For many contractors unwittingly or otherwise caught up in the Schemes under dispute with HMRC such as EBT loans. The current landscape is looking a little bleak.
I wondered how this might feed into other contractor's opinions regarding the upcoming EU referendum and wanted to express my own views.
In my mind certainly, voting to stay in, is voting for the status quo – Nothing will change for us and the HMRC juggernaut will continue to steamroller contractor lives and those of their families.
On the other hand Brexit would mean a shakeup for the Economy, All Government Departments (HMRC), Probably Scottish Referendum, and a massive Legal System review – Lawyers are already planning how they would need to rewrite everything to disentangle us from EU influence should voting dictate this (There are only so many legal professionals and there are Many tax cases in a queue). Yes there could be a few years of chaos and re-ordering but sometimes it is important to sweep away the old and replace with something better. At the very least it could buy contractors facing financial uncertainty/ruin more time to plan ahead and secure their futures.
Contractors are the most flexible workers in the UK and will move wherever the work is. Who knows a shakeup could well change the political landscape to one that is more favorable to our plight. The tax system needs reform to a more forward looking outlook (more prevention and less retrospective litigation/action) There also needs to be a greater apportionment of any blame/liability from the past. This should be shared between HMRC/Government/scheme users and scheme promoters. An amnesty and a new start would be are brightest hope/best option all round. Anything we can do that might make that more likely I would be in favour of. For instance New Leadership in the form of Borris Johnson/Someone else or a resurgent Lib Dem party holding the balance of power again may have a more sympathetic ear for our views/situation but who knows really, but it's important to create a space so that positive change can happen. I know I'd be firmly behind anyone who would take up this cause. No one knows what the future holds but everyone has influence.
Yes this would be single issue voting but for many here this is the only all-consuming issue of their lives right now.
I'd be interested to know other people's views on the matter. And who knows this idea might catch on – If you like it please feel free to re-post on other boards or pages here.
It would sadden me though to see George Osbourne's (The architect of so much of our misery) plans to become PM, punctured so cruelly.
Whatever people decide our community is a powerful set of analysts, thinkers, communicators and wealth generators and we have influence on other voters that we can discreetly choose to exercise through friends, family, colleagues, and to reach out with our views on social media. This vote will be very close and we may find that we hold some sway on this vote and future votes. Working as a group we could have the same influence as Google/Facebook who seem to be far better treated by HMRC than us resident/voters? And a final thought the true value of facebook/google/Internet - is content. People with IT skills and passionate ideas can shape the future. So build a websites/create a blog and make yourselves heard! EU – I'm OUT! Let's sweep out the old and make a space where anything is again possible.
In my mind the alternative now is to just be a sitting duck.
I wondered how this might feed into other contractor's opinions regarding the upcoming EU referendum and wanted to express my own views.
In my mind certainly, voting to stay in, is voting for the status quo – Nothing will change for us and the HMRC juggernaut will continue to steamroller contractor lives and those of their families.
On the other hand Brexit would mean a shakeup for the Economy, All Government Departments (HMRC), Probably Scottish Referendum, and a massive Legal System review – Lawyers are already planning how they would need to rewrite everything to disentangle us from EU influence should voting dictate this (There are only so many legal professionals and there are Many tax cases in a queue). Yes there could be a few years of chaos and re-ordering but sometimes it is important to sweep away the old and replace with something better. At the very least it could buy contractors facing financial uncertainty/ruin more time to plan ahead and secure their futures.
Contractors are the most flexible workers in the UK and will move wherever the work is. Who knows a shakeup could well change the political landscape to one that is more favorable to our plight. The tax system needs reform to a more forward looking outlook (more prevention and less retrospective litigation/action) There also needs to be a greater apportionment of any blame/liability from the past. This should be shared between HMRC/Government/scheme users and scheme promoters. An amnesty and a new start would be are brightest hope/best option all round. Anything we can do that might make that more likely I would be in favour of. For instance New Leadership in the form of Borris Johnson/Someone else or a resurgent Lib Dem party holding the balance of power again may have a more sympathetic ear for our views/situation but who knows really, but it's important to create a space so that positive change can happen. I know I'd be firmly behind anyone who would take up this cause. No one knows what the future holds but everyone has influence.
Yes this would be single issue voting but for many here this is the only all-consuming issue of their lives right now.
I'd be interested to know other people's views on the matter. And who knows this idea might catch on – If you like it please feel free to re-post on other boards or pages here.
It would sadden me though to see George Osbourne's (The architect of so much of our misery) plans to become PM, punctured so cruelly.
Whatever people decide our community is a powerful set of analysts, thinkers, communicators and wealth generators and we have influence on other voters that we can discreetly choose to exercise through friends, family, colleagues, and to reach out with our views on social media. This vote will be very close and we may find that we hold some sway on this vote and future votes. Working as a group we could have the same influence as Google/Facebook who seem to be far better treated by HMRC than us resident/voters? And a final thought the true value of facebook/google/Internet - is content. People with IT skills and passionate ideas can shape the future. So build a websites/create a blog and make yourselves heard! EU – I'm OUT! Let's sweep out the old and make a space where anything is again possible.
In my mind the alternative now is to just be a sitting duck.
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