The suggestion to prosecute advisers was part of a series of amendments to the Finance Bill tabled by MP for Dover Charlie Elphicke. The amendments would make it illegal to advise clients to actively avoid paying tax.
Elphicke, an ex-tax lawyer, told The Times on Monday: “You shouldn’t just go after the client, you should go after the person who advises them.”
Nigel Green, founder and chief executive of deVere Group, said: “For someone who had a career as a tax lawyer, it seems bizarre that Mr Elphicke appears unaware of the differences between tax avoidance, which is perfectly legal and can form a sensible part of a robust tax planning strategy, and tax evasion, which is illegal and therefore punishable under the law.
“The notion that it will be illegal to advise someone on legally mitigating their tax liabilities is surely flawed.”
He added: “Not only is it flawed it is utterly disingenuous. If politicians, and others, are unhappy with the system as it currently stands, it is MPs who need to answer questions. It is they who have the power to change the country’s tax laws.
“Maybe there is indeed a need to overhaul the complex system but it is not financial advisers who can do this.”
