Campaigners to challenge Goldman Sachs tax deal

Tax avoidance campaigners have been given the go-ahead to challenge a deal struck between Goldman Sachs and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

The High Court said UK Uncut could challenge the legality of the arrangement, which the group says saved Goldman Sachs up to £20m by avoiding an interest bill on unpaid tax on bonuses.

HMRC has disputed the amount, with official figures putting the total the investment bank saved at £8m.

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The court did not give UK Uncut permission to take forward a claim seeking to quash the deal.

Campaigners argue that an initial error by HMRC about what it could legally collect from Goldman Sachs was not rectified despite the Revenue quickly realising its mistake.

This led to it illegally withdrawing a County Court claim for the money owed without seeking to re-negotiate a deal it had already struck with the bank, according to UK Uncut.

HMRC had argued that since the National Audit Office was producing a report for Parliament into several tax deals the matter should be left to Parliament.

However, Mr Justice Simon said there was "plainly public interest in this matter, and maladministration and legality are separate issues".

Murray Worthy, spokesman for UK Uncut, said: "The public have a right to know why a multi-billion pound investment bank appears to have been let off the tax they owe while vital public services are being cut."

"The government is making a political choice in making ordinary people pay for the economic crisis with their jobs and pensions, rather than clamping down on billions of pounds worth of tax avoidance by big business," he added.

HMRC said it would strongly contest the judicial review.

"Large business tax settlements are a vital part of how HMRC secures tax revenues for the country and without them, Britain's public finances would be seriously damaged," said a spokesman.

"We welcome the opportunity to demonstrate that we acted legally."