https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-67088503
So a billionaire gets a suspended sentence for a defrauding HMRC from £653m ... yet innocent Post Masters do jail time for fraud ... and still don't get compensated years on ...
What a world we live in ...
I believe his fraud was considerably lower than that figure, but a sizeable (presumably nine figure) penalty has been added to the base tax bill. Far being from me to suggest that a deal has been done, but…
In Dutch we call this ‘klassenjustitie’ roughly translated as class justice. Not sure if that covers the meanint.
It's always been the case that tax fraud has to be much more significant to justify production/jail time compared to minor benefits fraud but there's something badly wrong when billionaires (ministers, the super wealthy, well connected etc) committing huge tax fraud get off more lightly than your average taxpayer (especially when your greater standing in society is a factor in favour of prosecution).
This isn’t the first time Bernie’s been economical with the truth towards HMRC. Always enjoying ‘the deal’ he made a considerable overpayment the last time too to avoid time at Her Majesty’s pleasure.
In fairness, at his age it must be hard to remember every last £400M you own.
at 92 and soon to be 93 cheaper to let him live at home versus "at His Majesty's Pleasure'
and he will now be hounded annually regarding every April 5th Tax Return
It's been public knowledge for years that "tax avoidance" was part of his life and much of it is now been found to be "tax evasion"
Has the German Authorities finished with him yet?
As I understand it he was asked about it in a meeting with HRMC and failed to disclose it to "hurry the process along as he was fed up paying his legal fees."
I don't care if he's 92 - he should be doing time for that amount of attempted fraud AND be fined the £635 million.
David
Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations
Give him a few weeks house arrest at a care home in an impoverished working class town and let the Nazi wipe his own backside.
Lest we forget.
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He should do time, as should the parasites who advised him and sold him their crooked schemes.
650 million and he just says ok. Staggering. How much has he got away with over the years? I presume his legal team get their payment upfront
Hey look on the bright side guys
Bernies 650 million has just paid 48 hours of U.K. national debt interest
Fines mean nothing to such wealth, prison would ensure he ended his days appropriately.
“Don’t look back, you’re not heading that way.”
Ecclestone’s lawyers claimed at an earlier hearing that the former racing driver was only being prosecuted because he said during a television interview that he would “take a bullet” for President Putin of Russia, who he described as a “first-class person”.
He had previously admitted fraud for the year 2007-2008 which led to a loss of tax over a property deal, the court was told.
Ecclestone paid £60 million in August 2014 to end proceedings in a bribery case in Germany without any admission of guilt.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/3...d5b6007b20a219
Having had a run in with HMRC, I can speak from (bitter experience) this is a good DEAL. Tax planning is a murky domain, what would you rather have an additional few hundred million going to the treasury, or a long trial (in which either side could lose) and a much smaller penalty and putting an old fart in jail. This is pragmatism. IMHO Class war is not productive and for the birds.
About 25 years ago I interviewed for a job at Ecclestone’s organisation. His HQ was an address on Kensington Gore - very discreet, there was nothing to indicate who was based there, just a number by the door. It had formerly been Adnan Khashoggi’s offices and the interior was very 1980s arms dealer - dark brown marble all over the walls, black mirrors, and not much lighting at all. The whole place seemed almost deserted. I was interviewed by a perfectly pleasant lady who would have been my boss. She made fairly clear, without saying it in as many words, that being treated like **** by “Mr E” as she referred to him, went with the territory.
Given that the pay was no great shakes, the whole experience was slightly creepy, and I had my doubts about working for someone who was already well known to be dodgy, I wasn’t too upset not to be offered the second interview at which I would apparently have met the man himself.
I am not sure; once you have enough to ever need, the game changes.
Even £10m offshore fund at 13% return with compound interest is a monthly income of £110k, multiply that up to his starting amount and frankly becomes a rounding error when you already own 'everything you need'
Agreed, but he is worth a few billion (excluding any off shore trusts he has forgotten about) so the fine was more like 1/15 of his networth, which has to be worth avoiding spending the last years of his life in prison.
I suppose it has reduced his IHT tax bill slightly, until we discover on his death he is Russian or died offshore or something.