‘Paying tax is a moral issue’: MP Margaret Hodge calls for simpler tax system at Highgate dinner
An MP in charge of scrutinising government spending has called for the simplification of Britain’s tax system to end avoidance.
Margaret Hodge, chairman of the public accounts committee, made the remarks at a Highgate Labour dinner last week at The Bull pub in North Road.
The former leader of Islington Council was there to lend her support to Hornsey and Wood Green’s Labour parliamentary candidate Catherine West, who is Ms Hodge’s successor at the Labour-run authority.
“Paying tax is a moral issue,” the 69-year-old Barking MP said. “We should simplify our tax system, we should toughen up HMRC and I think we should have more transparency.
“There is a scary gap between what we get in and what we should actually get in, which actually stands at about £35billion, and that’s a conservative figure.”
You may also want to watch:
Ms Hodge also told the room about getting global giants Amazon, Starbucks and Google in front of the public accounts committee in 2012 to quiz them over tax avoidance.
Most Read
- 1 Developer's plan for six houses in old pub car park in Highgate Hill
- 2 Nazanin may become 'bargaining chip' in Iran nuclear deal, warns husband
- 3 Woman dies after house fire in Muswell Hill
- 4 Camden's Levertons to arrange the funeral of Prince Philip on April 17
- 5 Arsenal hit Gillingham for ten in FA Cup
- 6 Helen McCrory: 'Mighty' Tufnell Park actress dies aged 52
- 7 Arteta: Arsenal have to win these games or face consequence
- 8 Hampstead Literary Society launched - and looking for exciting writers
- 9 The Heath, exhaust theft, public access, Centene, the Streatery and more
- 10 Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe: Wait for second verdict could last 'until Easter'
