CBI chief uses 100th day anniversary speech to attack government over corporation tax

Higher corporation tax levels in the UK are forcing multinational firms to relocate elsewhere, according to the CBI.

In a speech to the national media on his one hundredth day as director-general of the CBI, Richard Lambert lambasted the government for the high levels of corporation tax in the UK compared with our European neighbours.

He argued that the 30% tax compared particularly unfavourably with the 12.5% rate in the Republic of Ireland and meant that companies either had to generate more cash outside the UK or corporation tax would need to come down.

HM Revenue & Customs was accused of making the problem worse by aggressively chasing business taxes.

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Lambert said: “A trickle of companies are relocating and our anxiety is that it does not turn into a flood.

“Compared to the rest of Europe the burden of taxation is rising in the UK at the same time as tax collection has become noticeably more aggressive.”