to think that doctors shouldn't go on strike over pension changes

[starwarrior]

Why shouldn't they just suck it up like the rest of us?

And it isn't the number of tax avoidance schemes but the amounts of lost tax, as with tax evasion. I think very few people understand the scale of the problem that we have as a result of thatcher's deregulation and privatisation and the underfunding of HMRC. You can find out by looking at stats on the tax gap.

I have never heard so much complete nonsense in my life.

Neither Vodaphone nor Goldman Sachs have undertaken any tax evasion. Vodaphone did enter into an artificial avoidance scheme, but that was not evasion.

By far and away the largest source of lost tax revenue is down to petty fiddlers. The self-employed working cash in hand (illegal) or claiming false expenses (also illegal) or claiming that their spouses work in the business to make (illegal) use of that spouse's tax allowance. HMRC do not have the resources to catch all the petty tax fiddlers and we lose billions because of it.

"I have never heard so much complete nonsense in my life."

Come on now Hopefullyrecovering. Lets not deny the public sector their little delusions.

This is nothing to do with them being greedy troughers, and everything to do with the private sector not paying its way.

Tax Tax and more Tax Please! I deserve my huge pension.

If you want to just suck it up fine, but thats not really how things change is it?

I dont work in the public sector by the way.

No vodafone and Goldman Sachs haven't committed any evasion technically, they got taken to court over evasion and cut deals which legalised their tax evasion. HMRC are being taken to court over the GS deal, do catch up.

Offred, you are confusing your terminology here. Evasion is completely ignoring the tax code and your duties to comply - think of a shop owner putting cash in his back pocket and not declaring it through the books.

Avoidance is taking a different view of legislation (contrary to the spirit and intention of parliament) to suit yourself and saying to HMRC 'this my opinion of the law, it's not the same as yours - take me to tribunal/court lets see who is correct'. It is not illegal.

HMRC is underfunded. If anyone is interested I suggest that you read [[
www.fda.org.uk/nmsruntime/saveasdialog.aspx?lID=3410&sID=3335 this paper]] by ARC, the union that represents senior tax officials in HMRC. Invest in HMRC, invest in the UK Plc.

The black economy (evasion) and tax avoidance by large corporates both undermine the public and private sector. Society as a whole should work together to make this unacceptable practice.