Preston North End are the latest team to be served with a winding up order by HM Revenue and Customs. The order relates to the failure to meet PAYE and National Insurance debts for April, so the bill is only 20 days overdue. This is perhaps indicative of the tougher line that Revenue and Customs is taking with clubs.
Preston North End are the latest team to be served with a winding up order by HM Revenue and Customs. The order relates to the failure to meet PAYE and National Insurance debts for April, so the bill is only 20 days overdue. This is perhaps indicative of the tougher line that Revenue and Customs is taking with clubs.
However, the tax authorities may have good grounds for concern. The club has been receiving help from its leading shareholder, Trevor Hemmings, through his investment vehicle, Guild Ventures. Yesterday they had to borrow £550,000 from him to meet players’ wages.
Preston is one of the few clubs still listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and the club’s shares will be suspended from Monday until more is known about its position. Preston should be viable as a Championship club. However, such clubs are sometimes vulnerable to over spending in an attempt to achieve promotion to the Premier League, a feat achieved last year by nearby Burnley, also one of the founding clubs of the Football League.