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Shocking confession

04 June 2013 / Sarah Saunders
Issue: 4405 / Categories: Comment & Analysis

Is being a tax adviser an honourable way to earn a living?

KEY POINTS

  • Is there an evil conspiracy of tax advisers?
  • The continuing relevance of legal decisions on avoidance.
  • Tax advisers administer much of the tax system.
  • Tax complexity encourages the search for loopholes.
  • When does acceptable tax-saving become unacceptable?

My name is Sarah and I am a tax adviser. Clearly I cannot be proud to admit this shameful fact. If I were appearing on television I would be portrayed in silhouette only and an actor would speak my words. I was innocent once but I was lured into dabbling in tax while taking my degree. How could I realise that I was involved in something immoral?

All the people I worked with seemed nice and respectable; they talked about things like “professional ethics”. I had no idea I...

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