Gordon Brown pledges action on tax havens

Working alongside Barack Obama, Gordon Brown has revealed plans are afoot to toughen the rules on tax havens such as Switzerland and the Cayman Islands which allow investors to take advantage of loopholes and pay less UK tax.

It is by means of further regulatory action that Brown and Obama plan to tackle these jurisdictions having spoken to world leaders.

As part of his global plan Gordon Brown has called for the major economic countries to boost their incomes without overburdening the taxpayer so as to aid the International Monetary Fund.

A step away from dreaded protectionism, as well as the introduction of an early warning system, would mean that a repeat of the scale of the current financial problems would be prevented.

Obama has already backed the Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act, and said that he will continue to press tax havens and reveal secretive trusts.

Gordon Brown has said that he will pay closer attention to the likes of Switzerland as well as closer territories such as Jersey and the Isle of Man.

By striking an international agreement to stop tax havens and to shore up banking and financial regulations, Gordon Brown hopes to pave the way for the future, although his plans have been highly scrutinised.

The Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has revealed that the Government is spending £31m a day on what he describes to be a ‘pointless’ temporary VAT cut and further diverting funds to pursue an international agreement does little to safeguard jobs and the economy.

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