Where are the accountants’ voices in the election?

The political circus has come to town, but with a month still to go in the interminable general election, it’s becoming increasingly clear to Richard Hattersley that we’re not hearing enough from accountants.

Ever since a soggy Rishi Sunak announced the date of the general election in the puddles of Downing Street, all anybody wants to talk about is the economy and tax. These are important topics, sure. But I can’t be the only person wondering: “Where are the accountants?” Come on, isn’t it about time we heard from experts again? There is a gap in the political arena for accountants to bring some much-needed sanity.

The so-far-tortuous two-week election campaign trail has reached the point of the debates. Incidentally, this is exactly the point when the electorate has heard enough. The trouble with the debates, and the election so far for that matter, is the warring parties are just shouting “tax” at each other with about the nuance of an articulated lorry attempting a U-turn down a country lane.

Yes, to the surprise of nobody, tax has become a key battleground in this election. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great the Great British public are so engaged in tax. But without a manifesto or even a whiff of clear details on any of the tax pledges, politicians of all colours are just cosplaying as accountants.

Level with the public about taxes

So let’s talk tax – I mean, someone has to. For many, a rain-sodden Sunak looking like a suited bath sponge is the defining image of the general election, but the image I can’t seem to shake from my head is from Fawlty Towers because the inability of both parties to level with the public about taxes has more than a hint of the exasperated Torquay hotelier Basil Fawlty and his cries of “Don’t mention the war.”

Both Labour and Conservatives have pledged to not touch individual taxes. The two prospective Chancellors have played a game of snap in taking increases in income tax, national insurance and VAT off the table. All this has achieved is an empty table and a gaping big financial black hole for whoever gets the keys to Downing Street.

I get it – people want stability. The last thing businesses, or individuals for that matter, want is even more upheaval. And let’s face it, tax rises are deeply unpopular. But with both parties treating tax like a ming vase, they are at risk of being backed into a political cul-de-sac. The more neither side wants to talk about it, the louder the silence becomes.

The tax system is complicated enough and there isn’t enough being said about practical ways to simplify it, the need to fund crumbling public services, or even how taxes can be used to improve efficiency and growth. On the latter point, see Philip Hammond’s volte-face on the VAT threshold and his disappointment that the Chancellor raised it to £90,000, rather than lowering it to £20,000. You kept that quiet when you had your feet up in Number 11, Pip.

The Accountancy Party

So I say, step forward accountants. Perhaps it’s time the profession proudly pinned their AccountingWEB orange rosette to their lapels and launched the Accountancy Party. With an accountant on the voting card at least we’d have some serious discussions about tax.

And who better than those that translate technical jargon into easy-to-digest picture books for clients on a daily basis? Not to mention, they’re pretty good at sticking to deadlines. And who is more qualified to steer the country forward than those that spend their days knee-deep in cashflow forecasting reports and keeping budgets under control? I rest my case.

So with the Accountancy Party, tax is sorted. The only question is, what would they do with the power? One pledge that’s at the top of any accountant’s manifesto, and one they’d passionately canvas door-to-door with, would be the need to bung more cash HMRC’s way to improve service levels.

While a pledge to cut the time taxpayers and agents have to spend listening to HMRC’s hold music won’t cause a stampede of voters to the ballot box on 4 July, an argument can be made that a well-resourced tax department would assist in reducing the tax gap and increase the pot to pay for public services.

Raise standards

But it’s not just in tax deftness where the UK could benefit from the steady hands of the Accountancy Party. As a profession that’s heavily regulated, they know a thing or two about standards and trust.

There is already a growing chasm of distrust whenever politicians discuss tax. So when tax is eventually being discussed it’s used as part of an election slanging match.

This was on full display in this week’s headache-inducing leader debate on ITV where Sunak incessantly yapped on about a £2,000 tax rise under a Labour government. Not only has this wildly misleading back-of-the-fag-packet attack line unravelled in less than 24 hours after the broadcast, but again, let’s be honest, it was a silly argument anyway because whoever wins the election will be putting up taxes.

Again, an accounting influence is needed. Scrupulous accountants are detail-orientated people, who face anti-money laundering scrutiny, regulatory oversight, carry the pressure of ensuring their client’s affairs are above board and have endured the constant drumbeat at every trade show of the need to become “trusted advisers”.

As an avid reader of the disciplinary reports, I know there are a few rogue ones in the profession, but spending time in the gladiatorial tax arena of Any Answers, I also know that accountants are meticulous and will argue until the moderator steps in for accuracy and honesty. I think we can all agree that’s something missing from politics.

Hang about!

It’s clear that accountants have the attributes that are so often missing from politics. So, I don’t know about you, but when I get to the ballot box on 4 July I will be putting my X in the box next to the Accountancy Party.

I mean, isn’t it about time we had an accountant in Number 10? What could possibly go wrong?

What’s that? There was an accountant in Number 10? Obsessed too much about tax? Was outlived by a lettuce? On second thoughts, maybe the Accountancy Party isn’t such a great idea, after all.