Unite: Joint leader of Unite calls on Government to close tax loopholes as recession begins to bite
With unemployment on the rise, Derek Simpson, joint leader of Unite, is calling on the government to close the tax loopholes which have allowed the culprits of the credit crunch to avoid paying their fair share of tax. The government could raise billions to help support hardworking families facing tougher times.
The union is calling for a repatriation of the profits placed offshore and have it subjected to UK tax; to close down structured finance operations and to end private banking advice sections designed to exploit tax loopholes.
It is estimated (Tax Research UK) that the value of tax avoidance by Britain’s top companies is worth some £25 billion a year. This figure does not include tax avoided by rich individuals earning over £200 000 a year. A conservative estimate suggests that this is as much as £8 billion but does not include all the money these individuals hold offshore, which is impossible to quantify.
Unite is demanding that the UK government closes the loopholes that allow super-rich individuals and corporations avoid paying their fair share of tax. Working people are facing tough times and have had to bail out the banks. They have funded massive tax concessions for the super rich and Britain’s top companies.
Unite joint general secretary, Derek Simpson, says:
“For years super-rich individuals and corporations have undermined the UK’s tax revenues. The Government could raise billions from closing these loopholes.
“With unemployment on the rise and a recession biting this money could be used to help hard-working families who are facing tougher times.
“The eras of Thatcher and Regan, Bush and Blair are over. We are entering a new era and the UK needs a progressive tax system which ensures that the greatest burden falls on the widest shoulders.
“Hard-working families across the country are having to pick up the tab for the greed and excess which caused the credit crunch. It is now time to make the culprits of the crunch pay their fair share of tax.”
According to Tax Research UK, the top 100 companies in Britain have on average reduced their tax payments on profits by 5% over the last five years. It is now believed that the effective tax rate of the top 50 companies is as low as 22% and this has all been done legally. Tax is avoided by way of tax relief, allowances and the absence of restrictions on the movement of capital to tax havens.
ENDS
Contact: Ciaran Naidoo 07768 931 315.
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