Income Shifting - Contractors urged to write to their MPs

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Income Shifting - Contractors urged to write to their MPs

Published on Jan 21, 2008

The PCG has welcomed an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons expressing alarm at the Government's proposals for a new income shifting tax on family businesses.

The contractor group is urging all freelancers and other small business owners to write to their MPs and ask them to sign the motion.

John Brazier, the PCG's managing director said:

"Now that MPs are beginning to see the dangers of this proposed new tax, the time is right for all freelancers to write to their MP and urge them to sign the motion, if they have not already done so."

"If it is properly supported by MPs, this motion will send a clear signal to the Government that it must re-think its proposals before they inflict disaster on family businesses throughout the UK."

Family businesses are often owned jointly by family members, who then share any profits equally among themselves - it can often be tax-efficient to do so. This is a standard way of doing things, but the Government has now arbitrarily decided that it constitutes "income shifting" and wants to put a stop to it.

The PCG's online petition against the measure on the Number 10 website has so far attracted over 3,000 signatures and is already in the top 100 petitions on the site.