition of not been heavy handed? Until government get a grip and sort out themselves and HMRC then many thousands of hard working people will be deemed to be tax avoiders.

being a tax avoider has nothing to do with how hard you work.
rules say that after you have earnt x amount you pay tax on the rest at differing levels depending on how much you earn per annum that’s it. so for argument sake say I earn 30k a year and im allowed 10k tax free rules state that I pay tax on the 20k over my allowance at 20% (4k worth of tax)

The avoidance bit is taking advantage of loop holes for small businesses to pay less tax on goods bought and write stuff off against tax as tools of the trade or depreciation. when the companies pay business rates or even worse in my book fiddling it to the extent that you get a tax rebate when you haven’t paid any,