A senior UK Government investigator has been accused of not having a proper understanding of accounting and tax practice in relation to an investigation he conducted.
Joseph Harrington, an Investigator at the Political Finance and Regulation section of The Electoral Commission in the United Kingdom faced the claim after publishing the outcome of an investigation that was subject to legal proceedings.
Joseph Harrington claimed that it was not a “reasonable excuse” under election law for a political party treasurer to fail to submit dormant accounts, yet under tax law the opposite is true.
Jonathan Bishop, on behalf of the Crocels Community Media Group, questioned Joseph Harrington’s judgement. “In my view it is unbelievable that The Electoral Commission could employ someone like Joseph Harrington who appears to not to understand the law, lacking even the most basic understanding of how accounting works,” he said. “Did Joseph Harrington not think it appropriate to seek the advice of an accountant before concluding an investigation relating to accounting?
“In my view this is a serious matter of professional misconduct as Joseph Harrington has clearly acted outside of his expertise by claiming a definition of reasonable excuse that is not in line with accepted practice in tax and accounting.”
The Electoral Commission is now subject to a judicial review application as a result of Joseph Harrington’s actions, filed at the Cardiff Civil Justice Centre, which also heard an injunction application to prevent the publication of the outcome Joseph Harrington’s investigation.