Thursday 15 January 2015

Scrap the hike in oil and gas tax says MSP

Cutting an extra tax imposed on the UK oil and gas sector would restore confidence claims Scotland's Energy Minister.

Fergus Ewing said at a meeting earlier this week, that the introduction of the supplementary charge back in 2011, caused unfortunate reverberations throughout the investment sector.

The charge, introduced by the UK Chancellor, meant oil and gas companies had to pay an additional tax on their ring fence profits. It was originally 20% but was increased to 32% by George Osborne.

But with the recent fall in oil prices, Mr Ewing believes it must now be scrapped in order to restore confidence in the sector .

Mr Ewing said: “Removal of that 12% surcharge in 2011, in a timed-tabled phased fashion is necessary we believe to restore confidence.”

The Chancellor did cut it by 2% recently and it currently stands at 30%. The Scottish MSP is urging the UK Government to introduce further cuts into March’s budget.