A House of Commons debate on the ongoing controversy and continuing impact of the Loan Charge will be held on 18 January [2024], the Loan Charge and Taxpayer Fairness All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) announced last month [December].

The Commons Backbenchers Business Committee granted the request for the debate on the Loan Charge, which has claimed 10 lives since its launch 2016 and implementation in 2019.

The APPG has been highly critical of HM Revenue & Customs and HM Treasury for their approach in dealing with the mis-selling and operation of unacceptable tax avoidance schemes, as well as failing to protect vulnerable workers who were mis-sold the schemes. It is acknowledged by the APPG that thousands of people caught up in the schemes “still face serious anxiety, bankruptcy and breakdown… all too predictable suicides, bankruptcies and family break-ups, all of which have happened”.

In a 21 December statement on X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, the APPG said: “This will be an important opportunity to highlight the multi-faceted nature of the #LoanChargeScandal and the profound policy failure the Loan Charge has been.” The message went on to urge those interested in the debate to encourage their MPs to attend.

Last October, the Loan Charge and Taxpayer Fairness APPG emphasised that it has been calling for “effective action to stop the ongoing mis-selling and operation of unacceptable tax avoidance schemes and for action to be taken against those who recommended, promoted and operated the schemes now subject to the Loan Charge”. The APPG statement went on to say: “The reality is that until now, HMRC has failed with regard to both of these aims.”

The APPG has also pointed out: “Despite HMRC giving the contrary impression, the reality, as exposed by Freedom of Information requests, is that there have been no arrests or prosecutions, never mind convictions, of anyone for promoting or selling the schemes that are now subject to the Loan Charge. There has been a consistent and concerted campaign of disinformation by HMRC and the Treasury to give the false impression that HMRC have taken action against those who promoted the schemes which are now subject to the controversial Loan Charge, when this is not the case. HMRC (especially via their press office) have sought to give a highly misleading impression that they have taken action against loan scheme promoters, so much so that the APPG felt compelled to publish a report in March 2020 exposing this.

“HMRC and the Treasury have admitted in an FOI response that they cannot go after promoters of loan schemes as such schemes were not illegal and, ironically, the financial secretary to the Treasury has admitted that the government would need to change the law retrospectively to be able to do so,” the APPG said.

News of the forthcoming debate was enthusiastically greeted on X. An X user identified as @NotRichYoungFa1 addressed a tweet to Ipswich MP Tom Hunt, saying: “Please listen to your constituents suffering due to the Loan Charge… As #GeneralElection approaches, listen to 40+ families in #Ipswich, approach with open mind and not accept HMRC/HMT [HM Revenue & Customs, HM Treasury] propaganda at face value.”

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