Tax returns – should they all be public?

The only thing they seem to be talking about pushing through is more anti-tax avoidance legislation, which is probably a good thing

Indeed. I wish I could suppress my cynicism and believe that is true, since it all seems to be about Cameron’s perfectly legitimate tax paid on a modest investment rather than the billions in tax that corporations are avoiding. We need to get back on track with where the core problem is here.

Was it written in stone on Mount Sinai? No, well then it’s all up for grabs.

Although nobody is actually considering making that change though are they ? (Genuine question)

The proposition that is someone else’s business and the fact that they cannot legally find out the contents of your tax return are not mutually exclusive.

The reason they can’t find out the details legally, is because it’s none of their business.

Well this is a turn up for the books – more pitchforks required:

“Entities with offshore investments included many councils — including Labour-held Islington — as well as media organisations such as the BBC and the leftwing Mirror and Guardian newspapers. Even the Trades Union Congress has a unit trust with 3 per cent of its net assets in Jersey”

FT report on today’s “discussions” in the House of Commons.

These tax returns are remarkable – for their dullness. Poor old journo’s – shit deadline approaching, what can we say about Jezza? Crap handwriting, poor file keeping and missed the deadline – how can we spin the one!!!!

Right Gideons should be better. Let’s see…….

The reason they can’t find out the details legally, is because it’s none of their business.

Have you any proof that that is the reason?

So if the rules were changed here, and tax returns were made public, then the amount of tax everyone pays would suddenly change from being none of anyone else’s business, to being so. Strange logic.

Does that mean that in the Nordic countries, where the information is public, that it is someone’s else’s business?

I think that whether it is anyone else’s business or not is up for debate, but whether it is or isn’t doesn’t rest on whether the information is currently available to the public.

My understanding is that there is nothing wrong with offshore investments. Typically these funds – e.g. hedge funds – are setup because the offshore location has more relaxed regulations that allow the fund to be set up more easily. Chances are that some – possibly many – of us have some of our pensions invested in offshore funds. Pay your tax on any return you make on those investments and everyone’s happy.

The morally-wrong avoidance of corporation tax by managing tax affairs offshore doesn’t mean that everything with “offshore” in the title is immoral, “bad” or illegal.

It all just reeks of lazy journalism to me. Have I missed some of this story?

Well this is a turn up for the books

WHat is you engaging in whatabouterry and attacking the labour party…if only this was “turn up for the books” rather than your modus operandi on here

Anyway its bad whomever does it or its right whomever does it

Trying to score cheap political points, with your principles, is just cheap.

As for the topic I can see arguments both ways

One of the things is that very poor poel don’t actually want folk to know just how poor they are. Its not just the rich who want privacy

Personally I have no issue declaring my own but my income will tell you that as I am PAYE.

No stillT but save your breath as no one cares. Its about morals innit……or about being rich, you decide.

I don’t think its lazy journalism more over-active and desperate – in word and in voice. How many times will someone use the word “extraordinary” to describe events in later news programmes? Still Jezza’s response (so I read) is to ask the journos to do the same!!

no pissing about from Boris then 🙂

That we all might aspire to paying quarter a million pounds of tax. He’s a beacon of light to us all, so he is…

Totally political. Jezza wants journalists to publish their returns so he can say “rich press” (inference closet Tories) are biased against us salt of the earth hardworking family orientated lefties

Corbyn should be given a slap for making extra work for over pressed hmrc for not filling in his simple return online

That’s not bad dosh for a weekly column in the Torygraph. 😉

Does that mean that in the Nordic countries, where the information is public, that it is someone’s else’s business?

It’s a matter of public record, so yes. It is everyone’s business.

So if the rules were changed here, and tax returns were made public, then the amount of tax everyone pays would suddenly change from being none of anyone else’s business, to being so. Strange logic.

But it would wouldn’t it. Not strange logic at all, just a change in the law.

Like if murder was made legal, you could kill someone without issue.

Currently you can’t.

But apparently, “it’s all up for grabs” 😉

@Stoner – job done from Boris, who says the rich don’t pay their way – all the lefties do actually

Interesting Boris puts so little into his pension, what does he know that we don’t or possibly other contributions made directly

That’s not bad dosh for a weekly column in the Torygraph.

Didn’t Galloway used to get something similar for his Lebaneese TV show plus paid travel ?

