I see that Jimmy Carr, that well known celebrity member of the aggressive tax avoidance scheme K2 has twittereeted that he has now exited the scheme saying "I'm sorry. I made a mistake". I think what he is sorry about is the fact that he could probably see a future of declining DVD sales, appearing in front of decreasing audience numbers, dealing with hecklers on a nightly basis and companies not wishing to endorse any programme he might be appearing in. I expect he was sorry that on the 10'o'clock show he did that skit lambasting Barclays for using similar schemes to his own, yet branding them as scum. Hypocrisy is a nasty human trait we all succumb to at times. His mistake was that he got caught. Let's be truthful here, if he hadn't been outed by the Times newspaper he would still be paying 1% income tax and feeling very smug about himself. Of course if he had stayed a member he could have seen his career self destruct. But on the up side he would have achieved the tax nirvana of paying 0% income tax because his income would have probably been zero.
The main point is not that some shaved celebrity chimp has been involved in tax avoidance. No surprise there. It would probably be harder to find one that wasn't.The main point is the Governments snail like response to closing down these schemes. After all, when it came to Osborne gleefully snatching away the tax credits of the low paid he did it with such speed he made Usain Bolt look like a Sunday stroller. When the Witchfinder General Duncan Smith decided that the disabled were just a bunch of malingerers 'pretending' they had a limp and that being able to buy food and have a roof over their heads was a luxury they could do without he acted faster than a mackerel being chased by a seal being chased by a shark. But when it comes to shutting down tax avoidance schemes where the wealthy benefit suddenly they have difficulty putting one foot in front of the other. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the number of friends, relatives and business partners of the Cabinet who may be involved in such schemes.
I'm sure it has nothing at all to do with that.
Some Statistics on Homelessness.
50,290 families were declared homeless in the last year.
3,960 families were forced to live in bed-and-breakfast accommodation. An increase of 44%.
480 families have been living in bed-and-breakfast for longer that six weeks. An increase of 300%
Congratulations to the coalition and that corporate lick spittle Grant Shaaps in particular. Great job guys, great job.
Olympic Opening Ceremony.
There are certain iconic images of the countryside I expect to see in Danny Boyle's bucolic opening ceremony. They are as follows.
A group of dull eyed youths hanging around a bus shelter, drinking cider and endlessly saying 'whatever' and ' I don't mean to be funny,but'.
All the farmyard animals should have a wary but resigned look on their faces when a middle aged man in wellingtons approaches them from behind.
There should be a line of overweight, Tory voting farmers standing in a queue underneath a sign saying 'benefits office this way' but the word benefits is crossed out and replaced with the word 'subsidies'
A group of yokels are standing around complaining about 'townies' interfering in their way of life. Then they all go off to do the weekly shop at Tesco buying food subsidised by the millions of 'townies' who also shop at Tesco.
An ironic take on hunting with dogs where a small defenseless child is chased around the stadium by a pack of dogs and then ripped apart for the enjoyment of the onlookers who then smear the child's blood over themselves.
Rusting disused farm equipment littered around the stadium.
A retired couple from the city who have just moved into the area complaining about the noise made by the church bells or cockerels.
A group of chinless hoorays from the city blasting hundreds of birds out of the sky then the landowner complaining that a bird of prey once took a quail to feed its chick.
A landowner, probably a Tory MP, trying to introduce a policy where birds of prey can be persecuted to extinction because 'it affects the bottom line old boy'
If any of these scenarios are not included Mr Boyle then you have failed.
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