Conditions on tax conduct, protecting jobs, global warming, executive pay and dividends have been revealed in the first “Project Birch” bailout of a company affected by the economic consequences of the coronavirus.
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However, the government’s welcome move comes despite a lack of similar strings being attached to loans given through the Bank of England’s coronavirus corporate finance facility. It remains unclear if conditions will be placed on future bailouts.

Tax Justice UK has been working with the Fair Tax Mark and other organisations to get the government to attach conditions to any deals it does with businesses. The Labour Party also voiced support for similar measures.  

Announcing the first bailout for Cesla Steel which operates in Cardiff, the government confirmed the company would repay its rumoured £30 million loan in full and meet a series of legally-binding conditions on preserving jobs, tackling global warming and restraints on executive pay and bonuses, as well as tax obligations. 

Tax Justice UK joined other groups to write to Prime Minister [insert letter] Boris Johnson to insist that similar conditions be applied to all Project Birch bailouts and other bailouts of major companies.

​An influential group of think tanks, campaigners and charities has joined Tax Justice UK in agreeing common goals to build back better in a world affected by coronavirus.

The pandemic has reminded us just how valuable the contribution of carers, nurses and key workers is to a caring society. In the long term we need to be spending more money on health, care and other areas to ensure we have a resilient society and economy. However, this cannot happen without reform of the tax system. 

The UK’s approach to tax is dysfunctional: we don’t raise enough money, avoidance is rife and wealth is under-taxed. Despite progress, estimates suggest that £35 billion to £90 billion of tax goes uncollected per year.

The government also spends over £164bn a year on tax reliefs - many of which are badly targeted and largely benefit the well off and big companies. The corporate tax rate has been slashed from 28% in 2010 to the current 19%. The UK also contributes through its reliefs and loopholes to a broken international tax system, which deprives other countries of revenue. 

The Covid-19 crisis shows that the government has huge financial power, flexibility and choice over how to support public spending.  Our statement Tax reform to support a fairer and greener future argues that as the immediate crisis fades there will be big political debates about how to build back better. A fair tax system should underpin more investment in high quality public services and we must be ready to challenge those who are already arguing for austerity 2.0.

Tax Justice UK has developed a series of high level recommendations we believe the government should implement.

The signatories to the statement are: Tax Justice UK, New Economics Foundation, Women's Budget Group, Church Action for Tax Justice, Oxfam GB, Christian Aid, Institute for Public Policy Research, Jubilee Debt Campaign, Common Wealth, Centre for Local Economic Strategies, Positive Money, Quakers in Britain, Equality Trust, Tax Research UK, War on Want, Ethical Consumer, Taxpayers Against Poverty and We Own It. 

We want:

• No bailouts for tax dodgers: Require companies receiving large bailouts to end artificial tax avoidance arrangements and tax haven structures, publicly disclose where profits are made and who benefits, and publish their tax policy.
• Tax companies properly: Close down loopholes, end the tax subsidies many companies enjoy, bring in a higher effective tax rate and require the publication of corporate tax affairs.
• Tax wealth more: Ensure that income from wealth is taxed at least as much as income from work. Reform areas where wealth is currently under-taxed, such as property, inheritances, capital gains, dividends and pensions. Actively consider a wealth tax.
• Stop undermining the tax systems of other countries: Shut down the tax loopholes and secrecy provisions that deprive other countries of revenue.
• Enforce the rules: Clamp down on tax dodging. Properly fund HMRC and Companies House, and give them the tools so that they can enforce our laws.

​Tax Justice UK is keen to work with other organisations who want to be part of a movement to bring about progressive tax reform and share our goals.

Download the statement here. Tax Justice UK has developed more detailed policy recommendations, which can be read here. If your organisation wants to support the statement, please get in touch - mail [at] taxjustice.uk. 

Great news from Scotland and Wales where politicians have taken action to ban companies based in tax havens from getting bailouts.

This is a step forward in our campaign to ensure we bailout the workers, not tax haven billionaires. 

Some companies have dodged their obligation to pay a fair share of tax in good times, only to seek bailouts when times get tough. It is right that we should protect jobs at this difficult time, but it is equally true there should be conditions to force responsible tax conduct on organisations that get support. 

Westminster is well behind the curve on this issue. So Tax Justice UK has launched a petition to prompt MPs in London to get their act together on an issue of genuine concern to the public.

All governments need to go further and implement the Fair Tax Mark’s conditions for a fair tax bailout.
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We want the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, to take action and ensure that any bailouts come with conditions attached so companies pay their fair share of tax. You can sign the petition here.

Moves in France, Denmark and Poland to ban tax haven companies from coronavirus bailouts are a start, but don't go far enough.

The UK should play hard ball with help only given as a priority to workers, not billionaire owners. Politicians should also insist companies stop using tax havens; lift the lid on clever accounting tricks; and end the mystery of who owns these businesses.
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Read a comment piece by our Executive Director, Robert Palmer, about this issue in the Independent.

This comment piece by our Executive Director, Robert Palmer, first appeared in The Times.

The real heroes of our society are emerging: they are nurses, supermarket staff, delivery drivers and helpful neighbours. Many of these people are woefully underpaid.

