Mike Lane and Zoe Andrews (Slaughter and May) examine recent tax developments that matter, including the ruling in ScottishPower and HMRC’s draft guidance on the multinational top-up tax and domestic top-up tax.
ScottishPower: payments in lieu of penalties may be deductible
ScottishPower Ltd and others v HMRC [2025] EWCA Civ 3 is a case about the deductibility in computing trading profits of payments made in connection with investigations by the energy regulator GEMA into regulatory breaches by the taxpayers which carried on energy supply businesses. Each investigation resulted in a settlement comprising a number of redress payments to consumers consumer groups and charities and a nominal £1 financial penalty. Across all the settlements the payments totalled around £28m but only the nominal penalties were considered by GEMA to be actual penalties and accordingly paid into the Consolidated Fund. The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) had concluded that had the taxpayers...
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Mike Lane and Zoe Andrews (Slaughter and May) examine recent tax developments that matter, including the ruling in ScottishPower and HMRC’s draft guidance on the multinational top-up tax and domestic top-up tax.
ScottishPower: payments in lieu of penalties may be deductible
ScottishPower Ltd and others v HMRC [2025] EWCA Civ 3 is a case about the deductibility in computing trading profits of payments made in connection with investigations by the energy regulator GEMA into regulatory breaches by the taxpayers which carried on energy supply businesses. Each investigation resulted in a settlement comprising a number of redress payments to consumers consumer groups and charities and a nominal £1 financial penalty. Across all the settlements the payments totalled around £28m but only the nominal penalties were considered by GEMA to be actual penalties and accordingly paid into the Consolidated Fund. The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) had concluded that had the taxpayers...
If you or your firm subscribes to Taxjournal.com, please click the login box below:
If you do not subscribe but are a registered user, please enter your details in the following boxes:
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