Forum Moderators: goodroi
from the timesonline article
Austin Mitchell, the Labour MP for Great Grimsby, who campaigns against tax avoidance, said: “Google isn’t just sucking money out of local newspapers and other people who rely on advertising for a living — it’s also draining money out of the public finances.“The search engine is a marvellous service, but the company is run by tax avoiders. If they are going to make so much money here they need to give more back to society.”
First, doesn't the UK already have a song by the Beatles about this subject? I think the UK overlords are in love with the idea of taxation. Even without representation :). Seriously, if I live in the US and sell something to the UK, I don't pay taxes to the UK. Let's not even go there!
However, when it comes to advertising the rules get a bit goofier. I addresses advertising taxation with my accountant a year or so ago (where I live, retail taxes have a special section to do with advertising - though I know that's not what the article is talking about). And the basic idea was, if the readership is targetted locally in a local publication then retail taxes apply - even if the advertiser isn't in the tax jurisdiction. This is the opposite of the way most retail sales taxes work.
However, here's the telling part of the article:
Last February, David Cameron, the Tory leader, appointed Eric Schmidt, the company’s chairman, to the Conservatives’ economic recovery committee.A few months later, Cameron suggested that NHS patient records could in future be maintained by Google.
Accountants said that if the firm’s £1.6 billion UK earnings were paid directly into Google UK Limited, the London operation, it would have been liable for UK corporation tax of between 28% and 30%.This could have raised about £450m for the public finances — enough tax to fund three NHS hospitals, buy at least eight Chinook helicopters or pay the annual salaries of about 15,000 policemen.
so let's hope they don't have to pay tax.
As a result Google UK reports turnover of £150m and a pretax loss of £26m. By contrast, Google Inc's annual report showed 14% of the company's $21.8bn (£13.5bn) revenues came from the UK, making it the largest market outside of the US.
Now they're doing the Google Dance with taxes.
Nice.
However, here's the telling part of the article:Last February, David Cameron, the Tory leader, appointed Eric Schmidt, the company’s chairman, to the Conservatives’ economic recovery committee.A few months later, Cameron suggested that NHS patient records could in future be maintained by Google.
Watching two sith clans ( eric and friends and the dark lord mandy and acolytes ) fighting over the body ( politic and otherwise ) of the UK is best done from a distance ..yet another reason to be glad I left early ..
But ..
Those of us who have left the UK ..but who at least in my case still pay corp tax on our UK businesses ( even though the companies do 95% of their business outside the UK ) ..find GORGs tax dancing tasteless and inelegant..
