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HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) run high profile campaigns to target specific groups or areas where they suspect dodgy tax behaviour. They then publicise related prosecutions and convictions, and have gone so far as to have a name and shame programme of deliberate tax defaulters, albeit quite minor amounts. They also now intend to run similar public ’in the stocks style programmes’ for the suppliers of dodgy tax schemes too.
However blurred at the edges, there are still legal distinctions between tax evasion and tax avoidance, although the relatively new phrase of aggressive tax avoidance seeks to blur the distinction further. While HMRC has openly declared war on tax avoidance, Chancellor George Osborne has described as “morally repugnant”. (See: They can tax me, but the moral high ground is mine Dec 2012, Shout99)
Moral stance
However, one firm of specialist accountants, Brookson, has argued that tax avoidance is not the same as good tax planning and that freelancers should not be in a position of having to pay more tax than they need to.
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"Brookson does not advocate or advise on aggressive tax avoidance schemes or structures. That said, we strongly believe that each taxpayer should make sure that they take sensible, recognised tax planning actions to ensure they don’t find themselves paying more tax than they need to.”
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Susie Hughes © Shout99 2013
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