Osborne's payout 'from family firm that paid no corporation tax for seven years'

Updated

George Osborne received a significant payout from his family's firm despite it paying no corporation tax for seven years, it was reported.

The Chancellor had a total taxable income of £198,738 in 2014/15, including £44,647 in the form of dividends from Osborne & Little, the wallpaper firm co-founded by his father, Sir Peter Osborne.

But the firm has not paid UK corporation tax since 2008, according to The Times.

It reported the company made £722,200 profit on sales of £34 million in that financial year but did not pay corporation tax because the company had rolled over losses from previous years and deferred tax payments.

Mr Osborne published the one-year tax summary as David Cameron gave a Commons statement following a torrid week of headlines about his tax arrangements.

John McDonnell said the tax summaries published by Mr Osborne and the Prime Minister left "more questions than answers" and were as "transparent as dishwater".

The Shadow Chancellor added: "As we now know, when the Chancellor was cutting the top rate of income tax for people like himself, while at the same time saying he wasn't wealthy enough to benefit, he was also cutting public services and support for some of the most vulnerable in our society."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn published his tax return, which showed he had no savings and was also filed late, earning him a £100 fine.

London's mayor Boris Johnson's disclosure showed his taxable income over four years was £1,985,901, leaving him with a £916,481 bill.

The Prime Minister, who inherited £300,000 from his father and received gifts worth £200,000 from his mother Mary, said it was "natural human instinct" for parents to want to pass assets on to their children.

The tax rules "fully recognise" that parents may make gifts to their children tax-free while they are alive, and this was "something that we should not just defend but proudly support", he said.

Mr Cameron set out new measures to make it harder for people to hide the proceeds of corruption offshore.

Most British crown dependencies and overseas territories have now agreed to share information in future with UK police and law enforcement authorities.

"For the first time UK police and law enforcement will be able to see exactly who really owns and controls every company incorporated in these territories - Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Isle of Man, Jersey, the lot," Mr Cameron said.

The Prime Minister said similar agreements were expected soon with Guernsey and Anguilla. And he confirmed plans to legislate this year on the Conservatives' manifesto commitment to create a new criminal offence for companies which fail to prevent their representatives facilitating tax evasion.

Meanwhile, the Government will provide £10 million for a new cross-agency task force to analyse the information contained in leaks linked to Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca.

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