No News On IR35 Expected Until After Emergency Budget

There has been much speculation about the abolition of IR35 since the Queens Speech which included plans to remove barriers to flexible working, promote equal pay and make the taxation system fairer and simpler. The announcement followed the Conservatives letter to the Professional Contractors Group (PCG) on IR35 prior to the General Election and the positive news that Mark Prisk, the Conservative MP for Hertford and Stortford (and former Contractor) was appointed Minister of State for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.

Responding to the Queens Speech the Managing Director of the Professional Contractors Group, John Brazier, said that “This builds on the Government’s announcement to seek a replacement for IR35. By all accounts, the momentum is clearly building to consign this unfair and unclear piece of legislation to the scrapheap. In particular we warmly welcome the Government’s stated commitment to establish an ‘Office of Tax Simplification’. Once IR35 is placed under the scrutiny of such a body, it will be exposed for the iniquitous and overly complex block on enterprise it really is. Britain’s 1.4 million freelance workers are ready and willing to help the UK’s economic recovery. Any moves to simplify tax and reduce regulatory burdens will help nano-businesses. We will continue to work with Government, and keep the momentum building to abolish IR35 which, after all, has been PCG\’s core objective since inception.\”

Appointment of Mark Prisk MP

The appointment of Mark Prisk, the Conservative MP for Hertford and Stortford, to the position of Minister of State for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, has been welcomed by contractors across the UK. Mr Prisk is a former contractor who has spoken out many times against issues such as Section 660 and IR35.

In March 2010 while in opposition with the Conservatives, Mr Prisk wrote to the Professional Contractors Group (PCG) to set out the party’s stance on the issues of IR35 and small business taxation. In the letter he said that “I am pleased to confirm that, if elected, a Conservative Government would undertake a fundamental review of small business taxation matters, including IR35. We would do this by mandating the independent Office of Tax Simplification to conduct this review, working closely with tax experts and those affected. In this way we believe we would be able to replace a complex, uncertain and unfair tax regime with one which is clearer, stable and which would give people the confidence to start up and build their business.”

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