The abuse of tax nomenclature

The way in which tax is reported by the media at large bears no resemblance to the way in which it is reported in journals such as this. The dumbing-down of tax issues to the lowest common denominator simply does not work. Even on BBC Radio 4’s The Today Programme and in the broadsheets tax issues are sensationally badly reported.

Take for example the haranguing of the Prime Minister by John Humphrys on 23 April about aggressive tax avoidance. The PM was asked to comment on Sir Philip Green’s tax affairs in particular the fact that Sir Philip’s wife lives in Monaco. Humphrys asserted that Sir Philip ‘…takes a huge dividend it’s paid to...