Tax Avoidance and Multinational Companies

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd February 2016 Commons Chamber

[John McDonnell]

I will come to that in my recommendations for the future.

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

Under Labour, hedge fund managers were routinely paying a lower rate of tax than their cleaners because Labour was a soft touch on tax. Is not the hon. Gentleman’s argument just political opportunism on stilts?

[John McDonnell]

I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman was listening. I just answered that point by reference to my critique of the Labour Government. I convened the Tax Justice Network campaign meetings in this building, and I have campaigned for 18 years. The FT assessment is that the measures introduced by the Labour Government will reap 10 times as much as anything introduced by this Government.

Let me press on. Last Monday, to get some answers about the Google deal, I tabled an urgent question to the Chancellor, and I am grateful that Mr Speaker granted the question. Typically, the Chancellor failed to turn up and the Minister was left to defend this “victorious” deal. By that time, No. 10 was furiously distancing itself from the Chancellor. Within 72 hours the Google deal had gone from “a major success” to merely “a step forward”, according to No. 10. I see that this weekend the Business Secretary was describing the deal, with masterly understatement, as “not a glorious moment”.

Yesterday Ruth Davidson, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said:

“It doesn’t feel fair. And in our hearts, I think we all know it isn’t fair.”

I agree wholeheartedly.

During the urgent question discussion last Monday the Minister was specifically asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Diana Johnson) whether he knew the rate of tax that Google was paying. He said bluntly, “No.” We heard the assertion that the HMRC calculation of back tax was on the basis of tax levied on profits as a result of an assessment of economic activity. That implies very little economic activity in Google UK. That argument wore a bit thin when it was pointed out that Google employs 2,300 staff in the UK on average earnings of £160,000, and is building a new headquarters in addition to the two it already has.

HMRC and Google (Settlement)

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Monday 25th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Gauke]

The principle of taxpayer confidentiality is not new. It has existed for as long as we have had a tax system. If the hon. Gentleman wants to make a case for abandoning it, he ought to consider what the overall consequences would be for the attractiveness of the UK as a place in which to do business. Let me add that, without fully understanding the whereabouts of a company’s assets and activities, no one is in a position to make a judgment about how much tax it should pay. HMRC is able to do that, and HMRC is bringing in more money than ever.

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

I welcome the fact that the Government have raised £130 million, but does my right hon. Friend agree that it should not have had to take five years—and, no doubt, considerable public resources—to prise that money out? Do not multinationals themselves need to change their culture?

[Mr Gauke]

My hon. Friend has made an important point. The way in which to change the culture of multinational companies—and, indeed, we have already started to see signs of such a change—is to take the action that we have taken in implementing the BEPS recommendations and introducing a diverted profits tax. Those are the achievements of this Government.

Connaught Income Fund

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Tuesday 12th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Guto Bebb]

I agree entirely with my hon. Friend, who has been a firm supporter of the APPG since its establishment. He makes the point we wish to make: we might be annoyed that the all-party group has not been kept informed, but we should be outraged that the investors and the stakeholders involved in the fund have also been treated with such disrespect.

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

May I declare an interest, Mr Speaker? As a barrister, I was instructed by the FCA to prosecute serious Ponzi fraud. I agree with my hon. Friend that this is about clarity and certainty; it is only by being clear that the investigation is being concluded that investors who have been left in limbo can get the certainty they deserve.

[Guto Bebb]

Again, I fully endorse those comments. We are in this House this evening almost giving a cry for help to the Minister, where the all-party group and Members of Parliament have failed to deliver on behalf of their constituents. I sincerely hope that she can intervene and ensure that at least a degree of clarity is offered.

Spending Review and Autumn Statement

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Wednesday 25th November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

The first duty of Government is to protect the people. Because we have a strong economy, we can not only invest in our defence overseas but protect the public at home with the real-terms protection for the police, which comes on top of the increase in community support officers in the previous Parliament and the greater proportion of our police on the frontline. The hon. Gentleman says that the Labour party is championing the police’s cause. I do not know where he stands in the civil war taking place in the Labour party at the moment, but those who currently lead it have spent their entire lives undermining the police, campaigning against them, and criticising them. That is what the public are going to judge the Labour party on.

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

I warmly welcome the Chancellor’s announcement of a boost in funding for our security services, who do so much unsung work to keep us safe. Does he agree that the creation of a cyber-innovation centre in Cheltenham will mean that those extra taxpayer funds will not just enhance our national security but boost private sector jobs and opportunity?

[Mr Osborne]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. He represents some remarkable people who keep us safe, working at GCHQ in Cheltenham. I was very pleased to meet him at GCHQ headquarters last week, with local businesses that are growing cyber-business in Cheltenham, creating jobs and making sure that GCHQ is not just a source of jobs in the public sector in Cheltenham but jobs in the private sector. The new cyber-innovation centre and the work we are going to do in Cheltenham will only go from strength to strength.

The Economy

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Wednesday 18th November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

The core message in the motion is that the Government have somehow failed to stand up for working people. I must tell the Opposition, with respect, that that message is misconceived.

Let us look at the context. The position in 2010, as we recall it, was that this country was staring into the abyss. Make no mistake: borrowing was over £150 billion a year. What does that mean, in concrete terms? We were bringing in about £600 billion, but we were spending £750 billion. It is perfectly true to say, as was said by the hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell), that the crisis came and therefore the deficit became larger, but it should not be forgotten that on the eve of the crisis—as was pointed out by the Institute for Fiscal Studies—this country had one of the largest structural deficits in the developed world. That made us vulnerable, and it meant that when the crisis hit, the cupboard was bare. The point has been made—and it bears re-emphasis—that there can be no economic security, no national security and no opportunity when a country loses control of its public finances, and this country did that spectacularly in 2010.

