Budget comment: on corporate taxes

The initial perhaps inevitable reaction to those parts of the Budget dealing with corporate tax is one of disappointment. Disappointment that despite the pressing problems of the fiscal deficit and the looming election the Chancellor failed to halt (let alone reverse) the UK's slide towards an unattractive and uncompetitive tax regime. Instead we were treated to the usual ragbag of measures frequently designed to micro-manage parts of the economy or as yet too vague to be properly assessed.

To give the Treasury some credit we got some broadly helpful indications of future developments in relation to the new patent box a hint that the long awaited CFC reform will finally be delivered within the next 12 months (although its form remains much open to debate) and a clear indication of a desire on the part of Government to identify...