The Mail has launched a campaign for the reform of UK corporation tax. That's about a decade late, but everyone is welcome to the party. They quote me in the launch article:
Richard Murphy, at Tax Research UK, believes the UK has such a 'lax' approach to tax that it is 'basically an honesty-box regime'. Murphy said: 'There is obviously a problem with these large corporations.'
He claimed many 'pure tech' firms are 'under-declaring' profit, while others appear not to be paying VAT. Some use intercompany payments to reduce tax liabilities or else pay debt interest to reduce or wipe out UK profits. The transfers are almost always done through tax havens. Murphy added: 'We operate as a corporate tax haven and we don't regulate companies in any effective way. Whether companies pay tax is basically a matter of choice.'
I should stress, when talking to the Mail my suggestion was made in the context of the complete failure of Companies House to properly regulate companies, as evidenced by the fact that some 400,000 a year are struck off from the Register without any proper enquiries being made by anybody, including HM Revenue and Customs. It is this neglect, which I think is deliberate, that makes the UK corporate tax haven. After all, we now know that secrecy is key to any tax haven regime, and by simply failing to ask questions about companies who choose not to disclose their affairs the UK is creating a system that exactly replicates that available in the most abusive tax havens.
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Reform = more resources basically .
What this tells me is that although we know there is no ‘Trickle down effect of money in society, there is a ‘rising damp affect’ of austerity.
The Mail-reading middle classes who have been insulated for ten years are beginning to notice their feet getting wet.
Heaven knows how they will get through the Festive season if Debenhams goes bust before Christmas.
….Affect…? E-ffect.!!
‘Rising Damp Effect’
Roll-on intelligent spellcheckers. Shakes head wistfully 🙂
I like that: ‘Rising Damp Effect’.
Perhaps he means ‘tearfulness.’
Alan McGowan says:
“Perhaps he means ‘tearfulness.’ ”
??
We have recently seen a company dissolved where a scheme to plant trees was involved. All of the investors appear to lost their cash and investment as the bona vacantia rules means it goes to the Crown. Even if Police or HMRC interest it just has just happened. Registrar Of Companies is just interested in making money out of late returns etc.
“He claimed many ‘pure tech’ firms are ‘under-declaring’ profit”
That would be a criminal offence.
Which pure tech firms are you accusing of doing so?
We know they are
That’s the whole premise of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Base Erosion and Profits Shifting programme
So just stop being silly
Stop being silly Richard.
The OECD BEPS initiative is about changing the rules. You cannot claim anyone is under declaring anything if they are declaring everything under the current rules.
It’s like your silly tax gap, based on what tax might be collected if the tax rules were completely different.
“We know they are”? Say who, Richard. You won’t, you can’t.
You do know who created the Google story, I presume
Peter Pfizer says:
“That would be a criminal offence”
It’s a criminal offence to import ship loads of illegal, untaxed and untaxable narcotics into the country, but HMRC do sod-all about that either.
We get the sort of governments we vote for.
Well some of us do. Everyone else has to put up with clowns and incompetents much of the time.
I don’t really understand your comment about paying inter-company loans. We have the cir rules now which cap tax deductions on interest to 30pc of ebitda for all companies in the uk
We do
It is still played
What is interest?
“……Whether companies pay tax is basically a matter of choice.’ ”
Well isn’t that what ‘TORY’ stands for ?
Taxes Optional Right ? Yes.
That’s what we’re voting for. Over and over again, because we don’t learn.