George Calombaris pursued for tax avoidance after putting 12 restaurants under voluntary administration
The Australian government has put out a claim for George Calombaris’ personal assets after he was found to have failed to pay land tax on one of his holiday homes.
The Daily Mail reports that the property was recently sold for a million Australian dollars (£520,000), and that another of his holiday homes has been put up for sale.
The news comes days after the celebrity chef appointed administrators for the 22 companies in his Made Establishment Group, triggering the immediate closure of his 12 Melbourne restaurants and likely leaving more than 400 people out of work.
Administrators are seeking buyers as quickly as possible in the hope that future operators may keep on former employees.
On Monday, the former MasterChef host took to his Instagram page to express his sadness, saying he was “devastated” to have had to make the decision to call administrators in.
He said: “To all my team, I truly regret it has come to this. On a personal note, the last few months have been the most challenging I have ever faced.
“At this time, while personally devastated, I remain thankful to my family, friends, the MAdE team, our loyal and regular customers.
“I am so sorry all our collective efforts have not provided to be enough. I'm gutted that it's come to this.”
{{user.name}}