4
news opinion When is enough enough?
Revelations from the Panama Papers data leak have brought the debate on the ‘morality of tax avoidance’ back into the spotlight.
And with several world leaders living examples that power corrupts, fraud is enjoying its share of bad press too.
It begs the questions: when does an individual or business actually have enough? And at what point does healthy ambition cross the murky divide into self-serving greed?
But the nature of the beast is that the goalposts will keep moving – and no matter how much is ‘had’, it is never enough. Then again, isn’t it natural to want to grow your assets – negligent in fact not to?
The issue of tax avoidance is far from black and white. When, if at all, is it morally wrong? Is managing your finances to pay the least possible amount of tax any less right than selling your product to the highest bidder? Doesn’t aggressive taxation discourage businesses from growing to their full potential? And doesn’t a seemingly-extortionate rate of tax push the highest earners to preserve their wealth?
If lawful tax avoidance is morally shameful, surely it is the law that should be changed, not to mention simplified.
But that’s no easy task and there’s certainly no quick solution. And naming and shaming, and public disclosure of tax returns are probably not the answer. Until the tax law can close the loopholes, how we manage our taxes remains a matter of conscience – yet another grey area.
Perhaps the questions around tax avoidance should be: ‘What if everybody did the same thing?’ ‘Is this a win-win for the company and its community, or just the company?’ ‘If our tax returns were published, how would it reflect on the business?’
Essentially, taxes are the price we pay for a better society. As key business leaders and decision makers in the region, let’s be entrepreneurial, let’s grow the region – but ask these questions along the way.
Carry de la Harpe Editor
www.businessmag.co.uk
Report on top companies gives economy only amber light
The Taylor Made Computer Solutions Top 500 Companies in the South report paints a picture of cautious optimism tempered with uncertainty for the economy. The detailed report shows that the 500 listed companies in the region pulled in a combined turnover of £537 billion during 2015, a figure roughly consistent with the previous year’s; but combined operating profits were down from £35.9b in 2014 to £25.2b in 2015.
The region’s top company, BP International, based in Sunbury-On-Thames, reported sales of £51.3b, significantly down on the previous year’s £60.5b. Esso UK, which is based in Leatherhead, likewise showed a drop from £18b to £15b. On the other hand, the four companies above Esso in the top six – Vodafone Group (Newbury), SSE Energy Supply (Reading), Centra plc (Windsor), and Compass Group plc (Chertsey) – all showed a rise in turnover.
Tim Walker, managing director of Taylor Made Computer Solutions which commissioned the report, said: “These results make fascinating reading, and show a very uncertain pattern across the region. I’d still describe the mood in the south as one of cautious optimism, and there is evidence that the recovery is continuing, but the pattern of growth is more inconsistent than we would prefer.”
He stressed the impact the huge companies have on the region and added: “The report is a reminder of how many of the country’s biggest and most profitable companies choose to base themselves here in the south. They provide thousands of jobs and contribute billions of pounds to the region each year, ensuring that the south continues to be rightly seen as a great place to live, work and do business.”
The south’s top 10 businesses were: Company BP International
Vodafone Group plc SSE Energy Supply Centrica plc
Compass Group plc Esso UK
SABMiller plc Tui Travel plc BG Group plc
Reckitt Benckiser Group plc Area
Sunbury-On-Thames Newbury Reading Windsor Chertsey
Leatherhead Woking Crawley Reading Slough
Tim Walker
The complete list, which is searchable and easy to sort by region, and a full range of criteria including sales figures, pre-tax profit, net asset value and average salaries, is available without charge on Taylor Made’s website at
www.tmcs.co.uk/Top500.
The full list covers Berkshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Surrey, East and West Sussex, Surrey and Wiltshire and includes companies with accounts filed by Friday, February 12, 2015.
The report also shows:
• Only 60% of companies declared that they had donated to charity
• The Top 500 companies collectively invested £4.1b in research and development
• The south’s highest-paid director was Tony Pidgley of property developers The Berkeley Group, whose renumeration package totalled £23.3 million.
Details:
www.tmcs.co.uk 2015 turnover
£51,339,420,000 £42,227,000,000 £31,202,900,000 £29,408,000,000 £17,590,000,000 £14,915,000,000 £14,605,800,000 £14,408,352,000 £10,759,320,000 £8,836,000,000
2014 turnover
£60,539,820,000 £38,346,000,000 £29,953,300,000 £26,571,000,000 £16,854,000,000 £18,068,000,000 £14,725,260,000 £13,346,496,000 £13,166,340,000 £9,266,000,000
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – MAY 2016
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68