The hon. Gentleman may not be interested in those figures, but the truth is that unemployment was up—unemployment, which has an impact on working people’s lives—and youth unemployment was up. What has happened since then, during the period in which the hon. Gentleman would have us believe the economy has gone to hell in a handcart? Well, last year more jobs were created in Yorkshire alone than were created in the whole of France, more jobs were created for young people in this country than in the rest of the European Union put together, and there were more women in jobs than ever before. Since 2010, 2,000 jobs have been created each day. That matters, because jobs bring dignity, self-worth and fulfilment. But if the hon. Gentleman is not interested even in jobs, what about living standards? Well, living standards are up as well: we are better off by £900 per household than we were in 2010.

There is also a suggestion that our growth is anaemic by comparison with that of other countries. How can that possibly be the case, when it is recognised that ours has been the fastest-growing major developed economy in the world, together with that of the United States? That is an achievement of which—I hope—Members on both sides of the House can be proud, because it is by securing that stability, that growth and that prosperity that we assist the most vulnerable in our society.

We recognise, of course, that there is more to do, but when the hon. Gentleman makes the point that the deficit is not closed—which he is perfectly entitled to do—the response should not be, “Let us widen it and make it bigger.” Instead, we should ask what we can do, in a constructive, sensible and, dare I say it, patriotic way, to close that deficit and thus secure our resilience. If we do not have a resilient economy and put money aside for a rainy day, we shall not be in a good position to weather the storm when it hits, as hit it will. The time will come when there is a global downturn, because that is the nature of events, but we must be prepared to weather it. I am sorry to say that the policies of the hon. Gentleman—if, indeed, there are any—seem to take us nowhere towards achieving that resilience.

Today we have a deficit of some £70 billion, which is not an inconsiderable figure: it is about double the defence budget. [Interruption.] I hear noises off from Opposition Members. On the one hand they say that the deficit is too large, and on the other hand they say, “Let us make it larger still.”

[Suella Fernandes]

I echo the point that my hon. Friend is making. The only way we can get to grips with debt is by tackling the deficit, and, thanks to the difficult decisions made by this Government, we have already cut it by more than half. As my hon. Friend says, there is more to do, but that is why we must carry on with the plan and finish the job.

[Alex Chalk]

I entirely agree. We must carry on in a way that is proportionate—of course—and fair—of course—but which focuses, ultimately, on the prize that is living within our means. I am sorry to say that Labour Members do not seem to be ready to adopt that approach, not least because they opposed the cap on welfare. In an article published in New Statesman in March, the hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington said that he would avoid any cuts whatsoever, and that—as we have heard again today—he thought that running a surplus was “barmy”.

I believe that there is an issue not just for our times, but for future times. There is an issue of generational justice, because we owe it to the next generation to bequeath to them an economy that can pay its way. Make no mistake: someone born this week—a young lady, say—will knock on the door of the state in 30 years’ time, having been turfed out of her home by an abusive husband, and will ask for help. It is up to this generation to ensure that we have not left the cupboard bare; otherwise, what will that young lady say to us in 30 years’ time? “She will ask, “Why didn’t you deal with the problem then?”, and if we answer, “Well, it was all too difficult”, that will be no answer at all.

Let me say again, respectfully, that the motion is misconceived, and lacks credibility. It is our duty to our country and the future to have a stable economy, and the motion should be roundly rejected.

Tax Credits

Alex Chalk Excerpts

Tuesday 20th October 2015 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

Thank you very much for those wise words, Madam Deputy Speaker.

I agree with the hon. Member for Brigg and Goole (Andrew Percy) that what the House has today is an opportunity to send a message to the Government that they ought to reflect on what has been proposed. I think that they have made an honest mistake. I hope that it is an honest mistake, that we can reflect on it, and that we will not punish people in the way that the tax credit changes will do.

[Alex Chalk (Cheltenham) (Con)]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[David T. C. Davies (Monmouth) (Con)]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

--- Later in debate ---

[Ian Blackford]

I will not give way just now.

Just imagine what will happen when someone living hand to mouth faces an unexpected problem. Perhaps over the winter the central heating boiler will need to be fixed or a fridge will need to be replaced. What will Members say to their constituents when they knock on the surgery door? Where is the compassionate Conservatism we used to talk about? When their voters have their income cut by more than £1,500, all those problems will mean difficult choices. That is why this issue needs re-examining. I am appealing to the Government to listen to the many voices raising legitimate concerns.

The Government talk about being a one nation Government, but if that is their desire they cannot square it with the rise in inequality that will be accelerated through these measures. We know that a report published by the Resolution Foundation on 7 October estimates that the tax and benefit changes will push a further 200,000 children into poverty in 2016. Is that really a price worth paying? We cannot accept that that can be right. This is not just a question of the 200,000 who will fall into poverty next year; the figure will increase to 600,000 by 2020.

[Alex Chalk]

The hon. Gentleman has talked four or five times about doing the right thing, but is it not important to recognise that that includes doing the right thing by the next generation, which stands to be saddled with billions of pounds of debt that cannot be paid back?

[Ian Blackford]

Of course we need to make sure we are doing the right thing for people today and for the next generation, but that comes back to what I explained to the House: the position the SNP had at the general election—a responsible position of investing today and for tomorrow, a responsible position of dealing with the deficit but investing in the future of the country.