The Commons Treasury Committee asked a raft of experts to prepare a report on whether the budget taxation measures met principles of fairness, support for growth, certainty, simplicity, stability, practicality and coherence; the consensus appears to point to ‘unfair’.
Some measures were brought in to crack down on tax avoidance by the super rich but smaller employers could end up being caught, even though they have no intentions of avoiding taxes.
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) said: “The sophisticated taxpayers who are the target of the legislation will typically take advice and will therefore avoid the tax charges levied by the new rules.
“There is a significant risk that the only employers who will be caught by the new proposals are those who stray within their reach accidentally, either because they are unaware of the need for advice, or cannot economically afford to take it – e.g. SMEs.”
The ACCA went on to say that the “highly complicated” anti-avoidance measures threatened to harm Britain’s economic standing in the world. It said: “ ... the legislation is now nearly 60 pages long and highly complicated. It will also create considerable uncertainty and compliance problems that will hinder the UK’s competitiveness and stifle growth.”
The report was commissioned by the Treasury Committee, as an aid for MPs who are preparing to debate the Finance Bill, which enacts measures set out in the Budget.
Andrew Tyrie, Chairman of the Committee said that the report was the first of what he hoped would be annual reviews of the budget, adding: “Britain has to have a better tax system: providing more certainty, simplicity, stability and coherence – as well as being fair.”
For more information, please visit www.twpaccounting.co.uk
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