2009/4/25 andrewrturvey@googlemail.com:
On Apr 25, 12:15 am, Michael Peel em...@mikepeel.net wrote:
If we don't get anywhere with HMRC, then we should take this to the media - they'll have a field day with this.
I don't think we should contact the media at this stage. HMRC are entitled to reject any application if they think it's not a charity - and given the absense of any UK charities doing similar things to Wikimedia UK it's not completely unreasonable what they've done. They've found a case whcih supports rejecting the application so they've done that.
Complaining to the media or to politicians could reflect badly on us before we've exhausted the avenues for appeal.
A well written letter from a lawyer is the first step, but we shouldn't rule out using the media to our advantage. Wikipedia vs The Taxman in the court of public opinion would almost certainly end up with a result in our favour!
I'll repeat what I've said before - the case they've found does not support their decision in the slightest. They are completely misapplying it. The case says that original academic research is not inherently charitable, but original academic research is one thing we certainly don't do.