Tax body must be independent – IoD Wales
By Andy Pearson
The Institute of Directors (IoD) Wales warmly welcomed the creation of the Office of Tax Simplification announced today.
Chancellor George Osborne said he wanted to simplify UK tax law, cutting the burden on business and attracting foreign investment.
IoD Wales director Robert Lloyd Griffiths said: “The new Office of Tax Simplification is a brilliant idea. We congratulate the Government for getting a move-on and setting it up so soon after coming to office. But we have to see results. Good reports will not constitute results. Legislation in finance bills will.
“The Office has a big job to do and it must prove its worth in the face of concerns about its independence as two of its four board members are supplied by the Treasury and Revenue.
“The inclusion in the Office of private sector secondees is a very good idea – they must be fairly senior tax practitioners able to be entirely free to keep up an open dialogue with private sector contacts.
“Also, the Office’s work must lead to action and Ministers should be required to respond in detail to all its proposals, setting out the precise economic or technical reasons for their decisions.”
Tags: George Osborne, IOD, Office of Tax Simplification, OTS, Robert Lloyd Griffiths
