UK and Swiss agreement on tax evasion


The Government is today initiating a historic agreement with Switzerland to tackle offshore tax evasion in an effort to resolve the long-standing abuse of Swiss banking secrecy by those who seek to conceal the proceeds of tax evasion,  this measure is expected to secure billions of pounds of unpaid tax for the UK exchequer starting from 2013. Under the terms of the agreement, existing funds held by UK taxpayers in Switzerland will be subject to a significant one-off deduction of between 19% and 34% to settle past tax liabilities, leaving those who have already paid their taxes unaffected. As a … Continue reading UK and Swiss agreement on tax evasion

Whole of Government Accounts 2009-10


The Treasury has today published an unaudited summary of the Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) for the year 2009-10. The Government made available the key balance sheet analysis contained in this summary to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to enhance their analysis of the sustainability of the public finances in their first ever Fiscal Sustainability Report, also published today. This is the first ever set of publication of information for the whole of the public sector, covering over 1,500 public bodies, and has been 10 years in the making. The full, audited accounts will be published in the autumn … Continue reading Whole of Government Accounts 2009-10

Intergration of Tax & NI Systems


The Government has issued a call for evidence as part of its consideration of the integration of the operation of the income tax and National Insurance contributions systems, announced at Budget 2011. This is a preliminary stage of consultation, and aims to build a strong evidence base on the burdens to employers of having to operate two different systems. Responses to this call for evidence will inform the Government’s proposals for reform, on which it will consult in the autumn. The two systems are currently operated entirely separately and the Government believes that greater integration of the two has the … Continue reading Intergration of Tax & NI Systems