Ed Miliband has accused the Government of failing to tackle tax avoidance, as he pledged a Labour government would carry out an inquiry into the UK's tax authority.
The party leader argued people not paying their fair share had left "a £34bn hole in the nation's finances" and threatened "the fabric of society".
Promising an "aggressive" review into Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) if his party wins the May general election, Mr Miliband pointed to suspicions of "sweetheart deals" with wealthy firms.
"It will shine a light on parts of our tax system that have been shrouded in secrecy under this government," he said.
Mr Miliband's comments came as the fall-out from claims of tax dodging at HSBC continued, with the company's former boss, Lord Green, announcing he is stepping down from an influential City lobby group.
The ex-Tory trade minister has faced mounting pressure to explain his dealings with the bank's Swiss arm.
In a speech to a party conference in Swansea, Mr Miliband said the Government had "turned a blind eye" to tax avoidance.
He said: "Any civilised country is built on the idea of the common good must have common rules, shared and respected by all its citizens.
"But in Britain today we risk having one rule for the rich and powerful and another for everybody else.
"What we are seeing is the growth of hugely complex and aggressive tax avoidance schemes, often based offshore.
"The sort of activity that has left the United Kingdom a £34bn hole in our nation's finances.
"When a few people are able to avoid paying their fair share, it threatens the fabric of the society on which we depend.
"That's why we have to act."
He added: "All kinds of businesses find HMRC chases them for every penny they owe, but they suspect there are sweetheart deals with a few of the largest, multinational companies that aren't paying their fair share.
"Families and businesses that pay their fair share just don't get why HMRC has prosecuted just one out of 1,000 people in the HSBC scandal.
"It's time we changed all this and that is what a Labour government will do."
Mr Miliband said his proposed review could have full investigatory powers and support from the Treasury as well reporting directly to the Chancellor.
But a Conservative Party spokesman said: "The culture and practices of HMRC went wrong under Labour - when top bankers paid lower tax rates than their cleaners, foreigners didn't pay capital gains tax and the richest people routinely avoided paying stamp duty.
"It's David Cameron who has been clearing up Labour's mess - investing in HMRC to increase the number of prosecutions of tax dodgers, putting reform of the way multinational companies are taxed at the top of the G8 agenda and closing loopholes that the richest were exploiting under Labour."
And Tory chairman Grant Shapps has called on Mr Miliband to publish the "deed of variation" on his father's house to prove he had not taken part in "aggressive" tax avoidance.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Miliband Pledges Tax Avoidance Investigation
Dengan url
http://cucikakiku.blogspot.com/2015/02/miliband-pledges-tax-avoidance.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Miliband Pledges Tax Avoidance Investigation
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Miliband Pledges Tax Avoidance Investigation
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar