UK campaign group loses Goldman Sachs tax case

Britain's High Court on Thursday rejected a challenge by a campaign group over the legality of a so-called "sweetheart" tax deal between British tax authorities and US investment banking giant Goldman Sachs. Campaigners UK Uncut Legal Action claimed that the taxpayer was effectively deprived of up to £20 million ($30.5 million, 23.7 million euros) in tax under the deal struck in 2010.
The group alleged that the deal was allowed to go ahead to avoid causing "major embarrassment" to finance minister George Osborne after the bank became "aggressive" and allegedly made threats. It asked judge Andrew Nicol to declare that HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) deal was legally flawed. But the judge ruled that while the deal was "not a glorious episode in the history of the Revenue", it was not unlawful.