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Thursday 23 June 2016 7:44 pm

Civil servants are massive Glastonbury fans, as HM Revenue and Customs can expect £1.25m in VAT from the festival

By: Edith Hancock

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Accountants know how to live.

While the North London's hipsters are fleeing town for their yearly pilgrimage to Glastonbury, the far from hip North London office of accountants MHA MacIntyre Hudson has been enjoying the festival season the only way bean-counters know how – calculating how much the government can expect in VAT from revellers' purchases this weekend.

Nigel May, senior tax partner in the firm’s Totteridge and Whetstone office, examined Glastonbury’s published accounts for last year from the festival’s two operating companies.

Read more: Glastonbury festival gives Remain the fear

May estimates that the 152,000 festival goers collectively shell out around £15m on legal comestibles such as beer, burgers, tofu and quinoa wraps.

Once account is taken of the costs incurred by the food and drink sellers, May reckons HM Revenue and Customs can expect to collect a cool £1.25 million from festival-goers.

Read more: Glastonbury Festival by numbers

Judging by the weather at Worthy Farm this weekend, The Capitalist suspects the accountants might have actually had more fun calculating the costs than partiers at the festival.

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