PwC UK’s tax chief to testify on large accounting firms’ role in tax avoidance

PwC’s Kevin Nicholson has been called to testify before the UK House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to discuss the role of large accountancy firms in multinational tax avoidance.

The hearing will give PAC committee lawmakers the opportunity to grill Nicholson, who is head of tax at PwC UK, on the “Lux leak” documents.  The documents —  confidential tax information of PwC clients, including 548 Luxembourg comfort letters and tax returns — were published on the Internet by a journalist group on November 5. The documents reveal PwC’s complex tax planning work for its MNE clients.

This is not the first time Nicholson will testify before the PAC on the role of large accounting firms in MNE tax avoidance. On January 31, 2013, Nicholson, along with representatives of KPMG,  Deloitte, and EY, were grilled for hours on the topic by the PAC MPs.  During that encounter, Nicholson made references to tax planners’ use of Luxembourg as a location for finance company operations.

The hearing is set for December 8 at 3:00 p.m.

 

Related MNE tax article:

• Journalists publish leaked PwC advance rulings and tax returns, conclude that Luxembourg aids tax avoidance