Immoral attacks

Published on 23/06/2012 00:00

Martin Tognieri (Letters, 22 June) rightly brands David Cameron as hypocritical on the subject of tax avoidance: he might also have described his intervention as opportunistic and inept.

With the stench of political immorality on the matter of false expense claims still in the air, he should remember the most common excuse offered: “It’s within the rules”, or worse still; “I thought it was within the rules”.

Comedian Jimmy Carr had every right to employ any legal avenue to pay no more tax than necessary. Where I disagree with Mr Tognieri is in his view that such strategies starve the budgets for Trident missiles: these will be financed nevertheless.

Mr Tognieri questions the application of morality to taxpaying, but if the Prime Minister wishes to justify it he must also see to it that morality is a factor in both setting tax levels and deciding how our money is spent.

Taxation should be set at the lowest levels possible commensurate with the nation’s security and well-being, with its main priority leaving people with the maximum possible amount of earnings so as to sustain the economy.

The Iraq war drained the exchequer of massive funds which could have protected us from the present financial downturn, and it was founded on the plainly immoral grounds of removing another nation’s government. This was made doubly immoral by the prime minister of the day, Tony Blair, misleading parliament by denying this was his intention.

Robert Dow

Ormiston Road

Tranent