Richard's latest Presidential Update ...

April and May is the busiest time in the Presidential Year.   There is an interesting mix of annual dinners, Annual General Meetings and a number of Presidential receptions of kindred bodies.

One of the high points of being President is to visit the various Associations and getting a very genuine welcome.   It is very difficult to think of high points because every event is very different and there are always interesting and new things happening.

The receptions of kindred bodies are very different in their content.   The Institute of Taxation includes an annual lecture, the Taxation Technicians was a very lively evening with a live performer and songs from the shows, The VAT practitioners' reception was held in a beautiful part of Lincolns Inn.

My own presidential Lunch was held at the Goring Hotel, a privately owned and truly magnificent hotel in Victoria which has for me great memories of happy events in the past. It was a great occasion and seems to have been enjoyed by the guests.

The Association Annual Dinners are most enjoyable occasions and a chance to meet old friends.  Even though largely formal they all have a different character. There was also a splendid formal lunch given by AAT which was in the magnificent surroundings of a City Livery Hall. 

I also managed to visit the General Assembly of Tegova in Oslo.  This was very enjoyable and I saw how highly respected Roger Messenger is amongst his European Counterparts and how well he has done for the Institute with European Valuers. Oslo was possibly the most expensive city I have visited ever but it was a very enjoyable trip notwithstanding. 

I have also spoken in Glasgow for the Scottish Association and at one or two National Events which have been very well attended.

My year is now three quarters over but there are still a number of events to come and I look forward to seeing more of you in the near future.

Richard is keynote speaker at Scottish Revenues Symposium

Richard was key note speaker earlier today at a highly successful Scottish Revenues Symposium in Glasgow :

You can download Richard's slides and those of other speakers here.

April update from the President

Richard's latest updates :

28 March 2014 -

I travelled to Wigan and then a short taxi ride to the Haydock Thistle for the Lancashire and Cheshire Association Dinner Dance. The last time I was in Haydock was to be in the winner’s enclosure with my horse at Haydock Park Racecourse. 

We had a very enjoyable evening and I was well looked after by my hosts. The event was very well supported. 

I left before breakfast Sunday to get home before lunch.   It is a pity the clocks went forward and an hour was lost!

2 April 2014 -

Tonight was the Dinner of the Thames Valley and Wessex Associations.   It was a full house of 80 for an informal dinner in the magnificent surroundings of Wokefield Park in Berkshire.    A very impressive place, the main mansion is a truly magnificent old building.    Although evening dress it was an event without formality.    I left at the end of dinner and once I had discovered that our table had lost the quiz and I hadn’t won the 6 foot high teddy bear in the raffle.  The remaining participants settled down to a concert by an Elvis tribute.

3 April 2014 -

I managed to get to two receptions this evening.

The first was the VAT Practitioners Group. They held their annual President’s reception in the magnificent setting of the Old Hall in Lincolns Inn.    This is the oldest part of Lincolns Inn and is panelled with stained glass windows and magnificent portraits of judges.   It figured in the opening of Dickens' Bleak House as it was where the case of Jarndyce v Jarndyce was heard.    The Hall was built in 1485. I arrived early and was made very welcome.    As soon as the President’s speech was over I made my apologies and scuttled over Waterloo Bridge to the British Film Institute and the President's Reception of the Association of Taxation Technicians.   I arrived there just in time for the President’s speech and then stayed to hear the entertainment which was Joe Stilgoe playing the piano and singing music from the films.    A thoroughly enjoyable evening.

4 April 2014 -

This was the occasion of my President’s Lunch for kindred institutes and associations.   21 of us met at the Goring Hotel for an excellent meal and very good company.    Guests came from the Upper Tribunal, CIPFA, various Treasurers Associations, RICS, RSA, Institutes of Taxation, Internal Auditors and IT, IPTI and others.    A very good mix and the opportunity to return hospitality shown by other bodies during the year.  The setting was very good but it was a shame the weather was not good enough to allow extensive use of the garden.   The President of the Institute of Clerk of Works was very excited to find that we and his Institute were formed in March 1882 and was wanting to know which day so we could establish the senior Institute!

Richard's March Update ...

Two more Presidential events after a quiet few weeks.    One of the nicest lunches is the lunch given by the Association of Accounting Technicians.  This was held in the Clothworkers Hall.  Another of the City Livery Companies their history goes back almost 500 years and the livery hall is a really magnificent place.

I am on the AAT Council as a representative of CIPFA which is a sponsoring body, so I was present at the Council Meeting before lunch.  Every year they invite the President and Chief Executive. 

It is a very informal gathering with a few welcoming remarks but no real speeches.

This week I was a guest at the dinner of the Society of Municipal Treasurers.  This Society has in membership the Treasurers of the Metropolitan Authorities and the London Boroughs.  I am also a Past President of this Society and was President in 1986.  At the time the youngest President they had had.

It is always encouraging to note that there are still 2 past Presidents who were Presidents before me alive and one of them at the dinner. 

We normally go to the home authority of the President which has made for some interesting journeys in past years.  This year’s President is from Peterborough but the dinner was in the Peers Dining Room at the House of Lords. A truly fantastic setting.  Lord Redesdale who greeted us said it was the best staff canteen there was.  The food and wines were really magnificent and a good time was had by all.

Next week it is the Lancashire and Cheshire Branch Dinner to look forward to.

The Annual Dinner of the London and Home Counties

This weekend was the Annual Dinner of the London and Home Counties Association.    This is held at one of the City Livery Halls, The Innholders’ Hall which is tucked away behind Cannon Street Station. 

The Hall is a wonderful setting for a formal dinner.    The Grand Dining Room is oak panelled and once lit with candles and candelabra it really does look beautiful.  There were, I think over 70 people and the meal was excellent.  The Innholders have a Michelin starred chef.  

The Guild dates back to the 1300s and moved to a Hall on the current site in 1521.  It was rebuilt in 1670 following the Great Fire and the Dining Room has been little altered since.

Richard's Christmas Message

No more official engagements for 2013, although I am going to watch the staff misbehave at their Christmas lunch.

It just remains to wish everyone a very happy and peaceful Christmas and a successful 2014.

Season's Greetings!