The Government has missed an opportunity to bring tax and employment rights into line as part of its plans to reform employment status, IPSE has warned.
The Government’s consultation, published today, focuses on employment rights, leaving the separate tax rules untouched. The Treasury is not involved in the consultation, raising questions about whether the Government is serious about tackling the long-standing inconsistencies in how employment status is treated.
IPSE’s Head of Policy and Research, Josh Toovey, said:
“Reforming employment status is long overdue, so it’s disappointing to see the Government approach this as an employment rights issue without bringing tax into the conversation.
“Tax and employment rights are two sides of the same coin. Yet we continue to have separate systems, creating confusion for individuals and businesses and leaving the door open to inconsistent outcomes. This consultation was an opportunity to take a more joined-up approach and start addressing that problem.
“We need a clearer, more coherent approach that tackles bogus self-employment without creating more uncertainty for the genuinely self-employed. This consultation is a missed opportunity to make meaningful progress towards that.”
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