What the media says about me...
"a troublemaker of considerable skill"Simon Hoggart, Guardian, 12 December 2008
| Pendle MP Tightens the Screw on Non Doms in Parliament |
 |
 |
 |
| Thursday, 17 December 2009 18:31 |
|
Pendle MP, Gordon Prentice, has tabled an amendment to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill to force disclosure of the names of Members of Parliament who are not UK residents for tax purposes. There has been speculation ever since his ennoblement nine years ago that Lord Ashcroft is, or has been in one or more tax years since 2000, a non domiciled person enjoying favourable tax treatment. The Pendle MP said: "I lodged a Freedom of Information request with the Information Commissioner 20 months ago to find out the nature of the undertaking Michael Ashcroft gave when he was being considered for a life peerage and to whom that undertaking was given." "The Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham, has now told me he hopes to decide the matter by the end of next month." The MP added: "Until the Zac Goldsmith revelations I thought it inconceivable that an MP or someone seeking election to the Commons could be a non dom. There have always been suggestions that some peers were non doms." "There in an overriding public interest in making sure that all Members of Parliament, Lords and Commons, are UK residents for tax purposes." "Given everything that has happened in recent weeks, I am confident that the Information Commissioner will rule in my favour." Note to Editors: The Commons motion on tax status and amendment to the Bill follow:
EDM 466 Taxation Status of Hon Members This House believes that members of both Houses of Parliament should be domiciled and ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom; notes that the Government is to bring forward a draft House of Lords Bill which will include provisions to exclude peers who are non domiciled from sitting in that Chamber; nevertheless believes that this timetable is too leisurely and deals only with the Lords and takes the view that the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill, which has already had its Commons second reading, provides a better vehicle for making an early change to the law in this respect and calls on the Government to table its own amendments which would prevent non domiciled persons from serving in Parliament and require existing Members to certify that they have been resident in the UK for tax purposes in each year since 2000 Gordon Prentice MP David Taylor MP and over 50 others
What follows went down on the Order Paper on Wednesday 16 December 2009 COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE HOUSE CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM AND GOVERNANCE BILL Disqualification from membership of the House of Commons and the House of Lords on grounds of residence and domicile for taxation purposes Mr Gordon Prentice To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a person is disqualified from membership of the House of Commons and House of Lords if he does not comply with the conditions set out in subsection (2). (2) The conditions referred to in subsection (1) are— (a) that he was resident in the United Kingdom for the purposes of Part 14 of the Income Tax Act 2007 (c. 3) for the tax year during which he was elected or appointed and for each subsequent tax year; and
(b) in the case of a non-domiciled United Kingdom resident, that he has not made a claim to be taxed on the remittance basis in respect of the tax year in which he was first elected or appointed, nor in any of the previous ten tax years, nor in any subsequent tax year during which he was a Member of Parliament.
(3) Members of Parliament must submit a declaration to the relevant authority indicating that they are in compliance with the conditions set out in subsection (2). (4) A declaration under subsection (3) must be submitted to the relevant authority— (a) within 30 days of the date of election or appointment; (b) in the case of existing members of the House of Commons, within 30 days of the date on which this Act comes into force, and within 30 days of their election to any subsequent Parliament; or (c) in the case of existing members of the House of Lords, within 30 days of the date on which this Act comes into force, and subsequently between 1 February and 5 April in each calendar year. (5) Declarations must be made in accordance with arrangements made by the relevant authorities. (6) Members of Parliament who do not submit a declaration in accordance with subsections (4) and (5) shall be liable to disqualification under this section. (7) In section 6 of the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 (c. 24), references to that Act shall be construed as including references to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. (8) In this section— "appointed" means to have received a writ of summons to attend the House of Lords; "Member of Parliament" means a member of the House of Commons or a member of the House of Lords; "relevant authority" means— in the case of the House of Commons, the Speaker, and in the case of the House of Lords, the Lord Speaker.’.
|