Alistair Darling's Flipping Tax Returns

The next batch of details from the Daily Telegraph on how MP's spend our money focuses on the fact that nine members of the Cabinet used our money to have their tax returns filled in.

This is taking the proverbial. They have the cheek to steal our money, cheat on taxes by flipping and then get us to pay for filling in their crooked tax returns. You just couldn't make it up.

The Daily Telegraph tells us that ex-Trot and Public School Boy Alistair Darling the Labour Chancellor is such an incompetent at dealing with the likes of Taxes that he got the public to pay up more than £1,400 for accountancy bills in two years. This included the cost of receiving tax advice for “the treatment of rental expenses against income”. During 2007, Mr Darling rented out his London flat after becoming Chancellor and moving into a grace-and-favour apartment. Mr Darling is also one of the few MP's who has managed to flip four time in four years.

Of course it's all within the "rules" the rules, you'll remember, they themselves have set. Of course the reason they need to get accountants to do this for them is because of all the new Labour government’s taxation policies that have made the process so complicated that it is very hard for ordinary tax-payers to complete their returns without professional advice. Professional advice that ordinary punters cannot claim against expenses

Ministers who claimed to have their tax returns filled in included Hazel Blears, Geoff Hoon and Jacqui Smith, David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, James Purnell, the Work and Pensions Secretary, and Douglas Alexander, the International Development Secretary.


MPs' expenses: Alistair Darling's claim for help with his tax return - Telegraph