After witnessing the Government's actions over the last nineteen years, one might conclude that the Conservative party has been locked in a monomaniacal pursuit of the elimination of government debt regardless of who ultimately pays the price for that and how high the human cost of that pursuit is. The Government has realised now that it can avoid going into debt by instead forcing vulnerable citizens, those implicated in the use of disguised remuneration schemes, into debt, and taking that as tax. Disguised remuneration schemes are forms of payment where the standard wage agreement is replaced with a loan, the terms of which are such that it is unlikely to ever be repaid. The upshot of this is that the payment is not then subject to income taxation or national insurance contributions. The historic use of these schemes, in some cases dating back twenty years, has recently come to light, drawing the attention of the current Government . Naturally enough, HM Revenue and Customs...
A collection of often belated reactions to developments in UK politics. Written by Steven Rose and kindly edited by Ele Saltmarsh and Ewan Hill Norris.