I’ve never seen such levels of hysteria from STW’s right-wing nut-jobs.

Its only monday, give us a chance to warm up…

@dd hysteria where exactly ?

Hysteria – is that a type of flower?

Boris pays £275k pa to hmrc, will someone do a quick calc of total tax and ni paid by someone on the “national average” £25k pa so we can compare

EDIT: so very roughly someone on £25 pays £5k deductions – Boris pays same tax/ni as 55 average earners. Also the employers ni on his mayors salary will be another £10k

Also intereting Sky guessed Boris made £900k pa when its really £612k – just the 50% media inflation

@dd (in my understanding) in the old days / recent past Boris would have paid zero tax on his £250k income from the Telegragph had he done the same thing in Ireland (misicians/artists/writers paid no tax)

leftists should applaud the redistributive effect of Boris. He’s single handedly reduced the UK’s Gini coefficient I reckon!

Afterall the bulk of his income comes from Stinking rich Conservative voters who buy his books and the Daily Telegraph, and thence on to HMRC via the benevolent boris. A Bo-Jo tax if you will 🙂

EDIT: so very roughly someone on £25 pays £5k deductions – Boris pays same tax/ni as 55 average earners. Also the employers ni on his mayors salary will be another £10k

Yes but a tax payer on £25K actually makes no net contribution to the running of the state – the same is also true all the way up to £43K ish. Which is why around 60% of working adults are now net recipients of state benefits rather with a diminishing number of the “rich” (those earning £44K or over) paying for everyone else.

So in reality, Boris total net contributions to the running of the state are equivalent to thousands of people earning £25K.

But Boris can only earn that much because of all those people making less than £25k. It’s part of how society works (and why it is everyone’s business)

just5minutes – Member

Yes but a tax payer on £25K actually makes no net contribution to the running of the state

As long as you pretend that said taxpayer’s only contribution comes through direct taxation, and ignore the indirect benefit he creates through work.

But Boris can only earn that much because of all those people making less than £25k

pffft, those Telegraph Subscribers will be on a lot more than £25k.

Come on now. Be fair. Boris must be unbelievably talented. The same as Dave and George. In this egalitarian meritocracy of ours, its the only way they could have made it into their present positions in society

you’re still bitter you didn’t get invited to any pig-f****** parties at Uni aren’t you binners?

Perhaps people like to read his column?

Or is the Torygraph a charity for unemployable Eton toffs?

@dd (in my understanding)

Which is wrong, does not apply to journalism.

Perhaps people like to read his column?

Annoyingly he writes it in a couple of hours which is an hourly rate even many tax lawyers dream of.

Is it that transparent?

To be honest theres all manner of deviancy I think I’ve been unfairly excluded from due to my lowly social status 😥

The same as Dave…

One wonders how he got a job in PR. And kept it.

It takes him that long?

You’ve got to love Dennis Skinner 😆

It takes him that long?

1,000 words in a couple of hours is a lot more than I can manage.

@mefty maybe some would not say his column is journalism ? 🙂

I would be fairly certain that Boris’s ability to make the money he does from books/Telegrapgh has very little to doneith thise on £25k facilitating it. His mayoral salary comes from winning the election and he reprents all Londoners

maybe some would not say his column is journalism ?

Like, say, when he said the über-rich were a put-upon minority which he felt obliged to protect? I’d say that was a bit of fairly creative writing.

Like his marriage vows 😉

but a tax payer on £25K actually makes no net contribution to the running of the state

Pretty sure their labour is what allows the rich to get rich

I think you meant to say they dont get the fair share they deserve from their exploits which go disproportionately to the owners of capital

I can tell you are massive Marx fan and just very confused and just abusing stats to labour [ get it] a crap point.

Lorry drivers, refuse collectors, nurses, teachers….freeloading bastards the lot of them who contribute nothing

Junkyard – sorry yes you’re right – “no net financial contribution to the state would have been a lot more accurate.

Having said that, Labour’s current definition of the “rich” based on their budget commentary and the associated increase in allowance for the 40% tax band (“taking from the poor to give to the rich”) includes nurses, policemen/women and a good number of lorry drivers as well. All of these groups would probably be quite surprised to learn they are part of the problem of the “rich” in the UK.

I doubt all those groups are as bad at maths as you or as unconcerned about their fellow poorer citizens.

I wonder if i can do a post you wont turn into a method to attack the labour party?