The head of multinational corporation Unilever has warned that the company could quit the UK if it is hit with further tax rises.
Chief executive Paul Polman told the Daily Mail the economic environment was already tough because consumers have less money to spend.
“If on top of that we would get an additional regulatory or tax environment that would make us non-competitive that would be unfortunate for the UK,” he said.
The UK has one of the highest corporation tax rates in Europe. High-earners from April will be hit with prime minister Gordon Brown’s 50p tax rate, a move which some critics have said will trigger an exodus of workers.
Polman added: “We do have choices where we put research laboratories, choices for manufacturing facilities and choices where we put our senior management.
“Any responsible businessman needs to continue to assess that within an ever-changing global environment.”
