G Huntley v HMRC

In G Huntley v HMRC (TC00804 – 29 November) a subcontractor claimed a deduction for subsistence expenses. HMRC considered that the amount claimed was excessive and disallowed part of it. The subcontractor appealed to the First-Tier Tribunal which found that ‘the level of aggression illustrated in documents produced by the appellant before the Tribunal was in the view of the Tribunal entirely misplaced’. Judge Williams noted that ‘HMRC had indicated to the appellant in reply to correspondence that the officer of Revenue and Customs who had made the decisions under appeal would attend as a witness at the hearing and would answer questions. Shortly before the hearing that officer was withdrawn as a witness. At the hearing the Tribunal asked HMRC why this was so. Part of the answer was that the officer’s senior managers had considered...