Lib Dems: Tax System Now Fairer

The party say they have recalibrated tax system in favour of low and middle earners.

Radical changes to the UK Government’s tax system put forward by the Liberal Democrats have recalibrated the system in favour of low and middle earners and against large companies who evade taxes, Liberal Democrat Edinburgh MP Mike Crockart has said.

Figures obtained from UK Government ministers through parliamentary questions have shown that a ruthless clampdown on tax evasion led by Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander has enabled the UK Government to collect over £16billion in additional compliance revenues from large businesses between April 2012 and March 2014.

The figure is equivalent to more than the entire health budget for Scotland. Meanwhile, answers to parliamentary questions from UK Government ministers also showed that income tax collected from low and middle earners has fallen from £3170m in 2011/12 to £2720m in 2014/15 as Lib Dem progressive tax cuts came into place.

Mike Crockart MP said:

“Liberal Democrats in the UK Government have recalibrated the UK’s tax system in favour of low and middle earners and against large companies who aggressively evade taxes. Through turning the tables on them and pursuing a ruthless clampdown on tax evasion we’ve returned £16bn to the UK’s coffers.

“At the same time, these figures show that low and middle earners have seen real changes to their pay packets since 2011. Over 2 million people in Scotland have received a tax cut and 262,000 have been lifted out of paying any income tax altogether. So this is positive change which delivers a stronger economy through stamping out tax evasion and a fairer society by ensuring people keep more of what they earn.

“You simply can’t trust Ed Miliband and Ed Balls with the economy. In Government by themselves Labour would borrow too much, risking the economy.  While the Conservatives would cut too much, threatening public services and sacrificing the poorest.

“The SNP refused to back the low paid. Their white paper proposed low and middle earners would pay £450 more than under the Lib Dem plans.”