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Welcoming the beginning of a government consultation today (Tuesday) into a new anti-abuse rule which could help crack down on tax avoidance in the UK, TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said:
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date: 12 June 2012

embargo: For immediate release

Welcoming the beginning of a government consultation today (Tuesday) into a new anti-abuse rule which could help crack down on tax avoidance in the UK, TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said:

'Every year billions of pounds are lost to the public purse because wealthy individuals and corporations make use of clever accounting methods to reduce the amount of tax they need to pay.

'As the TUC has argued for a number of years, a strong anti-avoidance rule could make it significantly harder for tax loopholes to be created and jumped through by the super-rich and huge multinational corporations, and has potential to bring much-needed revenue to the Exchequer.

'But we have reservations about the scope of today's proposals - while they are a step in the right direction it looks as if these changes could only tackle a tiny number of schemes. We need far more robust reform if the government is serious about cracking down on those companies and individuals avoiding tax.'

NOTES TO EDITORS:

- All TUC press releases can be found at www.tuc.org.uk

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Contacts:

Media enquiries:
Liz Chinchen T: 020 7467 1248 M: 07778 158175 E: media@tuc.org.uk
Elly Gibson T: 020 7467 1337 M: 07900 910624 E: egibson@tuc.org.uk

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