UK Construction Rebounds

IHS Markit/CIPS UK Construction PMI was 55.3 in
June compared to 28.9 in May, a considerable improvement in construction activity from a low base in May &, particularly April, (unsurprising given most sites were shut in April)... #ukconstruction https://t.co/HzPa3d1CTl pic.twitter.com/QXAjczHguG

— Noble Francis (@NobleFrancis) July 6, 2020

Given that most building sites were shut down, the rebound is hardly surprising!

The UK, for the next decade or so, will turn into one giant construction site as the government turns on the spigots of infrastructure spending.

Tax Investigation Insurance

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A Slap On The Wrists

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT), having spent four years investigating public sector construction tender rigging, have fined the construction industry a trifling £129.5M.

This fine represents no more that 2% of each business's turnover.

Seemingly the OFT was worried that a larger fine would push the construction industry further into recession.

Maybe so, but what about the millions of pounds of public money that has been wasted because of this tender rigging?

Taxpayers Can Sue HMRC

The court of appeal ruling in favour of Neil Martin a builder who lost £500K, as a result of errors made by HMRC when it processed his company's Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) application in 1999, leaves HMRC open to being sued by taxpayers for errors.

The ruling means that HMRC has a duty of care to taxpayers, and taxpayers may now sue HMRC for damages in certain circumstances.

This is particularly relevant in cases where the HMRC help taxpayers with their returns.

The result will of course mean that HMRC will no longer offer taxpayers help in completing their returns, as such the process of submitting a return will become even more tortuous and difficult to complete.