Use Brexit to make tax system simpler, MPs are told

Brexit should be used to simplify the UK's tax system to prevent the door being opened to further tax avoidance, ministers have been told.

Tory Mark Field warned against a "race to the bottom" with lower tax rates in light of Britain's impending withdrawal from the European Union.

Instead, the MP for Cities of London and Westminster said the Treasury and Parliament should regard the changing circumstances as a "wake-up call" to develop a system which is easier to understand and therefore attractive to foreign investors.

Speaking during the report stage of the Finance Bill, which brings into law the 2016 Budget, Mr Field said: "The more complicated a tax code, the more you're opening the door to tax avoidance of all description.

"We do need very urgently to begin to simplify our tax code. We are going to be adding yet more pages to it today and again a lot of it is an Elastoplast that we can all support for individual reasons.

"We need to get back to the principles of a much simpler tax system going forward.

"I personally believe that one of the impacts of leaving the European Union is not that we should have a race to the bottom with lower tax but actually we should have a much simpler tax system

"This should be a wake-up call for all of us in this House, particularly for the Treasury, to have a much simpler tax code - one that is readily understandable, readily supported by all of our constituents and I think that has been one of the issues we've faced, but also one that says to a lot of that inward investment that will come from across the globe to the UK that you have a simple tax code, one that isn't going to be tinkered with at successive Finance Bills because it's very straightforward and can work on that basis.

"That I know may be wishful thinking. I think most Chancellors going back many years have talked about having a simpler tax code but I think this is now something that we have to look at very urgently.

"Urgent attention must be placed on getting simplicity and if we don't do that I think we will all very much pay the cost."