Last week I was a delegate at The Telegraph Festival of Business in Manchester. Several hundred business owners and managers from a wide range of SMEs attended to hear various speakers including the Chancellor George Osborne.
During a Q&A session I asked George a question about Capital Gains Tax. I commended him on raising entrepreneurs' relief but reminded him that a problem remains with employee incentives.
My key staff who have share options and LTIPs (long term incentive plans) do not own 5% of the business and as such do not qualify for the 10% tax band. They all work hard in order to make the business a success and they will all deserve to be rewarded should the share price rise or should the business be sold.
They would all be taxed at 28% under current rules. I believe there is an inequality here where the people gaining the most from such transactions (i.e. the owners) will pay a much lower rate of tax than those who are benefiting substantially less.
To his credit, George understood the question perfectly. This was refreshing. I asked David Cameron the same question about 1 week into his premiership and he appeared not to understand what I was asking. Osborne said that he had every sympathy but that he had to be careful not to create any new loop holes that might be exploited.
It was then that I noticed the great big hole in the sole of George's shoe. Being quite a smartly presented fellow I am sure he would be horrified to know that anyone had seen this. I tweeted about seeing this hole, which was then also noticed by Daily Telegraph City Editor Richard Fletcher. Somehow word got to columnist and cobbler John Timpson who has offered to collect George's shoes and fix them. What a great idea as long as Georgie boy submits a declaration of interest of course.
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