Gary Barlow and two of his Take That bandmates could each face a tax bill of up to £20 million after they were ruled to have been involved in a tax avoidance scheme.
Barlow, Mark Owen, Howard Donald, and their manager Jonathan Wild are reported to have attempted to avoid tax by investing in Icebreaker Management Ltd and claim tax relief for the money they claimed to be investing in the “creative arts”.
However, Judge Colin Bishop found this scheme to be a tax avoidance sham, with an aim to inflate the scale of relief on offer by unnecessary borrowing.
HMRC welcomed the decision, saying in a statement:
“HMRC has put in place generous reliefs to support genuine business investment and our tax reliefs for the creative industries work well, enabling the UK’s world-class film, television and video production companies to compete on the global stage.
“But we will not tolerate abuse of the system by people trying to dodge their tax obligations.
“HMRC will continue to challenge in the courts anyone who engages in tax avoidance schemes… [Such people] risk not only the high cost of these schemes but also lay themselves open to penalties and, potentially, prosecution.”
