Political motivation for tax persecution

[LandRover]

What is the consensus of a Labour Governments approach to EBT and Tax avoidance?

I know of one person who settled because his biggest fear was a Labour Government would be even more brutal in it's approach to using retrospective legislation

[StrengthInNumbers]

I will be voting labour as conservative bastards did this to me but all are the same. The more they can collect more they can spend on getting votes. Nothing is going to change. But by not voting the current lot it will do what is in my power to say I am against this.
Only solution is courts.

[StrengthInNumbers]

And also I don't know of a labour policy doing this sort of crap. They want to increase GAAR penalties but this is clearly after government has been so vocal about these schemes.

[jbryce]

What is the consensus of a Labour Governments approach to EBT and Tax avoidance?

I know of one person who settled because his biggest fear was a Labour Government would be even more brutal in it's approach to using retrospective legislation

I think they'll increase the fines, however there is a very real danger of the tax system grinding to halt if a significant percentage of users move to an FTT for their cases. If 50% of existing users cannot pay, then several thousand bankruptcy cases will follow. It will start to look like a mess and whilst avoiders are an easy target, HMRC will start to look ridiculous and, by implication, HMG.

[DonkeyRhubarb]

Arguably Labour started the trend towards retrospective taxes by introducing BN66/Section 58.

I certainly wouldn't bank on them having a lighter touch.

You might need to protect your balls if Balls gets into Number 11.

[TykeMerc]

Arguably Labour started the trend towards retrospective taxes by introducing BN66/Section 58.

I certainly wouldn't bank on them having a lighter touch.

You might need to protect your balls if Balls gets into Number 11.

Indeed, if you honestly think that a Labour Government would take a different approach to pursuing users of tax avoidance schemes then you're sadly deluded.
Avoidance has become a target for many reasons, quite apart from the raising of revenue the rich and famous people being identified and vilified by the press for using avoidance has plenty of positive political mileage.

As DonkeyRhubarb said the BN66 time warp technology was invented by a Labour Government and while I despise the scheme that it knobbles I hate the total lack of natural justice that retrospective legislation represents far more.

Take your head out of the sand and realise that no matter what party wins the next election as a scheme user you are and will remain firmly in the firing line until you either settle or win in court, that can also apply to your descendants if their wizard wheeze of making the loans liable to Inheritance Tax sticks.

[jbryce]

Take your head out of the sand and realise that no matter what party wins the next election as a scheme user you are and will remain firmly in the firing line until you either settle or win in court, that can also apply to your descendants if their wizard wheeze of making the loans liable to Inheritance Tax sticks.

Yup - we're going to get kicked from one end of the park to the other.

BUT just because HMRC don't like a scheme doesn't mean that its ineffective. At some point it will reach a court of law. IHT is really complex and doesn't apply to all schemes.

It's also worth pointing out that not all schemes will fall under the current APN legislation and will have to be pursued via the GAAR - for which, post 2013, the fines will be punative.