Left Foot Forward has blogged that it would have been great to report today that:
The Sun has today launched its campaign against tax evasion, vilifying those, usually the very richest in society, whose scams cost the taxpayer a total of over £15 billion a year (pdf)
But as they instead report:
Hang on, sorry.
The Sun has today launched its campaign against benefit fraud, vilifying those, usually the very poorest in society, whose scams cost the taxpayer a total of over £1 billion a year (pdf).
Tom Newton Dunn, the paper's political editor, writes:
THE SUN today calls on readers to help end the benefits frauds that cost the country a record £1.2 BILLION last year.
We urge Brits to shop the cheats stealing from honest taxpayers when the nation can least afford it.
Campaigning Iain Duncan Smith last night backed The Sun's crusade to end the scandalous benefits fraud crippling the country…
The Sun's first move is to hand over the evidence on Denise Knight, 44, who enjoyed a day on theme park white-knuckle rides despite claiming Disability Living Allowance for a bad back.
The Department for Work and Pensions will investigate whether the mum from Llangadog, Carmarthenshire – featured on our front page yesterday – is still entitled to her £50-a-week benefit.
The decision of the Sun to hone in on benefit fraud is an odd one. If, as they suggest, the £1.2 billion a year lost to deliberate fraud is ‘crippling the country', then tax evasion, which costs the treasury over ten times that, must be outright killing it.
The annual fraud indicator (pdf) estimates a £15 billion loss through tax fraud — deliberate underpayment of taxes. And rather than their targets being people who are ill-placed to defend themselves against accusations, the archetypal tax avoider is rich, above the law, and with full knowledge of what they are doing.
But that's the low end of the estimate. The Tax Justice Network reported that almost £70 billion were lost to what they call the ‘shadow economy'.
And when you count tax evasion — which includes everything from companies having PO box offices in the Cayman Islands to individuals, from leading businessmen to top-tier politicians, paying themselves as companies — the difference becomes staggering. The TJN estimate over £120 billion of taxes are undercollected through evasion and avoidance annually.
Of course, there may be a reason for their blind eye. As Left Foot Forward reported last year:
As far back as 1995, the Independent reported that in the previous ten years, Murdoch's News International had paid “virtually no tax”.
While corporation tax was set at 33 per cent, NI paid £11.74m of its £979.4m profit - just 1.2 per cent.
As recently as 2009, News Corporation's proprietor was being pursued by his homeland's government after failing to pay the correct rate of corporation tax, both in Australia and the United States.
Earlier this year, Australian Capital Territory (ACT) treasury officials won a legal battle,which awarded them A$77m for avoided taxes and duties. The Guardian reported in 2005 that Murdoch's family company was moved to Bermuda; the tax bill of A$1.2 billion had the potential to be avoided.
Of course, it may be Murdoch is unaware of his corporation's tax-shy practice given how little he knows about other key operational issues at News International.
Quite so.
Reproduced with permission.
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It’s a war between the rich and the poor – what else would you expect on the front page of the Sun given who owns it?
The “working man’s ” paper pins it’s colours to the mast with a truly despicable cynical marketing exercise. Well Mr Cameron , you’ll need far more skillful spin doctors than News International in your corner because the corporate tax evasion and avoidance issue isn’t going away!
Which column does Tax Credit fraud fall into,Richard, before I add another comment?
The evasion columns Stuart – £15bn, £70 bn and £120bn – it’s in them all
And I suspect it’s big…
I was interested to see if it was classed as benefit fraud or tax fraud?
Whenever the right wing media start ranting about benefit fraud,three words come to mind; pot,kettle,black.
We should start a campaign about tax avoidance by the corporate media, not just N.I. but also the mail,the express and other such disreputable organisations.
She enjoyed A DAY – ONE DAY – out in a miserable life blighted by severe back pain. And WTF were The Sun doing following her anyway? God, these “journalists” make me puke. Do NOT buy the Sun. You just encourage them.
“The decision of the Sun to hone in on benefit fraud is an odd one.”
They are asking their readers to help. Aren’t Sun readers more likely to know about benefit fraud than tax fraud? As Left Foot Forward points out, tax-fiddlers tend to be very rich. Red-top tabloid readers don’t tend to live on the same streets as the type of people engaged in tax fraud.
Are you in PR?
Or the Tory party?
Neither. I just have a vague idea what the target audience for the Sun is.
How would a Sun reader set about identifying tax evaders? Wouldn’t it make more sense for a paper like the Telegraph or Financial Times to run a campaign like that?
One of the commonest types of benefit/tax fraud is understating income for Tax Credit purposes. Not only does the “claimant” avoid tax and NI on the omitted income but it has no affect on the Tax Credits. The figures are quite staggering.
If a person on Tax Credits omits £100 of income they receive £41 of Tax Credits they are not entitled to while at the same time avoiding 20% tax and 9% NI. An amazing 70% of evaded taxes.
Perhaps this is the group the Sun is (should be) targeting?
Have you told them?
Do you think it’s worth it? If so, I will.
Must be worth a go….