Fears of chaos in tax system
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.THE British tax system is 'in grave danger of collapsing' under the weight of new legislation, the president of the Institute of Taxation warned yesterday.
Ian Luder, who is also a tax partner with the accountants Arthur Andersen, called for a two-year freeze on all but essential new legislation while a Royal Commission was established to examine the entire direct tax system.
'We cannot afford another five years of complex legislation of the volume we have suffered over the past five years,' Mr Luder told the Institute's annual conference in Nottingham.
Earlier, he said: 'It's getting to the stage where fewer and fewer people understand less and less of tax legislation, and that's not a healthy situation.' In the past 12 months, more new law had been enacted than in the first four years of the Thatcher era. 'You get to a situation when the experts can't understand it. Even the Inland Revenue can't understand it.'
Mr Luder said the coming Schedule E self-assessment provisions, expected in the next Budget, would impose additional burdens and responsibilities on employers to provide information to their employees.
'We recognise the necessity for this if individual taxpayers are to be in a position to have the necessary information to complete their own tax returns.
'However, if ministers are serious about deregulation and lifting the burden from business, changes need to be made to the Victorian expenses rules.
'We need to treat employers as responsible. Most businesses today do not seek to use travel and subsistence expenses as a backdoor means of paying additional remuneration - they are driven by cost control.'
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments