[News] What SECRETS do the PARADISE Papers hold ?

[beorhthelm]

and pointed out by couple of people on Newsnight, theres no tax avoidance (taxes in investments are paid where due) and no secrecy from authorities. it seems to me some have created a bogeyman simply because the offshore funds dont publish chapter and verse owners and holdings. just like a Ltd company or even plc below percentage dont.

 

[BN9 BHA]

Yes

We are good people really.

 

[LamieRobertson]

And being self employed you pay 3% less in NI than the employed and don’t pay the employer’s NI - this system costs the revenue close to £2 billion a year - being self employed is often no more than a tax avoidance scheme.

There are various different ways to look at who pays what ..and I was just pointing out that it’s not a way way street...you say a forrm of tax avoidance i’d Say that’s harsh ...as it’s not a deliberate attempt to avoid anything ..it’s as it is ..the system...anyway what’s this national insurance you speak of

 

[LamieRobertson]

We are good people really.

Mainly

 

[AmexRuislip]

[tweet]927514564199006208[/tweet]

There goes the knighthood

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

All of the rich and powerful are doing it including much of our political establishment and more importantly their donors. It's capitalism at its finest and won't change until the majority refuse to put up with it anymore. Unfortunately we are all far too distracted by the new iPhone and Strictly Come Dancing episode to realise we are being ****ed.

That’s the point, of course. The establishment make sure their cronies and supporters are looked after and fob us off with the modern equivalent of bread and circuses.

 

[nicko31]

US Corporations have about £2TN sitting offshore, this avoidance is actually becoming a threat to democracy in the west. Everyone needs to take a long hard think what and where they buy their christmas gifts this year

 

[Bold Seagull]

Trickle down economics is a myth.

 

[beorhthelm]

US Corporations have about £2TN sitting offshore, this avoidance is actually becoming a threat to democracy in the west. Everyone needs to take a long hard think what and where they buy their christmas gifts this year

im sure its annoying for US citizens, but why does this impact those outside the US to the point you think you might boycott American firms?

 

[Adders1]

So do you think Nissan and Honda just decided to build massive car production factories in the UK employing thousands of people for zero incentive ?

....until the automation and cyclical downturn in the auto industry necessitates a huge redundancy threat against the govt whom will be forced to pull their pants down

 

[Beach Hut]

....until the automation and cyclical downturn in the auto industry necessitates a huge redundancy threat against the govt whom will be forced to pull their pants down

Which is all part and parcel of any business model - coal etc

Don't understand the point you are trying to make

 

[Adders1]

Which is all part and parcel of any business model - coal etc

Don't understand the point you are trying to make

My point is that 'they employ loads of people' is not really a long term rationale for allowing huge multinationals to stick their big fat bongos up a country's love tunnel.

To quote Michael Caine - 'I do this for a living'

 

[Beach Hut]

My point is that 'they employ loads of people' is not really a long term rationale for allowing huge multinationals to stick their big fat bongos up a country's love tunnel.

To quote Michael Caine - 'I do this for a living'

Well it has been some 20 plus years with Honda - how many industries go on forever ?

 

[Klaas]

My point is that 'they employ loads of people' is not really a long term rationale for allowing huge multinationals to stick their big fat bongos up a country's love tunnel.

Touché!

 

[mikeyjh]

I have to say that I think there is a lot of hypocrisy going on around this. We see journalists, not the most moral profession, jumpimg up in righteous indignation. I ask you who among us would not be pleased if the employer came up with a way to pay salaries that was tax-beneficial whilst being perfectly legal.

Would you say' No thanks, I like to pay more money to the tax man' ... I certainly wouldn't.

But that's the very crux of the debate isn't it. We all have a moral view that is somewhere on the spectrum between very aggressive avoidance and using the system as it was intended to minimise what you will pay out in tax. My personal opinion is that using the system as intended is fine, finding loopholes is not. If my employer came up with a plan to pay me in 'loans' to find a way of paying less tax, I would refuse, absolutely.

 

[Adders1]

Well it has been some 20 plus years with Honda - how many industries go on forever ?

How many people did Honda employ 20 years ago vs now? I genuinely have no idea

 

[mikeyjh]

I reckon we'd all do if we could

Sorry, but I can't stand this assumption - If one has any kind of non PAYE income then there are things that can be done to minimise the tax paid, some are legitimate and I would advocate but I for one, and there will be many more, wouldn't indulge in anything that was aggressive and 'playing the system'

 

[narly101]

We all new it was happening, but now that it's been exposed can we really ever do anything about it. For instance, Ireland changed their tax laws after the Apple Tax debacle, so they can legitimately offer preferential tax schemes. From the BBC report "When the "double-Irish" loophole was shut down, Ireland also created new tax regulations that companies like Apple could take advantage of." If countries can manipulate their own tax laws to benefit firms where they can avoid tax legitimately, how can we ever hope to resolve this?

 

[Lower West Stander]

Sorry, but I can't stand this assumption - If one has any kind of non PAYE income then there are things that can be done to minimise the tax paid, some are legitimate and I would advocate but I for one, and there will be many more, wouldn't indulge in anything that was aggressive and 'playing the system'

Depends on what you term as aggressive. Most of this stuff looks like pretty efficient tax management to me....

 

[mikeyjh]

Depends on what you term as aggressive. Most of this stuff looks like pretty efficient tax management to me....

That's the point isn't it - I wouldn't say that that instead of me being paid, I allowed the fees to be paid by a third party to an offshore cell that then paid back to me in terms of a loan (that I never repay) was legitimate (and HMRC agree with me). You think that's just efficient tax management, so going back to your original point, it's not correct to say 'most of us would do it'.