The Magpie Pre Budget Report

Oh what a day!!

Comparing notes this afternoon it transpired that a colleague and I were both awake at 5am today thinking about IHT and CGT-how sad is that?

At a Tax Club Meeting first thing -8am not 5.30 am!!- we tax lawyers and accountants present decided there was still plenty of work for us-still plenty of "life in the old dog" ie advisory mileage in relation to IHT and CGT

I then walked in to the office to be met by the "doom and gloom" merchants in my department -pessimism is a necesssary trait for Wills Probate and Tax Lawyers (you know-the only 2 certainties in life ?..death and taxes). Equally I hate negativity!!

"No" I protested "there is still loads of mileage in Nil Rate Band Discretionary Will Trusts!"
I am massively upbeat about the new opportunities facing us Tax Planners-everyone thinks I'm "on" something and want to know what it was- the truth?-no not wacky baccy -just positive thinking-as one door closes etc etc...

So to convince everyone/put my money etc etc I have spent more or less the whole day poring over the HMRC bumph and writing and circulating an Alert.

Were the Parliamentary Draftsmen really burning the midnight oil writing the new Schedule to the Finance Bill covering transferability of the Nil Rate Band on the back of the Tory Conferance commitment to a nil rate band of £1000000 ?....and on the basis that the Government had to do SOMETHING?

I don't really think so-we had been warned by "them in the know" that Gordon had something in his arsenal before he left his previous life.

So tomorrow..another day another challenge!!

Old files are going to have to be dusted down-if they have been kept that is!!

Life don't get any easier!!

And there are still the Realignment of Trusts issues to sort before 6th April!!

Oh and CGT...

Real work to do now..files to read,letters to dictate..

PS: Client Alert on the Latimer Hinks website-any problems shout!