Unions and business organisations to give evidence to Lords Committee investigating the use of Personal Service Companies
Representatives from UK business organisations and unions will be questioned by the House of Lords Committee investigating the tax implications of the use of Personal Service Companies (PSCs) on Monday 27 January.
As well as evidence from the Institute of Directors and the Confederation of British Industry, the Committee will also hear from two unions (NASUWT and UCATT) and the tax advice charity TaxAid.
At 4pm the Committee will hear from:
- Frances Corrie; Technical Director, TaxAid;
- Chris Keates; General Secretary, National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT); and
- Brian Rye; Regional Secretary for the Eastern Region, Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT).
The Committee are likely to ask the above witnesses questions on a variety of issues including whether people are being encouraged to use PSCs to save employers' NI contributions; whether or not they are aware of the pension and employment rights implications of such a move; whether or not there may be exploitation of workers' inability to grasp their tax position; who benefits most from the work of umbrella companies; and whether the Government has achieved its aim, through IR35 regulations, of tackling tax and NI avoidance.
Following on, at 5pm, the Committee will hear from:
- Stephen Herring; Head of Taxation, Institute of Directors (IoD);
- Neil Carberry; Director of employment and skills, Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
The Committee will ask these witnesses questions on some of the areas above, but also other issues such as the advantages of using workers through PSCs; why there is such a growth in one or two person companies; whether HMRC needs more resources to tackle tax avoidance, and how much companies should scrutinise the tax and NI payments of those working through PSCs.
The evidence session will take place on Monday 27 January, starting at 4pm in Committee Room 4.
