The "OK" for this trip has several interesting angles to this:a) Who OKayed it - Julian Bell, the Acton Labour Group, etc.b) If these peoples costs are being met by the developers then is Ealing Council being re-imbursed for their salary, or are they taking vacation time or unpaid leave to go there?c) Are these four people declaring the "income in kind" that they have received through the air tickets, hotel accommodation, food, drinks, etc? They are, I recall, liable to pay tax on the income in in kind that they receive and as they are all higher-rate tax payers we are looking at at least 40%. For example, if they are taken on lunch that costs £2,400 for six people the four of them are actually liable for a tax charge of 40% of £400 even if the bill is being footed by another organisation.The non-declaration to the tax authorities of such third-party funded payment in kind is an issue for the standards and professional ethics people in Ealing Council, not to mention the tax people and the relevant tax fraud people in the police.If this has been going on for several years then it is a big issue. So the question is: have these four been paying for the tax on the payment-in-kind that they got?Over to you Nr Breems, as an ex-investigator this should give you something to get your teeth into!Sofia.
Sofia Stentoria ● 5378d