Coalition must up green tax breaks
A City accountancy firm has rounded on the coalition government for not doing enough to tackle climate change via generous green tax relief measures. UHY Hacker Young says this morning that green tax breaks for businesses currently make up a tiny 3.5 per cent proportion of the amount raised by the government in green taxes every year, which hit £31.6bn last year.
Tax partner Roy Maugham said: “It’s all stick and very little carrot. Environmentally conscious taxpayers deserve a fairer reward. The gulf between green taxes and green tax breaks is so vast that you have to wonder whether the green agenda is being hijacked simply to swell Treasury coffers. It’s very easy for the government to relentlessly raise tax under the socially acceptable guise of fighting climate change.”