Jimmy Carr

[Trav Le Bleu]

People who say they wouldn't pay any taxes if they could get away with it would be the first to complain when they get mugged getting out of their car, which has fallen into a pothole in the dark because none of the streetlights are on. At least they'd be rushed to hospi... no wait.

[sphericalfox]

Leave the Guardian as it is, makes the left look ridiculous. Anyone who reads the plagiarisms of Johann Hari with any hint of seriousness deserves what they get.

It's on it's last legs now anyway, circ barely over 200,000, less than the Daily Record.

Yes it's on its last legs, what with its exceptional award winning website, earning millions of advertising revenue, with all the other newspapers trailing in its innovating wake.

[Guest MattP]

Yes it's on its last legs, what with its exceptional award winning website, earning millions of advertising revenue, with all the other newspapers trailing in its innovating wake.

Millions? The Daily Fail is the top hit newspaper website in the World and they don't take in millions.

If the Guardian is making millions you would think they would pay their tax properly instead of funnelling it through offshore companies.

He was from The Independent.

Sure I've seen him in both.

[21st Century Fox]

Sure I've seen him in both.

The Guardian used to pick up his stories, as did The Telegraph and a few others.

[Guest MattP]

The Guardian used to pick up his stories, as did The Telegraph and a few others.

I get the Telegraph most days and can't ever remember him writing a column.

[Petchy]

Speak for yourself.

At least I am honest. If an opportunity arose to you now to pay less tax and it be legal, you're saying you would turn it down? Oh please...

Easy to say 'morally it is wrong' etc just because we're not in the position to benefit from this. Like ADK said, which hit the nail on the head, If it's legal people will do it. Until the day it becomes illegal to avoid tax in such a way, then you can't really blame them.

[sphericalfox]

Millions? The Daily Fail is the top hit newspaper website in the World and they don't take in millions.

If the Guardian is making millions you would think they would pay their tax properly instead of funnelling it through offshore companies.

Sure I've seen him in both.

Right, read my post again. Did I say it was the top hit newspaper? The Daily Fail gets the ironic hit bandwagon and inadvertently feeds their coffers.

Also have a read of this article.

I've included the paragraph below for those who can't be bothered to follow the link. Try again son!

< Several minutes into the session, as Rusbridger discussed digital revenues, we were treated to one. "We are earning tens of millions of pounds and it’s increasing at about 100 percent a year at the moment," said Rusbridger. >

Russbridger is the Editor btw.

[21st Century Fox]

I get the Telegraph most days and can't ever remember him writing a column.

He didn't in the Guardian either, he wrote for The Independent, other news outlets picked up a few of his stories. In fact it was The Guardian and The Telegraph ran the stories that outed him as a plagiarist.

[21st Century Fox]

At least I am honest. If an opportunity arose to you now to pay less tax and it be legal, you're saying you would turn it down? Oh please...

I'm sure I wouldn't be the only person to honestly say yes I would turn it down.

[flowwolf]

Wasn't Jimmy Carr once a student ? ( just asking )

[Petchy]

I'm sure I wouldn't be the only person to honestly say yes I would turn it down.

[21st Century Fox]

Would I pay all my earnings into a holding company, resign from that company so that my money can be then paid back to me as severance pay in the form of a loan into an offshore account, so that I don't have to pay my fair share to society whilst still reaping the benefits of living in that society. No, no I wouldn't, many wouldn't.

[Petchy]

The 'society' you mention is becoming more and more selfish every passing day though, brought on by the 'hard times'. People want to cover themselves and their families first and foremost before thinking about the 'society'. It's cases like this that get brought to public attention, so that people get 'outraged' towards those using the loophole. The loophole shouldn't be there in the first place so it should be the government getting the public backlash, not the celebs and footballers who have been using this exploit for years! Carr and the others obviously have people who 'advise' them on how to pay less tax, and they will do just that until the loophole doesn't exist anymore.

[ADK]

If i could avoid paying tax i definately would.

I couldn't give a f**k about the average moron that inhabits the same country as me.

[21st Century Fox]

If i could avoid paying tax i definately would.

I couldn't give a f**k about the average moron that inhabits the same country as me.

You do realise that tax pays for more than just benefits right?

[Daggers]

I do stuff which isn't legal, never mind exploiting loopholes, so I don't reckon I'm in any position to judge him for that - making the fact that I would have paid the tax irrelevant.

Where I do reckon I can comment is on his rank hypocrisy as that's the most odious aspect of this. That's what makes him the grubby little cvnt that he is.

