Re: I cannot understand why HMRC pursues contractors so much.
@jmch: "I do blame the government that nominally sets the rules. I blame even more the companies who pay huge sums to lobbyists, government entities, think-thanks etc to get laws written for them in a way that they can game the system and save obscene amounts, next to which the huge amounts they pay to get what they want are a relative pittance. And the government officials allowing this are doubly fools for being so cheaply bought."
Sorry to disagree, but there's very little that's foolish about government officials playing fast and loose with legislation and indulging the profit-chasing money-grubbing of various private sector enterprises -- generally, the bigger the better -- until such time as said officials are due to take early retirement from the Civil Service. At which point, the well-known revolving door between public sector and private sector spins again and, by remarkable coincidence, the same officials who over the years have been so lenient in regulatory matters in regard to certain companies, find themselves in plum jobs at senior management or Board level at those same companies. 'Tis the way the world work, sadly, and is tolerated by an electorate too du and too inert to campaign for the demolition of that revolving door.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
