Google insider:

[chrisj1968]

http://www.thesunday...icle1261720.ece

Former Google executive Barney Jones has a cache of 100,000 emails and documents (Paul Vicente)

A FORMER Google executive has blown the whistle on a massive and ?immoral? tax avoidance scheme that has ?cheated? British taxpayers out of hundreds of millions of pounds over the past decade.

Barney Jones, 34, who worked for the internet search giant between 2002 and 2006, has lifted the lid on an elaborate structure which diverts British profits through Ireland to the Bermuda tax haven.

Although Google?s London sales staff would negotiate and sign contracts with British customers, and cash was paid into a UK bank account, deals were technically booked through its Dublin office to minimise its liabilities here. Jones, a devout Christian and father of four, is ready to hand over a cache of more than 100,000 emails and documents to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), detailing the ?concocted scheme?.

He has already provided testimony to the Commons public accounts committee (PAC) which led to the combative questioning

[thealexweb]

Send them a one off fine of ?1bn and we'll turn a blind eye to their fraud.

[chrisj1968]

Send them a one off fine of ?1bn and we'll turn a blind eye to their fraud.

I'd think that, if they'd just pay their taxes like everyone else, nations wouldn't have s many problems.

[vcfan]

hmmm...makes you wonder why these "loopholes' exist and are still not closed.

and wait. let me get this straight. this guy was a google executive at 24 and was able to collect 100,000 emails that he took with him?

[Sylar0]

Damin American companies not doing their non legal social duties....

[+Majesticmerc MVC]

All companies do this. It's perfectly legal, even if it is immoral (and it is). At the end of the day, the government made these tax laws (and the loopholes therein), so it's up to them to fix the bugs in the system.

On a side note? What is the relevance of the whistleblower being "a devout christian and father of four"? Is this somehow supposed to make him morally superior?

[Breach]

Immoral does not equal illegal. Scam implies fraudulent activity. Sounds like tabloid journalism spinning a story. I'm all for businesses pay taxes like the next man, but if something needs fixing it's the law.

[n_K]

"Immoral does not equal illegal"

True, now please re-read, this is illegal. The head of google UK was being questioned about it and was adament that 'deals were not done in the UK nor was money changed hands in the UK' but it is, this guy is testfying to it, therefore it is illegal.

[Sylar0]

All companies do this. It's perfectly legal, even if it is immoral (and it is). At the end of the day, the government made these tax laws (and the loopholes therein), so it's up to them to fix the bugs in the system.

On a side note? What is the relevance of the whistleblower being "a devout christian and father of four"? Is this somehow supposed to make him morally superior?

Apparently so..........

Immoral does not equal illegal. Scam implies fraudulent activity. Sounds like tabloid journalism spinning a story. I'm all for businesses pay taxes like the next man, but if something needs fixing it's the law.

Indeed but I find it disgusting they should WANT to pay full taxes... sigh what ever happened to a sense of community.

[+Majesticmerc MVC]

Indeed but I find it disgusting they should WANT to pay full taxes... sigh what ever happened to a sense of community.

Shareholders happened. :no:

[Breach]

It's all a matter of whether 'negotiating' deals in the UK constitutes taxable presence or not as technically the 'sale' was done via Ireland. Whether what Google did was illegal or not remains to be seen. I'm just going to follow and see what comes out of this.

[Gaffney]

Shareholders happened. :no:

Companies being more powerful than the people in politics happened.

[Sylar0]

Shareholders happened. :no:

I weep everyday. People act like companies are doing us the favour by existing why without McDoanld's and Coke how would we feed ourselves?

[FlintyV]

Companies being more powerful than the people in politics happened.

I don't know about that. MPs pulled in a few Google and Amazon execs and gave them a bit of a hard time -

The laws really should be changed to try and close some of these loopholes.

[webeagle12]

Damin American companies not doing their non legal social duties....

Unfortunately it's not only American companies do this.

[123456789A]

100,000 Google emails about tax fraud? I wonder what kind of personalized ads Gmail was showing them?

[exotoxic]

hmmm...makes you wonder why these "loopholes' exist and are still not closed.

The loopholes can be close by the people in power but its those same people that are using it to maximum effect, so why would they??

[Tha Bloo Monkee]

This is nothing new, in fact, there is a term for this type of tax evasion.

Read further:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Irish_Arrangement