Gerald Ashcroft’s tax bill grew larger on Monday.

The Municipal Revenue Office issued its formal determination on the three property classification disputes filed by solicitor Edmond Crayle on behalf of Ashcroft Property Group, rejecting two and partially upholding a third. The decision, delivered by registered letter to Crayle’s offices on Harker Street shortly before noon, also confirmed the application of the standard 1.5 per cent monthly late penalty on the unpaid balance — the levy’s 14-day payment deadline having expired at midnight on Friday 6 March without any payment received.

The original demand was for 2,434,600 florins in outstanding vacant building levy covering January 2024 to February 2026. Crayle’s disputes concerned three properties: two on Chandler’s Row and one on lower Harbourfront Parade, all classified by the Revenue Office as vacant commercial buildings subject to the levy. Crayle argued they were “under renovation” and therefore exempt.

The Revenue Office rejected the Chandler’s Row claims outright. Its determination noted that neither property showed evidence of active renovation — no building permits on file, no contractor engagements registered with the Municipal Works Office, and no utility consumption consistent with construction activity. “The properties are, by every available measure, unoccupied and unimproved,” the determination read.

The lower Harbourfront Parade property received a partial reprieve. The Revenue Office acknowledged that a building permit for interior works was filed in November 2025 — though no work has commenced — and reclassified it as “pending renovation,” reducing the levy on that property by approximately 120,000 florins.

The Arithmetic

The adjusted levy stands at roughly 2,315,000 florins. The first month’s late penalty — 1.5 per cent of the unpaid balance — adds approximately 34,700 florins, bringing the current obligation to roughly 2.35 million.

The penalty accrues monthly. If unpaid through April, the total would approach 2.42 million. Enforcement proceedings — which can include liens on property — become available to the Revenue Office after 90 days of non-payment, a deadline that would fall in early June.

Crayle, reached by telephone, called the determination “premature and procedurally irregular.” He said his client intended to appeal the two rejected classifications through the Municipal Tribunal and would seek an interim order suspending penalty accrual during the appeals process. “The Revenue Office has acted with unseemly haste on a matter of genuine legal complexity,” Crayle said.

The Revenue Office declined to comment beyond the determination itself.

The Wider Picture

The Ashcroft tax dispute exists within the broader context of the Docklands safety audit, which has now assessed 60 of 72 identified vacant properties across the waterfront district. Twelve irregularities have been documented, including the falsified fire safety certificates that remain under Constabulary investigation. The remaining twelve properties are expected to be assessed by the end of next week, with a preliminary report to the council by mid-March.

The connection between the tax dispute and the fire investigation remains circumstantial but persistent. Arthur Selby — the sole named director of Southgate Safety Consultants, the ghost compliance firm linked to the falsified certificates — previously handled the Ashcroft account during his years at the shipping supply firm Whitaker & Sons. Solicitor Elise Braddock, representing Vincent Drury of Greystone Shipping, has begun referring journalists to unnamed “third parties” when questioned about the certificate scheme.

On Monday, against the backdrop of the council’s unanimous tramway vote two streets away, the Revenue Office’s determination attracted relatively little attention. Ashcroft Property Group’s offices on Harker Street were dark by mid-afternoon.

But the arithmetic continues. The penalties accrue. And the audit is not yet finished.