Canada and the U.K. to strengthen collaboration to improve tax compliance and services to businesses and citizens
September 8, 2014 London, England Canada Revenue Agency
The Honourable Kerry-Lynne D. Findlay, P.C., Q.C., M.P., Minister of National Revenue, and David Gauke, Financial Secretary to the Treasury for the United Kingdom (U.K.) and responsible for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, met today. Following their meeting in London they issued the following statement:
“We are pleased that the strong and productive relationship between our two administrations is helping our countries to improve services to businesses and citizens while tackling tax compliance challenges. Our administrations have many similarities, and often the same challenges, making meetings like this one today of great mutual benefit. The recently signed protocol amending the Convention between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United Kingdom is a significant step in our efforts to modernize the legal and administrative mechanisms between our two countries which allow us to deal with issues such as international tax evasion.
“We discussed issues facing our respective tax administrations and how, by working together, we can better share information, encourage tax compliance and pursue individuals or organizations who seek to avoid their tax obligations. While both our administrations have made significant progress in tackling offshore tax evasion, it continues to be a priority given its threat to the integrity and fairness of tax systems around the world. We must remain both vigilant and active in our pursuit of ways to promote tax fairness and integrity. Strong, collaborative relationships between leading tax administrations such as Canada and the U.K. are a vital element in this effort.
“We underscored the importance of small businesses to the growth and prosperity of our economies and the need to keep red tape and paperwork to a minimum. We also exchanged views on our efforts to ensure a fair and competitive business environment. Over the next five years, new options for filing and paying taxes will be needed as more and more individuals and businesses look for easier ways to interact with government online–and governments will need to rise to these expectations. The introduction of more online options will help reduce the paperwork burden and make it easier for the vast majority of taxpayers to meet their tax obligations more quickly and with less hassle.
“Collaboration is key to the current and future success of both our administrations, and we look forward to continuing this dialogue and working evermore closely in the future.”
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Rebecca Rogers
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of National Revenue
613-995-2960
Noël Carisse
Media Relations
Canada Revenue Agency
613-952-9184
