Corporation tax campaign moves on to House of Lords

Tory Treasury spokesman Nick Gibb said this week he would take his campaign to reverse controversial changes to the corporation tax payment regime to the Lords.

Last week, Gibb staged a special Commons debate in an unsuccessful attempt to persuade chancellor Gordon Brown that the new corporate self-assessment system would be too much for the financial directors of many medium-sized firms.

Gibb said the Corporation Tax (Instalment Payment) Regulations 1998 would force 20,000 companies with a turnover of more than #1.5m to pay an extra #8.9bn to the Treasury over four years.

Under the rules, instead of paying the bill nine months after the end of their accounting period, companies will have to pay in four quarterly instalments, the first at six months before the year-end.

Despite assurance from Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo that the new regime would be applied fairly, Gibb told Accountancy Age: ‘This is a crucial issue which we will not let drop. We shall use every opportunity to raise it both in the Commons and the Lords in an attempt to make the government change its mind.

‘It will also play a part in our campaign to alert the public following this week’s Budget that Gordon Brown is increasing company taxes by stealth.’