Oxfam anti-tax dodging protesters shower Westminster with fake money in run-up to 2015 budget
Protesters from Oxfam donned their George Osborne and Danny Alexander costumes and took to Westminster this morning, in a protest against tax dodging.
Dressed as the chancellor and chief secretary to the Treasury, the protesters posed with mock ministerial red boxes inside a glass dome, with fake bank notes flying all over the place.
According to the demonstrators, the money represents allegedly massive sums of cash the Treasury "fails to collect" each year thanks to tax dodging.
Outside Parliament where Oxfam are staging an anti-tax dodging protest pic.twitter.com/uhALe3IGWc
— James Rothwell (@JamesERothwell) March 17, 2015
Oxfam wants the chancellor to make cracking down on tax evasion a major part of his Budget, due to be delivered tomorrow.
If reports are correct, Oxfam may well get its wish: Osborne has already said he will be "taking action" to tackle tax evasion in the wake of the HSBC scandal. Answering questions in the House of Commons last month, the chancellor said:
Unlike the last government, who simply turned a blind eye, this government is taking action now and will do so again in the Budget. So I am happy any time to answer for our record in tacking tax evasion.
The government has already taken significant steps to maximise the tax take by seeking to limit individuals' ability to avoid tax. This includes the controversial General Anti Avoidance Rule (GAAR) that MP and former Tory leadership contender David Davis described as "pernicious".