With international travel now resuming, the TaxPayers’ Alliance can reveal that government departments spent £1,267,954 on first and business class flights before the covid lockdowns began. Spending on business class flights came to a staggering £1,256,561 in 2019-20 - the average ticket price being nearly £2,900.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs seemingly thought it prudent to purchase two first class tickets at a cost of over £11,000! But this was despite a Cabinet Office travel policy stating, “no public sector personnel should be travelling first class, irrespective of grade, entitlement or distance.”
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With lockdown moving the majority of work meetings online, we are calling on government departments to reduce their carbon footprint and the cost of flights by restricting travel to essential journeys only.
Our message is already making a splash in the press. Our digital campaign manager Joe Ventre was heard loud and clear across national news bulletins on LBC telling the government to embrace virtual conference technology and "eliminate necessary spending." These comments were very much echoed by our chief executive John O'Connell in a release to the nation's media:
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This isn't the first time we've tackled public sector staff enjoying luxury flights at taxpayers' expense. In fact our campaigning has been so successful that one notable quango has put a stop to air travel. The Climate Change Committee previously spent thousands of pounds on unnecessary flights. But following our exposé has ended this largesse - a big victory for taxpayers!
As Britain's waste watchdog the TPA will continue to call out hypocritical government departments.
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Following the latest easing of covid restrictions, our team was able to visit towns and cities across the country again. On our travels we called in at Basingstoke, Winchester, Dorchester and Weymouth where we met supporters to learn about the issues in their area.
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We also filmed a number of videos for social media that will expose local authorities and public bodies that are failing to keep a tight grip on the purse strings. Make sure you stay tuned to our Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages so you don't miss a beat!
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TaxPayers' Alliance in the news
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10p plastic bag charge to cost shoppers over £1 billion
As you may be aware the 10p plastic bag charge came into effect on Friday. The TPA has calculated the increased rate (from 5p to 10p) will cost consumers £1.03 billion over the next decade. As well as the 10p levy itself, shoppers face hidden costs like the increased use of paper bags and VAT paid on the charge. Together this is estimated to add around £45 to the cost of living for each household.
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Our findings were covered in the national press most notably, the Express, Independent and The Sun. Voicing her concerns, our media campaign manager Danielle Boxall said, "While the charge has helped cut down the use of carrier bags, it’s still shoppers paying the price. Moving on from plastic bags will bring many benefits, but politicians cannot pretend this hasn’t hiked the cost of living for hard-pressed households. The move to online shopping during the pandemic may do more for cutting carrier bag use than this new 10p charge.”
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MP splashes the cash on high-end tech
Zara Sultana, the member of parliament for Coventry South, has come under fire after The Telegraph revealed she spent nearly "£800 of taxpayers' money on an influencer toolkit" to boost her social media following. She used public funds to purchase an LED light ring, a Canon DSLR camera and a high-end microphone.
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Asked for comment John O'Connell was critical of the spending, “Taxpayers will be deeply concerned that their money has been spent on an expensive influencer tool kit. The electorate expects politicians to stay grounded and keep costs under control, particularly when it comes to high-end digital equipment. With the economy and public finances in such dire straits, MPs must show that we’re all in it together and think carefully about what they claim for."
The TaxPayers' Alliance will continue to keep a close eye on politicians' expenses.
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Newly elected councillors must launch a war on waste
In the wake of the recent local elections, there will be many newly elected councillors, possibly now in overall control of a council, eager to make a big difference in their local communities. One of the best ways to do this is by ensuring that every penny of council tax nets maximum possible value.
As I wrote for ConservativeHome this week, hand-wringing council bosses and bureaucrats will claim that there is no fat left to trim. This simply isn't true and I laid out five ways that savings can be made.
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For example, restructuring senior management can be a massive boon to ratepayers. Stoke City Council is seeking to reduce its number of senior staff and save taxpayers £360,000 a year in the process.
We are urging councillors to make much-needed savings. We are standing ready to help them achieve this. If you're one of them and would like a helping hand then please get in touch!
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Town Halls: How do we pay for them and what needs to change?
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And while we're on the subject, I hope you can join me for what promises to be a fascinating discussion with panellists James Frayne of Public First, Andrew Dixon of Fairer Share and journalist and former councillor Harry Phibbs on Town halls: How we pay for them and what should change?
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With millions of households suffering another year of inflation-busting council tax rises more must be done to keep tax bills as low as possible. Our expert panel will explore how to make this a reality.
The webinar kicks off at 6pm on Thursday 27th May, Places are limited so don't delay - click here to register your attendance.
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HMRC faces a huge challenge when it comes to Bitcoin
With the economy still in turmoil and the prospect of impending inflation, some investors are looking to something called ‘Bitcoin’ to secure the value of their money. Whether you’re interested in investing in Bitcoin or not, at a market capitalisation of over £700 billion, it is making up a larger and larger part of the world’s financial system. But what is Bitcoin, how does it work - and what does it mean for taxation?
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As TPA regional coordinator Charles Amos explores this week Bitcoin can operate like undeclared cash, meaning HMRC clearly has a problem on its hands, which will no doubt one day require much wider consideration of the complexity and unwieldiness of the UK’s outdated tax system.
He argues that if Bitcoin’s popularity and value continue upwards, the problem will only get bigger for the tax man. HMRC needs to overhaul the tax code and create something fit for the digital age. Simplification of taxes like CGT and NI among others - as we suggested in our landmark Single Income Tax - will be a key part of the solution. Click here to read the full story.
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Shropshire councillors award themselves allowances increase
Yet again another tone-deaf council has seen fit to approve an increase in their allowances. The rise by Shropshire council will cost local taxpayers nearly £36,000 per year. Both the leader and deputy of the council will see a bump in their special responsibility allowance by £4,458 and £4,093 respectively.
Given the devastating effect the pandemic is having on many taxpayers jobs and salaries, it is completely unacceptable for any council to act in this way. Indeed, some councillors tabled an amendment urging the rise to implemented next year but unfortunately were voted down.
As TPA research makes clear, the cost of councillors isn't cheap, coming in at £255 million in 2018-19. We will continue to call out local authorities that hike council tax and then award themselves pay increases.
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Harry Fone
Grassroots Campaign Manager
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