Google Faces Tax Protest Again In The UK

On at least two previous occasions, UK politicians have argued that Google's accounting is a little too creative when it comes to taxes, and this weekend, the search giant was called out again.&nbs...
Google Faces Tax Protest Again In The UK
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On at least two previous occasions, UK politicians have argued that Google’s accounting is a little too creative when it comes to taxes, and this weekend, the search giant was called out again.  Lord David Puttnam even used the word "outrageous" to describe Google’s habits.

Google LogoThis whole affair began about one year ago, when an accountant hired by the Sunday Times found that over 90 percent of Google’s UK tax revenues were channeled through Ireland in 2007, saving the company something like $160 million due to differences in tax rates.

A later report determined that Google managed to avoid paying $725 million in 2008, too.

Now, there aren’t any new numbers, but according to Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Puttnam told the Sunday Telegraph, "Multinationals such as Google that are generating such significant profits should pay the taxes that we pay on revenues we generate."

And Puttnam’s opinions carry some weight.  He’s a knight, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, the UK government’s digital advisor, and sits on the Labour benches in the House of Lords.

Google’s accountants and lawyers might want to get ready for a fight, then, if anything comes of this new round of complaints.

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