Chancellor Osborne takes the tax biscuit

Chancellor George Osborne has been named the UK’s worst tax shirker, winning more than a third of the vote in an online poll.

Osborne — nominated in the competition for his failure to abolish the domicile rule, dubbed a “tax avoiders’ charter" by the Tax Justice Network — has been awarded the prize, a giant “jammie dodger”.

Representatives from the contest organisers — False Economy campaign group, the Public and Commercial Services union including its general secretary Mark Serwotka, the TUC and anti-poverty charity War on Want — will be joined by activists from UK Uncut campaign group to present the award at the Conservative Party headquarters on Millbank in London.

Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia group — which owns Topshop, a main focus of UK Uncut protests in recent months — came second with 16.9% of the vote, with Barclays on 11% in third.

Ten individuals and organisations were nominated for their part in contributing to the £120 billion that is lost to the UK economy every year through tax that is evaded, avoided or uncollected because HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has been starved of resources through years of cuts.

Fourth spot in the poll went to telecoms group Vodafone, while tax collector HMRC took fifth spot.

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