"We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes..."

Was the words associated to Leona Mindy Roberts Helmsley American businesswoman and real estate entrepreneur. She was a flamboyant personality and had a reputation for tyrannical behaviour that earned her the nickname Queen of Mean.

Following allegations by unpaid contractors that work done on her home had been charged to her company, she was investigated and convicted of federal income tax evasion and other crimes in 1989. Although having initially received a sentence of 16 years, Helmsley was required to serve only 19 months in prison and two months under house arrest. Helmsley's fate was sealed when a former housekeeper testified during the trial that she had heard Helmsley say: "We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes...", a saying that became notorious and was identified with her for the rest of her life.

But it seems that this belief seems to be everywhere. From Comedian Jimmy Carr to Singer Garry Barlow and Tory Backers Philip Green Lord Ashcroft..

The latest outrage was when it was disclosed when it was disclosed that comedian Jimmy Carr was amongst a number of celebrities to legally avoid paying their Tax due

The prime minister struck a populist note over the issue during a round of television interviews in Mexico on Wednesday, saying the comedian's investments appeared to be "very dodgy" Carr swiftly became a hate figuer.

However he was hesitant to condemn others who unlike Carr are associated with the Tory party ,


Mr Cameron's rhetoric has drawn accusations of hypocrisy from Labour. Just before the general election it emerged that Lord Ashcroft, a Tory donor and former deputy chairman, had enjoyed "non-dom" tax status, and so did not pay UK tax on overseas earnings.and he failed to include Gary Barlow in his criticism saying it was a different case.

Yesterday the Prime Minister said he would no longer be giving a ‘running commentary’ on the tax affairs of the wealthy, adding that his outspoken criticism of Carr on Wednesday had been an ‘exception’.

So it seems that Cameron has amended  the saying 
'There's one Law for the Rich and another for the poor' to add  'but only if the rich are Tories".

Cameron has achieved a remarkable feet in making Tax dodger Jimmy Carr a seeming victim criticized not because he has been avoiding Tax but because he's not a Tory. 


Why was Carr singled out on this in any case?

Carr is said to have used an aggressive, legal, tax-avoidance scheme which enables members to pay income tax rates as low as 1%.

The comic, who has famously lampooned fat cat bankers, reportedly protects some £3.3m a year by channelling cash through Jersey-based company K2.

Carr is said to be one of more than 1,000 beneficiaries who shelter some £168m from the taxman each year using K2. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said the K2 scheme was already under investigation.

So why Carr out of these Thousands?

Lets face it all the establishment whether in Politics, Finance, Show business,Sport or the media have accountants only to eager to show them how to avoid paying Tax .

As my late father would have said "They are all at it".

We have hundreds of Civil servants wh should be working on this why haven't thay worked out . How to close these loopholes?

Of course a lot end up once leaving the Civil service  becoming gamekeepers turned poachers advising people on the loopholes they ahd failed to close when working for HMRC.

If we closed these lopholes then we could probably pay for many of the services cut by the ConLobdem government and reverse the attack on the power whose only option for advise is the over stretched Citizens Advice Bureau.

But then Carr, Barlow  Cameron and the others don't have any reall interest on the little people