Public concern over tax dodging "at record levels"

Pollster ICM has found that more than 75% of respondents to a survey said they would rather shop with or work for a business that can prove it was paying its fair share of tax. ICM said concern among the public about the use of tax avoidance practices by business in the UK was at “record levels”.

The survey, commissioned by the Fair Tax Mark, revealed that 78% would prefer to work for a business that can prove it was paying its fair share of tax with 77% holding the same preference when considering giving their custom to a firm – an increase more than 10% in each instance.

Three quarters of respondents said it was important to acknowledge organisations that shunned the use of tax havens and contrived tax avoidance practices – an increase of six percentage points on 2018. And

the number of consumers claiming they would switch their custom to one that had the Fair Tax Mark was up by 11 percentage points to 62%.

Earlier this year Pennon was the first water company to earn the Fair Tax Mark. Commenting in the group’s annual report, chief executive officer, Chris Laughlin said: “We are committed to following both the spirit and the letter of the law regarding our tax contributions. We do this because our customers tell us that it is important to them and because it is the right thing to do.”