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CBI, TaxAid, UCATT, NASUWT, IoD, Institute of directors, Neil Carberry

Unions and Business Organisations questioned on Personal Service Companies

27 January 2014

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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.

Witnesses

Monday 27 January, Committee Room 4, Palace of Westminster:

at 4pm:

  • 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).

at 5pm:

  • Stephen Herring - Head of Taxation, Institute of Directors (IoD); and
  • Neil Carberry; Director of employment and skills, Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

Likely questions

Representatives from UK business organisations are likely to be asked 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.

Representatives from the Unions will be asked 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.

Further information