Treasury MP aims to see tech firms before committee next year
TECHNOLOGY bosses are set to face Treasury MPs early next year, with parliamentary support over calls for US firms to pay more taxes in the UK broadening, Treasury Select Committee John Mann said yesterday.
Labour MP Mann told City A.M. yesterday that politicians from all parties are keen to introduce measures designed to cut down on tax avoidance among large companies that pay small amounts of tax in the UK, and that fellow committee members share his concerns.
“We will have time to address this in the new year,” Mann said. “We are funding billions of pounds of infrastructure here and there’s a cross-party view that they are not paying their share.”
Mann’s comments come after Facebook’s UK accounts, released on Wednesday, revealed that the company paid £238,000 in corporation tax in 2011. Research firm Enders Analysis estimates the company earned around £175m in UK revenue last year.
Mann also highlighted Google yesterday. The search engine paid £6m in corporation tax last year, as it declared just £396m of $4bn (£2.5bn) in UK sales to the treasury. Google and Facebook, like other technology companies, channel funds through to Ireland, where corporation tax rates are much lower.
Mann has previously indicated his preference for a “transmission tax”, which would require companies to pay a “modest” fee on money transferred to foreign headquarters.