It may be harder to obtain certainty that UK tax authority HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) cannot go back and challenge a tax return after comments made by Court of Appeal judges in a UK case relating to ‘discovery’ assessments, a tax disputes expert has said.
‘Raging optimism’ from Imee Marcos, as Duterte’s win in Philippine midterm elections boosts death penalty plan
A landslide victory for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in midterm polls – confirmed by official results on Wednesday – has cleared the way for the controversial leader to push on with plans to reintroduce the death penalty and introduce a federal system of government.Allies of Duterte won nine of the 12 seats on offer in the senate, the election commission confirmed, meaning he now has support of 20 out of the country’s 24 senators. Previously he controlled just half of the senate members…
Financial regulators focus on climate change risk
ANALYSIS: In early May the UK government became the first in the world to declare an environment and climate change emergency. The impact of climate change will affect every aspect of daily life, and generates a number of significant financial risks.
Frenchman Felix Dorfin’s death sentence adds to list of foreigners who have felt full force of Indonesia’s strict drug laws
Frenchman Felix Dorfin has been handed the death penalty by an Indonesian court on drugs charges, but he is far from the first foreigner to be sentenced to death in the country.Dorfin was arrested last September for carrying a suitcase filled with more than 3kg of drugs, including ecstasy and amphetamines. Indonesia has some of the world’s strictest narcotics laws, and has executed a number of foreigners in the past, often provoking outcry overseas.Here are some of the others to have felt the…
Forget Indonesia’s loud male Islamists. Instagram’s female Muslim influencers do politics disguised as a selfie
Indonesia’s young Muslim women are rarely thought of as political actors even though there is a large and increasing number of millennial female politicians.Instead, it is young, urban men who have often caught the public’s attention with their street politics and Islamist groups, eager for their beliefs to be reflected in policy.But the numbers tell a different story: of the 1,415 millennial legislative candidates in the country’s elections this April, some 816 – more than half – were female…
‘We’re on red alert’: Thailand ramps up efforts to prevent African swine fever from spreading
Thailand, one of Asia’s top pork producers, is intensifying efforts to hold off a lethal pig virus that is causing havoc as it spreads across the region.African swine fever – a disease that kills virtually all the pigs it infects – has been spreading through Asia from China and Mongolia.Millions of pigs have been culled, creating a global protein shortage, and saddling farmers and food businesses with billions of dollars in costs.“We’re on red alert for the pig virus,” Anan Suwannarat, the…
Australia passes new whistleblowing laws
ANALYSIS: New Australian legislation which enhances protections available to whistleblowers will come into effect later this year. The requirements are extensive, and the consequences for failing to comply can be dire. Organisations will need to do prepare for the new laws.
Skype therapy? South Korea’s lack of mental health help forces stressed out foreign students to seek it online
When 25-year-old Martyna Posluszna first moved to Seoul from her native Poland last year, she thought she would feel right at home. She quickly made friends and even found herself a Korean boyfriend.But 12 months in to her two-year masters programme at Yonsei University, one of the most prestigious in South Korea, struggles adapting to life in the country provoked a panic attack that landed Posluszna in a private hospital. She was diagnosed with anxiety, and was charged US$800 for a half-day as…
What Australia’s election result means for its renewable energy future
ANALYSIS: The Liberal-National coalition was returned to power over the weekend for a third term and now has an opportunity to implement policies designed to decarbonise the Australian economy.
There is one clear winner in Philippine midterm elections: Rodrigo Duterte’s popularity
Five points stand out to me from the just-concluded Philippine midterm elections, particularly its main event: the Senate race.First, the polls reinforce the notion that President Rodrigo Duterte is the most popular Philippine politician today – if not in recent memory.With at least eight out of the 12 Senate seats up for grabs set to be won by candidates backed by Duterte and the Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) party of his daughter, Sara, the elections were a triumph for the president and his…