[21st Century Fox]

I'm sure some of the people saying they wouldn't pay tax if they could get away with it, aren't the same people who berated the Greeks for the situation they're in.

[StanSP]

Wasn't Jimmy Carr once a student ? ( just asking )

Yes. He went to Cambridge and studied Politics and Science I think.

[flowwolf]

Yes. He went to Cambridge and studied Politics and Science I think.

Ah old habits die hard then. :D :D

[Petchy]

He's posted on twitter this morning about it all.

30m Jimmy Carr ‏@jimmycarr

I met with a financial advisor and he said to me “Do you want to pay less tax? It’s totally legal.” I said “Yes.”

29m Jimmy Carr ‏@jimmycarr

I now realise I’ve made a terrible error of judgement.

29m Jimmy Carr ‏@jimmycarr

Although I’ve been advised the K2 Tax scheme is entirely legal, and has been fully disclosed to HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs),

28m Jimmy Carr ‏@jimmycarr

I’m no longer involved in it and will in future conduct my financial affairs much more responsibly. Apologies to everyone. Jimmy Carr

Pretty much exactly how many of us thought it had happened, he had got advised that he could pay less tax so he agreed, as most people would if it was legal. Fair play to the guy for not being involved with it anymore, but no doubt people will still give him grief when it should be the government getting it instead for allowing the loophole to exist.

[glenny_fox]

He's posted on twitter this morning about it all.

Pretty much exactly how many of us thought it had happened, he had got advised that he could pay less tax so he agreed, as most people would if it was legal. Fair play to the guy for not being involved with it anymore, but no doubt people will still give him grief when it should be the government getting it instead for allowing the loophole to exist.

even a brain dead person could realise that if they were making millions every year, they should be paying more than about 1% tax.. pleading ignorance is all well and good but it still makes him a morally wrong hypocritical nob.

[hairy]

If I could pay less tax I would. If my adviser said "do this and pay less tax" I would. Most self employed people do. I really dont think its morally wrong. As for Cameron having a go, WTF I would imagine 100% of the people who donate to the Tory party use these such loopholes.

[glenny_fox]

If I could pay less tax I would. If my adviser said "do this and pay less tax" I would. Most self employed people do. I really dont think its morally wrong. As for Cameron having a go, WTF I would imagine 100% of the people who donate to the Tory party use these such loopholes.

its morally wrong in the fact that everybody should have to pay their way.. i bet he still expects to get everything for free (NHS).

But you're right, just about everybody would do it, but the fact we can't do it makes us resent the thing even more.

And as we all know, all politicians play devils advocate, they are all as corrupt as they come.

[Rincewind]

My brother gives advice on budgeting in his spare time. He says there are people that run their own business but their budgeting skills are terrible. So for £30 ph he sorts their income and outgoing looking for the best ways to save them money. No doubt this would involve taxes too. He would look at this loophole very carefully and would be very suspicious of it.

No doubt Jummy Carr may be intelligent to attend to his own affairs but it would be a lot less time consuming to give an accountant a couple of hundred to spend a day doing his accounts while he does what he is paid good money for while he can.

[Captain...]

I'm sure I wouldn't be the only person to honestly say yes I would turn it down.

You're not, I am currently paying more tax than I need to because I am set up as a sole trader and I am declaring all my invoices as income and paying the full rate of tax. I don't feel I have any right to set myself up as a business and claim expenses and pay corporation tax and then pay myself a minimum wage salary, because I am not. I am an IT contractor I have 0 expenses, all expenses are covered by the company I work for, I lose out in some ways, but get compensated in others and I am definitely much better off now, than when I was in full employment, so why shouldn't I pay more tax.

All of my peers think I am weird, they pay an accountant hundreds a year to save them thousands, and they all earn very decent amounts, there is justification out there, as self employed you don't get holiday or sick pay, you don't get pension contributions or any sort of rights really, but you get paid well to compensate.

As for Jimmy Carr, anyone questioning what he did better not have an ISA or anything similar, because that would make them a hypocrite, legal tax avoidance schemes exist to everyone, the biggest problem here is the amount of money that is involved, he is a very wealthy man, and so has lots of money to move around and not pay tax on, I still think it is a safe bet he paid more in tax this year than most on here, because he earns a lot of money. His sketch in the first post was clearly a dig at the large corporations, individuals paying 1% on 3million, is nothing compared to the amount of tax companies Barclays and Vodafone avoid/get written off.