Tax authorities 'help' with your return but look away as some 'help themselves'

I see from Manx Radio that 40% of people haven’t completed their tax return. It gets me wondering is this higher than last year but there’s no elucidation on that. I also muse ‘I wonder how many people haven’t paid their rates:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/40-of-tax-returns-yet-to...

I generally complete my tax return and pay the rates pretty promptly. With tax I think you have until the first week of 2019 to cough up the final bill. However then again I’m quite aged (as Alf keeps reminding me of that) so I may have that wrong. If I am wrong no doubt the Assessor Guffogg will fine me - who does she think she is the bleeding Deputy High Bailiff it seems we have a surfeit of aspiring judicial hot-pots on the Isle of Man.

Tax annoys me because I keep waiting for that letter from Treasury Minister Alf Cannan MHK responding to my query (originally sent to Eddie Teare) about tax avoidance, tax planning and the expenses economy. Alf is always on the radio blathering all over Tim Glovers clean white shirt but he never mentions the real tax dodgers on the Island because they are his mates in the business communities. I may have to doorstep him to get an answer.

I had hoped to circumvent Alf and pop in and see that Sheila Lowe his CEO she seems a nice lady. I thought I could take a packet of chocolate hobnobs and pop in for a cup of tea and say ‘ please answer my letter’!

Why don't’ the government and Alf want to talk about the tax avoidance regime that's losing the country money and forcing lower paind and middle income workers to have to pay more while the well heeled laugh in our faces.

Alf used to be full of criticisms of Eddie Teare when Eddie was Treasury Minister but at least Eddie accepted it was an issue with Alf he’s had a ‘white out’ on the matter.

Of course I don’t doubt that some politicians and Ministers are probably into tax planning themselves. You see if you can avoid tax ‘within the law’ that's ok apparently only I don’t think so. I think it's morally wrong and some other poor sod has to pay for the largesse extended to the tax avoider because Alf is to busy preparing for his next vacuous outing on Manx Radio.

The Income Tax division are always talking about ‘helping people with their returns’. I wish they would spend a bit more time tackling the people who are helping themselves to tax revenues!

Image: Left to Right - ‘Bela Lugosi’, Bill, Alf and ‘Another’ - none of them can respond to correspondence - marvellous

Bernard Moffatt