Specialist Music Programmes threat

Subject: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST,Nick Dow
Date: 04 Sep 17 - 06:45 PM

The new Inland revenue one size fits all employment/self employment test, has been imposed upon corporate, and small businesses.
This effectively makes you employed rather than self employed, even if you own your own media company, or any other small business if you work regularly for a large company.
The idea is for the Revenue to claim tax by PAYE then get you to claim it back if you can prove you are self employed. The collectors are going back six years to claw back tax that has been avoided.
This will almost certainly lead to the lesser paid specialist music programmes Folk/Blues/Soul/Country, becoming financially inviable for the presenters, such as myself and many others. The 'you know what' is about to hit the fan big time. I have already walked from BBC Radio Lancashire, after 33 years. It's OK for me I am of pensionable age. I feel sorry for the youngsters coming through. Let's face it it's a waste of time sending a CD through to Folk on Two, it never gets played, or even taken out of its cover unless you fit some hidden criteria. What future there is for recordings of home made music I don't know.
I hope somebody with a bit more knowledge might explain all of this a little better than I have with this post, and there is a way forward some how. I can't see it at the moment.

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 04:48 AM

This was news last October with headlines like "HMRC investigates BBC presenters over tax avoidance allegations"

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST,Nick Dow
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 08:59 AM

Well the latest news is as above. We maybe kissing goodbye to specialist music on local radio.

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: DaveRo
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 11:16 AM

Specialist music on BBC local radio has been under threat, and declining, for years. You're lucky to still have such programmes on BBC Lancashire, Merseyside, Leeds, Shropshire, Gloucestershire ... Here in Hertfordshire I used to listen to folk programmes on Radio Bedfordshire, Radio Oxford, and Radio London. These stopped a decade or more ago and now there are now no local ones that I know of. At least, with the advent of the BBC iPlayer, I can now listen to these remote 'local' programmes.

I don't know in what way these programmes can be said to be 'financially viable'. Presumably they exist where their local audience is big and vociferous enough, or the presenter has a personal following (which has its own risk). They were threatened a few years back by the 'Delivering Quality First' programme - i.e. budget cuts and station mergers - and I'm sure that will happen again. I assume they have a (diminishing) budget, and a remit based on playing and interviewing local or visiting artists.

The background to these changes, as Guest said, is the alleged use by presenters of personal service companies to avoid tax (link). It's not clear to me how this threatens the future of these programmes more than they already are.

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: Jim Carroll
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 11:23 AM

"Specialist music on BBC local radio has been under threat, and declining, for years."
The rot really set in with the closure of The Features department
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST,Nick Dow
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 01:13 PM

In a nutshell, if you get £50 a programme you will now take home about £30 hardly enough to cover your petrol. That's what I meant by viable.
N.I. payments will not lead to a bigger state pension because you are already paying Class 2, and if you want to fight the Revenue you might get a refund if you can prove you are self employed. However you will have to do it every year. Finally it will not be legal to work for nought as a presenter for the love of the music. Game Over I'm afraid.

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST,kenny
Date: 05 Sep 17 - 04:20 PM

"Finally it will not be legal to work for nought as a presenter for the love of the music". I co-present a folk / trad music programme on Aberdeen's "SHMU FM" community radio station. I and all the other presenters are volunteers, so how will we be breaking the law ? If that's the case, then every single community radio station in the country will have to close down, and that seems to me to be quite unlikely.

Subject: RE: Specialist Music Programmes threat
From: GUEST,Nick Dow
Date: 06 Sep 17 - 09:11 AM

I meant corporate employment law, in the context of previous posts. Might be different in Scotland (I hope!)