Fair enough?
Deputy Director, Rachael Saunders outlines some of the key findings from the 2023 Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics survey.
13 July 2023
What is the ethical issue?
Countries set out in law how their taxes should apply and businesses are expected to pay their taxes due under the law. But tax avoidance is an ethical issue because organisations have a choice about their approach to interpreting the law and how that translates through tax planning into the tax they pay. Whilst remaining legal, where a business draws its ethical line regarding how to interpret the tax laws is a matter of discretion.
Tax avoidance is a grey area, as it often refers to legitimate but aggressive use of financial instruments to obtain a tax result not intended or anticipated by the government. One example is the use of overseas tax havens.
Tax avoidance is seen by many as not operating within the spirit of the law and has been branded by some as an ‘immoral’ and unethical practice that undermines the integrity of the tax system.
Tax evasion is illegal.
IBE Guidance
A summary of good practice
- Organisations need greater internal engagement around the decisions and circumstances behind their tax policy and the stance they take.
- In the UK, if a company is a certain size (turnover above £200 million, balance sheet of over £2 billion) it must publish annually its tax strategy.
- This then needs to be communicated externally, explaining the business decisions that have led to where and how much tax has been paid. This transparency is helping to restore trust with the public.
- It is good practice for all other organisations to have a clear and transparent statement regarding their position on the payment of tax, guided by their ethical values.
Further resources
Recent Surveys on Business Ethics
Read the IBE's summary of the latest surveys on business ethics.
11 July 2023
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics 2023
The findings from the IBE's 2023 annual survey on British public attitudes toward business ethics reveal fewer believe businesses are operating ethically.
11 July 2023
Businesses need to be transparent on taxes as public disquiet reaches record high
Read our latest guest blog by Graham Drummond, Head of Communications at the Fair Tax Foundation.
04 July 2022
Is your business ethical - and do your stakeholders think so?
Listen in as Survey Director, Christopher Cowton shares his thoughts on our latest survey, IBE Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics 2022.
30 June 2022
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics 2022
Businesses and UK politicians must do better at demonstrating their ethical credentials if they are to win back the confidence of the British public - the 2022 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics.
29 June 2022
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics 2021
Britain’s businesses could behave better - the 2021 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics.
17 January 2022
Attitudes. Ethics. Trust.
In this blog, Guendalina Donde, IBE's Head of Research, discusses the results of the 2020 Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics survey.
13 January 2021
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics 2020
The 2020 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics.
30 December 2020
Business Ethics in the News 2020
This briefing provides an overview of the ethical concerns and lapses that were recorded by the IBE in its monitoring of media coverage in 2020.
23 December 2020
#PandemicAndBeyond - 20:20 Hindsight
In the first blog of the series, Pandemic and Beyond: the ethical issues, Mark Chambers, IBE’s Associate Director (Governance), introduces the series and reflects on the year so far.
02 September 2020
Business Ethics in the News 2019
This briefing provides an overview of the ethical concerns and lapses that were recorded by the IBE in its monitoring of media coverage in 2019. It gives an overview of which sectors and issues related to business ethics were most covered in the news. For 2019, we have recorded a total of 361 different stories involving lapses of companies with a UK presence.
29 January 2020
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics: 2019
The 2019 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics.
17 December 2019
A Year In Review: Ethical Concerns and Lapses 2018
Read the IBE's annual analysis of business ethics news stories from the last year - which were the sectors and issues most in the news in 2018?
30 January 2019
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics: 2018
The 2018 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics
13 December 2018
Attitudes of the British Public to Business Ethics: 2017
The 2017 results of the IBE's annual survey of the attitudes of the British public to business ethics
12 December 2017
Tax Avoidance as an Ethical Issue for Business
This briefing explores corporate taxation and specifically the issue of tax avoidance as a business ethics issue. It looks at public attitudes to avoidance, concepts of fairness and tax as a social responsibility.
17 April 2013