Tax Avoiders Under Attack

Anyone labouring under the impression that the Budget Day Press Release entitled 'Tackling tax avoidance — disclosure requirements' was all about attacking mass-marketed tax avoidance schemes should by now have realised that something much more significant was in the offing. The long-awaited regulations were published on 17 May and the Trojan Horse seems to be galloping on.

The two clearest things to emerge from the draft legislation in the Finance Bill and the draft regulations are that those responsible for promulgating it have little idea of how the City operates and no clear vision about what it is that they want to stop. The only certain result...