Shaming tax avoiders: doing it the Norwegian way | Robbie Millen
The main moral of the Jimmy Carr brouhaha is that comedians’ accountants are always going to outsmart plodding Government officials. So if we want to clamp down on avoidance, how do we do it?
Well, there’s good old shame/transparency (delete as appropriate). In Norway, everyone’s tax returns are made public so it would be hard for a high-earning entertainer to disappear a big wodge of wonga without people quickly finding out.
Public scrutiny/prurience (delete as appropriate) keeps Norwegians honest. And the Norwegian way also brings much more pleasure than a Jimmy Carr gig.
You’ll find hours of tax-porn fun here. And for reference, here’s the skinny on Morten Harket, Eighties heart-throb and lead singer of A-Ha (who paid around £74,000 tax on earnings of about £209,000 in 2009).
Shaming tax avoiders: doing it the Norwegian way | Robbie Millen
The main moral of the Jimmy Carr brouhaha is that comedians’ accountants are always going to outsmart plodding Government officials. So if we want to clamp down on avoidance, how do we do it?
Well, there’s good old shame/transparency (delete as appropriate). In Norway, everyone’s tax returns are made public so it would be hard for a high-earning entertainer to disappear a big wodge of wonga without people quickly finding out.
Public scrutiny/prurience (delete as appropriate) keeps Norwegians honest. And the Norwegian way also brings much more pleasure than a Jimmy Carr gig.
You’ll find hours of tax-porn fun here. And for reference, here’s the skinny on Morten Harket, Eighties heart-throb and lead singer of A-Ha (who paid around £74,000 tax on earnings of about £209,000 in 2009).
Read more: The Times takes on the tax avoiders
Notes