Southport Hospital doctor hit with £30,000 HMRC fine after claiming to work nine days a week
When queried, the doctor accused HMRC of bias and prejudice
Hello and welcome to The Southport Lead.
In Wednesday’s newsletter, we focused on the findings of Phase One of The Southport Inquiry and I’ve also written about the subject for The Lead’s national title this week, reflecting on the importance of this actually leading to meaningful change. You can read that piece below, and listen to a discussion on the subject here.
Today’s newsletter looks at a ruling which means a doctor who worked out Southport’s A&E department during the Covid crisis must pay £30,000 of penalties to HMRC after deliberately submitting false information on his tax returns.
Some elements of tax law can be very complicated, whereas some can involve a judge pointing out that there are only seven days in a week. This case involves elements of both, but surprisingly more of the latter.
Southport briefing
😯 Britannia Hotels says it is considering rebuilding and reopening its Pontins site in Ainsdale. The holiday resort has been closed since January 2024 and Sefton Council last year said it hoped to have the site replaced with a “world-class” resort as part of its long-term ambition for the wider Ainsdale Gateway. However, Britannia this week revealed it is considering its own plans to redevelop the attraction, for which it has almost 100 years remaining on its land lease. Referring to Ainsdale, Prestatyn and Camber Sands, a Britannia spokesperson said: “Following their closure, we have been undertaking a series of surveys and land assessments for our three vacant Pontins sites to determine what future uses may be viable. As part of this process, we have appointed a planning consultancy to develop pre-planning applications for consideration by the respective local authorities. These proposals include the potential demolition of the aged chalets and options for their replacement, reflecting evolving guest expectations and the long-term sustainability of the sites.”
🚓 A man has been charged after a woman was assaulted in Southport town centre this week. At around midday on Wednesday, a man approached a woman on Lord Street near Sainsburys and assaulted as she shouted at him to get off her. She managed to get away and run down the road and nearby officers spotted and arrested a man. The next day, 44-year-old Deividas Ilginis, of Lathom Road, was charged with assault by beating. Sefton Area Commander Karl Baldwin said: “I would like to thank the woman who reported this incident and the Southport Town Centre Policing Team, who are making Southport safer every day. Merseyside Police recently introduced the Southport Town Centre Team and the launch of the Merseyside Anti-Social Behaviour Partnership to provide a faster and more effective policing response to incidents that cause fear or harm in our community.”
🚑 Dobbies has apologised and reinstalled a defibrillator outside its store after facing a backlash online. The life-saving equipment was removed from the garden centre in a decision which, according to the Southport Saviours Foundation, was down to the retailer finding it difficult to keep up to date with periodical maintenance. The charity had donated the equipment to Dobbies and described the decision as “a step backwards from everything we work so hard to achieve”, pointing out it would have cost around £220 to replace the battery and pads and if unused, would have needed no more work for four years and could have been assisted by them. After reversing the decision, a Dobbies spokesperson said: “We sincerely apologise for this error and acknowledge that we got it wrong. This was addressed as a priority, and I can confirm that a new defibrillator was installed at our Southport store. Thank you to the Southport Saviours Foundation for raising this with us." The charity was set up by Richard Moore who has been campaigning for 24-hour accessible defibrillators and providing first aid training since he had a heart attack while running the Blackpool Marathon in 2022.
🛏️ Work has begun on the conversion of a derelict hotel in Southport into new apartments after 20 years without use. Builders are currently on site at the former Continental Hotel, on the corner Promenade and Scarisbrick Avenue, creating nine two-bedroom apartments with a restaurant on the ground floor in a £1 million transformation. Planning permission for the development, which sits near the Red Rum mural, was granted in 2023 after a £1m upgrade of the walkway was completed. Rod Ainsworth Architect, who designed the conversion, said: “We need to see the benefits of bringing this magnificent building back into use. This is a key building in the regeneration of Southport, by bringing back a Grade II Listed building to life. The owner is a local businessman who has several properties in Southport, including on Lord Street, and is invested in seeing the town do well.”
Southport Hospital doctor hit with £30,000 HMRC fine after claiming to work nine days a week
By Jamie Lopez
A locum doctor has been hit with penalties totalling more than £30,000 after falsely claiming tax allowances while working at Southport Hospital.
Dr Nwaneri worked at hospitals in both Southport and Shrewsbury across a three year period during which he attempted to claim travel and food expenses which totalled nine working days in each week, leading a tribunal judge to have to point out this was impossible.
When investigated by HMRC, he was unable to explain these discrepancies but still attempted to appeal a ruling which found he was liable for tens of thousands of pounds of additional tax over three years. He was also found to be “lacking in credibility” in cross-examination.
As well as the substantial overstatements of his travel and food spends, it was found he was never eligible to claim any such deductions at all and as a result was issued with recalculated tax bills.
After being found to have made deliberate errors in his tax returns, he was also hit with penalties of £12k, £7k, and £11k for a three-year period when he was working as a locum doctor at the two hospitals.
Last week, an appeal against the HMRC’s rulings was dismissed by tribunal judge Jennifer Newstead Taylor, with Dr Nwaneri’s evidence found to be “lacking in credibility”
