Oxford City Council has become the first authority to back a fair tax campaign.

The council has called for changes to procurement laws, enabling the public sector to factor firms' record on paying tax into contract awarding decisions.

Research published by the Fair Tax Mark campaign found that 17.5% of contracts, valued at worth £37.5bn, commissioned by local and national government between 2014 and 2019 were won by businesses with connections to a tax haven.

The Fair Tax Declaration commits Oxford to ensuring contractors abide by anti-tax avoidance laws, not using offshore vehicles, undertaking due diligence of not-for-profit structures and supporting reform of procurement laws.

To continue reading visit The MJ (£).