Budget should support industry, say Directors

07 Jul 2015

The Institute of Directors (IoD) has called on Chancellor George Osborne to use his Budget Speech to simplify the UK tax system in order to promote business investment.

Head of Taxation at the IoD, Stephen Herring, said: ‘As the economy continues to recover, both business and individuals taxpayers will rightly expect more wide ranging tax reforms and simplification than the previous Government was able or willing to undertake.

‘Businesses, especially SMEs, are concerned about high taxes on employment, commercial property occupation and transactions as well as being convinced that government ought to try much harder to deliver authentic, far reaching tax simplification.’

In its press release, the IoD also supported a crackdown on aggressive tax avoidance, while defending legitimate tax planning from penalisation. The IoD also called for an increase to the Annual Investment Allowance from £500,000 to £600,000 – a cap which should be frozen for five years.

The Chancellor should consult with industry, said the IoD, to discuss the possibility of merging inheritance tax (IHT) and capital gains tax (CGT).

Mr Herring added: ‘Individual taxpayers are rightly concerned with the impact of fiscal drag upon their marginal tax rates’.