Many of my constituents have contacted me regarding ‘disguised remuneration schemes’ and the government’s resulting retrospective 2019 Loan Charge which came into effect on April 5, affecting 50,000 taxpayers.

The loan charge is a charge the government is introducing on unpaid loans that contractors received instead of salary payments.

A range of different groups have voiced their concerns over the fairness of the loan charge, including more than 140 MPs from different parties, peers from the House of Lords, and tax accounting bodies and I completely agree this is a poor policy.

There are reports that the loan charge is having a serious impact on people’s lives.

The Financial Times says many have gone so far as to sell their homes to pay their bills.

Many constituents have come to me with stories about the severe damage this has already done. There is a wide-reaching consensus in Westminster that this policy must be reversed before more lives are ruined.

I have registered my name alongside many of my colleagues on both Early Day Motion 1239, and the open letter to the Mel Stride MP, financial secretary to the Treasury, orchestrated by the Loan Charge All Party Parliamentary Group asking the government to re-think this policy.

If you, or anyone you know, have been affected by the government’s loan charge, you can contact my office or the Loan Charge Action Group Help Line. Just text ‘LCAG HELP’ to 81025 and a member of a team of dedicated volunteers will respond as quickly as they can.