Coverage in the ‘quality’ newspapers of last week’s well-attended launch of the CBI’s tax campaign appears to have been limited, so far at least, to a Daily Telegraph news story and an editorial in The Observer:
‘Big firms boast about the tax they pay – but they're not leaving the Caymans’
‘The CBI is launching a major PR offensive to highlight how much British companies pay to the Exchequer. That does not explain why the use of tax havens is still so prevalent.
‘John Cridland, the CBI's nerdy Director General, is hardly the man for a punch-up. But in a sunny Westminster conference room last Thursday, he launched what he bullishly called a "fightback". Just as cabinet ministers have been shamed into offering to tell us about their personal finances, Britain's businesses are shouting from the rooftops about how much tax they pay ...
‘Cridland made it very clear why the CBI and its member companies are putting their heads above the parapet: they know they are losing the public argument. Campaign groups such as UK Uncut and the Tax Justice Network have powerfully made the case that by exploiting loopholes, playing one government off against another and exerting considerable lobbying power, international corporations have been able to avoid paying their fair share ...
‘The UK, with its 300,000-plus accountants, is the home of a thriving industry in what the CBI euphemistically calls "tax planning". Shifting the headquarters of a business for tax purposes is regarded as an entirely legitimate manoeuvre, despite the fact that it debunks every line the firm spouts about "corporate and social responsibility".
‘Using tax havens such as the Caymans or the Seychelles as the location for complex corporate structures constructed purely for the purposes of avoiding tax is de rigueur, particularly in the financial sector.’
‘Big business must “fight back” against tax-dodging 'myth' says CBI’
‘Businesses must "fight back" against the perception that aggressive tax dodging is standard practice among the UK's largest companies, the CBI has said.
‘The business group dismissed accusations that large companies enjoy a cosy relationship with HMRC, and said public anger over tax avoidance and evasion stems from "misunderstanding" of the complexities of the tax system ...
‘However, Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, said the public's confidence in the tax system had been undermined because "big companies and wealthy individuals are also now so adept at exploiting tax loopholes that they are effectively able to choose their own rate of tax contributions".’
Coverage in the ‘quality’ newspapers of last week’s well-attended launch of the CBI’s tax campaign appears to have been limited, so far at least, to a Daily Telegraph news story and an editorial in The Observer:
‘Big firms boast about the tax they pay – but they're not leaving the Caymans’
‘The CBI is launching a major PR offensive to highlight how much British companies pay to the Exchequer. That does not explain why the use of tax havens is still so prevalent.
‘John Cridland, the CBI's nerdy Director General, is hardly the man for a punch-up. But in a sunny Westminster conference room last Thursday, he launched what he bullishly called a "fightback". Just as cabinet ministers have been shamed into offering to tell us about their personal finances, Britain's businesses are shouting from the rooftops about how much tax they pay ...
‘Cridland made it very clear why the CBI and its member companies are putting their heads above the parapet: they know they are losing the public argument. Campaign groups such as UK Uncut and the Tax Justice Network have powerfully made the case that by exploiting loopholes, playing one government off against another and exerting considerable lobbying power, international corporations have been able to avoid paying their fair share ...
‘The UK, with its 300,000-plus accountants, is the home of a thriving industry in what the CBI euphemistically calls "tax planning". Shifting the headquarters of a business for tax purposes is regarded as an entirely legitimate manoeuvre, despite the fact that it debunks every line the firm spouts about "corporate and social responsibility".
‘Using tax havens such as the Caymans or the Seychelles as the location for complex corporate structures constructed purely for the purposes of avoiding tax is de rigueur, particularly in the financial sector.’
‘Big business must “fight back” against tax-dodging 'myth' says CBI’
‘Businesses must "fight back" against the perception that aggressive tax dodging is standard practice among the UK's largest companies, the CBI has said.
‘The business group dismissed accusations that large companies enjoy a cosy relationship with HMRC, and said public anger over tax avoidance and evasion stems from "misunderstanding" of the complexities of the tax system ...
‘However, Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, said the public's confidence in the tax system had been undermined because "big companies and wealthy individuals are also now so adept at exploiting tax loopholes that they are effectively able to choose their own rate of tax contributions".’
