UPDATE YOUR DETAILS AT www . gmb . org . uk
CRIMINALISE TAX EVASION
Labour argues that these measures are too little , too late – and not all of them are new . Cameron ’ s much-trumpeted plan to criminalise tax evasion was announced in 2015 , but never enacted .
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell says : “ Labour ’ s Tax Transparency Enforcement Programme will stop the super-rich from hiding their wealth from legitimate taxes whilst the rest of us are told there is not enough money to pay for the public services we all rely on .
“ Under this government ,” says McDonnell , “ there has been one rule for the rich and another for the rest of us . Tax haven corruption is not just a tax issue – it drives at the very heart of our democracy and its credibility .”
The European Commission is proposing new laws to compel 6,000 big multinationals , like Google and Amazon , with a turnover
“ The prize is £ 34 billion in unpaid UK taxes every year – which could help save the NHS and public services .”
CURE THE DISEASE GMB members ’ jobs in hospitals could be protected with taxes recovered .
If country-by-country reporting fails to cover all parts of the world , it would be
‘ worse than useless ’, the charity warned .
At his much-vaunted international anti-corruption conference in London recently , Cameron promised a new era of transparency to beat the tax
dodgers . It takes one to know one , of course , and his pledge to end corporate secrecy across the globe should be taken with a bucket of salt . But the public appetite for change is now irreversible , and Labour has finally found a big cause to fight for the common good as well as bash the Tories .
© iStock . com x 2 / Andrew Wiard x 4
exceeding £ 600 million , to declare where they make their profits , and pay taxes in those countries .
This would end the scam of companies feeding their ill-gotten gains to low-tax countries like Ireland and Luxembourg . But it ’ s still only a proposal . New laws would require all 28 EU member states and the European Parliament to approve the reforms , which will not come into effect until 2018 , though they could eventually recoup £ 56 billion in revenue currently lost annually by tax avoidance .
Oxfam condemned the piecemeal proposals and said they are not enough to end tax dodging that robs the world ’ s poorest people of billions in lost revenue each year .
UNFAIR TREATMENT The rich are getting away with unpaid tax while the rest of us pay .
Labour ’ s tax pledge
• Force all MPs and peers to disclose details of any offshore investments they hold
• Increase resources for HMRC to investigate potential breaches of the law , politicians facing conflicts of interest and the tax arrangements of businesses and wealthy individuals
• Set up a “ beneficial ownership register ” revealing the ultimate ownership of foreign companies when they bid for contracts in the British public sector .
www . gmb . org . uk 15