This blog posting represents the views of the author, David Fosberry. Those opinions may change over time. They do not constitute an expert legal or financial opinion.
If you have comments on this blog posting, please email me .
The Opinion Blog is organised by threads, so each post is identified by a thread number ("Major" index) and a post number ("Minor" index). If you want to view the index of blogs, click here to download it as an Excel spreadsheet.
Click here to see the whole Opinion Blog.
To view, save, share or refer to a particular blog post, use the link in that post (below/right, where it says "Show only this post").
Posted on 21st July 2013 |
Show only this post Show all posts in this thread. |
|
This report from the BBC should have all Britons worried. The UK government are not alone in trying to cut down on the amount of tax evasion and tax avoidance that goes on, in an attempt to increase tax revenues. The proposed new rules will mean that the tax office (HMRC) will demand payment in advance for any disputed tax bills, and will be empowered to take the money directly from the bank accounts of "the debtors". It is estimated that about 33,000 people who invested in tax avoidance schemes will be affected. Just to remind you, tax avoidance is the taking of legal measures to reduce your tax bill. So now the government is going to require people to pay in advance for disputed tax bills, and pay the money back if you are able to prove that you are within the law. What about that most basic of legal rights, to be considered innocent until proven guilty? What other rights are the UK government planning to cancel in their search for money? It is times like these that make me think that Britain needs a written constitution, like they have in the USA. | |