The coming months will see politicians urge the public to show solidarity normally reserved for wartime.

When the worst is over, there will be a big debate about the role of the state and to what extent measures introduced to help get us through will be rolled back.

After the 2008 financial crisis, the burden of spending cuts fell disproportionately on the disabled, sick and vulnerable. Even the NHS, despite record investment, failed to keep up with demand. The promise to the families who have lost loved ones to this epidemic must be “never again”.

Politicians would be foolish to think that the public hasn’t noticed the deterioration of our public realm. One of the consistent messages I have heard in focus groups from Blyth Valley to Hastings since the election is that people feel insecure. Just about managing families are worried about their future amid pervasive resignation with the way things are.

That was the temperature of the nation before coronavirus arrived.

The health and economic emergency we’re facing has exposed even further the threadbare nature of our social safety net. This means that an austerity re-run is not an option. Instead, what we need is something closer to the spirit of 1945, when post-war rebuilding saw a new political consensus that included the founding of the NHS and an expansion in state support.

The Prime Minister has already suggested that he gets this. Earlier this month he said that: “In 2008 everyone said we bailed out the banks and didn't look after the people who really suffered. This time we will look after the people who really suffer..."

The government should be bold. Many of the changes introduced over the last few weeks, such as more generous sick pay and Universal Credit, must stay. But we should go further, for example by introducing a minimum income guarantee.

As we start to rebuild after the immediate crisis has passed we need a new social contract to support increased spending. Tax loopholes exploited by the wealthy and companies should be closed for good. Serious consideration needs to be given to a tax on wealth. Some are suggesting an extra levy on companies making super-sized profits, as happened during WWII. We also need to properly resource HMRC and stop the current programme of layoffs of tax staff who have been designated key workers. These measures would ensure that those with the broadest shoulders are contributing to our recovery.

Polling that my organisation - Tax Justice UK - carried out as we went into lockdown found that this would be popular. 74% of the public want to see the wealthy paying more tax. Only 24% of people rule out paying more tax themselves.

Before the virus struck, there were signs that a cross-party space was opening up to address issues of inequality and public services, with the Conservatives championing a “levelling up” agenda.

Once we’re through the worst of the crisis, these discussions will become even more acute. Progressive tax reform needs to be part of the mix if the public is going to be able to confidently say “never again”.



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A poll carried out as the UK went into coronavirus lockdown found Brits already concerned about the state of the NHS, public services and poverty. The poll of 3,000 people by Survation for Tax Justice UK revealed significant support for higher taxes on wealth and companies. The detailed results are available here. 

We’re all coming together to help get through the devastation caused by coronavirus, but the crisis has exposed how threadbare our public services have become. 

When we emerge from this, we need a response that’s along the lines of 1945, when we created the NHS, rather than a repeat of post-2008 austerity. Instead of looking for more cuts, the public favours policies that strengthen our precarious social safety net.

The poll found more than three quarters (79%) believe that NHS, policing and education were either the same (25%) or have become worse (53%) in the last 10 years; 67% said homelessness was worse; 78% feel that poverty was either the same or worse; while people think that foodbank use (64%) and inequality (63%) have both got worse.

The extra government spending introduced to deal with the crisis will largely be funded through borrowing and money creation. But as the crisis fades, a return to austerity would go down badly with the country. Higher taxes on wealth and companies would be a popular way to support more government spending and tackle rampant inequality. 

74% of the public want to see the wealthy paying more tax - including 64% of Conservatives. Nearly two thirds of respondents (66%) believe that people who earn a living from their wealth should face the same tax rates as those who work. 69% support council tax reform to make it more closely reflect current house prices, so those with more expensive homes pay more. 63% support an annual wealth tax, including 57% of Conservatives. Only 24% don't want to pay more tax personally and a similar percentage (26%) of respondents want to see tax cuts for everyone. 

The poll also found people in an uncompromising mood about companies and individuals who avoid tax, 87% think that the government should close tax loopholes for corporations and individuals, meanwhile 74% agree it’s not right that wealthy people can pay for accountants to find ways to avoid paying their share. 84% say tax avoidance by companies is morally wrong, even if legal, and a similar proportion (80%) take the same view of tax avoidance by individuals. 67% support higher taxes on companies’ profits, including 61% of Conservative voters. 

People have had enough of the clever accounting that allows companies and wealthy individuals to pay less than they should. We need an economy that prioritises care. If we are to be resilient to future shocks, that means the strongest taking their fair share of the burden through higher taxes on wealth and companies.

Post-crisis tax changes could include higher taxes on wealth and a tax on super-sized corporate profits. Any reform would have to be accompanied by more resources to HMRC to administer the scheme. 

This polling builds on our report “What’s wealth got to do with it", which was based on seven focus groups asking the public their attitudes on public spending, wealth and tax. It is available here. It is part of an ongoing project to understand public attitudes on tax. 

The survey took place 17-23 March via an online panel and consisted of 3,010 UK residents aged 18+. It is part of an ongoing project by TJ-UK to test attitudes on public services, inequality and tax. Download the full results tables here. 

This project was funded by the Friends Provident Foundation.