Back in September, as the Government claimed it was necessary to cut £6 billion of the welfare budget I highlighted a story in Private Eye about the Government letting Vodophone off a £6 billion tax bill.  A classic case of stealing from the poor to give to the rich.  This deal has subsquently been highlighted by the excellent direct action group UK Uncut who have targeted Vodaphone in their actions.

Last month the National Audit Office announced it was going to investigate how the Government reached "agreements" with large firms over disputed tax bills.  I will being keeping an eye on this investigation.

Sharing the pain? Pull the other one!

David Cameron, George Osbourne and Nick Clegg have claimed time and time that we must all share the pain of sorting out public finances. But how does the coalitions walk compare to its talk.  Unfortunately the evidence is increasingly that it doesn't.  Whilst the weakest and most vulnerable are being targeted to take the brunt of the cuts the richest and most powerful are continuing to be allowed to plunder the public finances.

Whilst public attention over recent weeks has focused on Government attempts to cut a further £4 billion of disability benefit with Nick Clegg telling the disabled that benefits were not there "to compensate the poor for their predicament" Private Eye this week revealed that the Government had agreed to let corporate giant Vodaphone off a £6 billion tax bill.

The Eye also reveals the deal was negociated by Vodaphone by a former senior HMRC official who moved to the darkside to head the team seeking the tax windfall.  Vodaphone's Finance Director is also an unpaid (sic) advisor to the Chancellor on corporate tax.

If it stinks it is likely to be because it is rotten!


PS Well done to the Indian Tax Authorities.  On a very similiar deal they refused to cave into Vodaphone and took the tax cheats to the courts and won this month.

Whose Fraud? What Cheats?

Early this month it was reported that the Labour Party was considering including rewards for people who grassed up  so called "benefit cheats".  They hope this idea will appeal to middle class voters and essentially involves offering (often poor) people cash rewards for spying on and grassing up other poor working class people.  What they are not offering is any reward for exposing tax cheats, planning fraud, safety crimes, corruption or consumer fraud.  These crimes which do far more damage to ordinary people and cost the tax payers billions more than benefit fraud are carried out by powerful people who wouldn't want ordinary people snooping on their cheating and stealing.

I was interested to see in today's times that attempts are being made to target the richest 100,000 people in the country for tax fraud.  However despite these good intentions the article reported that:

• In 2007 four hundred people earned more than £10,000,000. Out of the 400 on 65 paid any tax.

Which makes you understand why these people don't want ordinary people snooping around their very private business. However utilising all the skills developed from my training as a Criminologist I estimate that leave 335 evading tax.  I will report this to the Inland Revenue immediately and hope to soon have my reward.

P.S. For those not familiar with the picture at the top of this blog its graffiti from Stokes Croft in Bristol showing five "benefit cheats" - Harry, Wills, Charlie, Liz and Phil.  (thanks to Bristol Graffiti for the picture)