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Ed Balls claims that people should get a receipt from your gardener condemned as ludicrous | |
(about 17 hours later) | |
People should always ask for receipts when they hand over money for the smallest job in the house or garden, the shadow Chancellor has insisted. | People should always ask for receipts when they hand over money for the smallest job in the house or garden, the shadow Chancellor has insisted. |
Ed Balls said he always requested proof of payment from tradesmen, even if it was only for £10 for trimming a hedge, because it was the “right thing to do”. | Ed Balls said he always requested proof of payment from tradesmen, even if it was only for £10 for trimming a hedge, because it was the “right thing to do”. |
His guidance was described as “ludicrous” by one backbench Tory today. The week-long dispute over tax-dodging by multimillionaire clients of HSBC’s Swiss subsidiary took a more personal turn yesterday when Mr Balls was pressed on his definition of tax avoidance. “The right thing to do if you are having somebody cut your hedge for a tenner is to make sure they give you their name and address and a receipt and a record for the fact that you have paid them,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live. | His guidance was described as “ludicrous” by one backbench Tory today. The week-long dispute over tax-dodging by multimillionaire clients of HSBC’s Swiss subsidiary took a more personal turn yesterday when Mr Balls was pressed on his definition of tax avoidance. “The right thing to do if you are having somebody cut your hedge for a tenner is to make sure they give you their name and address and a receipt and a record for the fact that you have paid them,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live. |
Asked whether he observed that rule, he replied: “Absolutely. That’s because I am the shadow Chancellor and I’m extremely careful about these things. Over my life, have I ever given people a tenner and not [been] given a receipt for it? Probably yes.” But he said he had always asked for receipts since he had been involved in politics. | Asked whether he observed that rule, he replied: “Absolutely. That’s because I am the shadow Chancellor and I’m extremely careful about these things. Over my life, have I ever given people a tenner and not [been] given a receipt for it? Probably yes.” But he said he had always asked for receipts since he had been involved in politics. |
His remarks were ridiculed as “ludicrous” by the Conservative MP Peter Bone. He said: “If you go into a café for a cup of tea you would not expect a receipt for it. It shows a complete lack of understanding of business. Is he trying to imply that if you are a small business that deals in cash, you are trying to dodge tax?” | His remarks were ridiculed as “ludicrous” by the Conservative MP Peter Bone. He said: “If you go into a café for a cup of tea you would not expect a receipt for it. It shows a complete lack of understanding of business. Is he trying to imply that if you are a small business that deals in cash, you are trying to dodge tax?” |
Mr Balls said today he would review every existing tax-planning scheme if he becomes Chancellor. | Mr Balls said today he would review every existing tax-planning scheme if he becomes Chancellor. |
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