Blackhawks plc is a UK registered company that provides services to the financial services industry. The company has been trading for many years and prepares financial statements to 31 March. Blackhawks plc has always been profitable.

The company relocated to new premises during the year to 31 March 2021. It sold the building in which it was formerly located in January 2021. This building was acquired for £20,031,000 in October 1991. An extension to the building was completed in July 1997 at a cost of £1,820,000.

The building was sold for £69,025,000. Legal fees incurred on disposal were £78,000. The building was valued at £67,995,000 in December 2019. The market value of similar properties in January 2021 was £73,225,000.

Extracts from the UK Retail Prices Index are provided here:

Year	Month	RPI
1991	October	135.10
1997	July	157.50
2009	June	213.40
2017	December	278.10
2019	December	292.50
2021	January	294.70

There were no other chargeable disposals during the year ended 31 March 2021 and no losses brought forward as at 1 April 2020.

Fan Shanahan is the chief executive of Blackhawks plc. She believes that the company should not claim indexation allowance. Fan stated:

‘We have claimed depreciation on the building since it was acquired in October 1991, so we can subtract that from any net disposal consideration in the calculation of corporate chargeable gains or losses: what is the point in doing the same thing twice?’

Required:

1. Calculate Blackhawks plc’s corporate chargeable gains or losses for the year ended 31 March 2021. 
2. Critically discuss Fan Shanahan’s view that Blackhawks plc should not claim indexation allowance. 

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

b According to Fan Shanahan the Chief Executive of Blackhawk p... View the full answer