I have a lot of time for Matthew Oakeshott - sacked this evening as the Lib Dem Treasury spokesman in the Lords for telling the truth about bankers and their grotesque bonuses.

He was unapologetic about going after tax cheats like Lord Ashcroft.

But why can’t we just tax the bankers?

Whatever happened to progressive taxation?

Writing in the Times this week, David Laws (dubbed “a Tory” by the brittle and angry Liberal peer, Tony Greaves) tells us the Coalition should get rid of the 50p top rate – but not just now.

He says the 50p tax rate

“will be associated with huge avoidance activity. It should, therefore, be regarded as a temporary measure for these exceptional times… “

Why on earth should it be temporary?

Is there no-one out there with the guts to challenge this thinking?

And, talking of tax...

I see that the British taxpayer is to bail out the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British overseas territory and tax haven in the Caribbean where no tax is paid at all.

The celebrated tax cheat Michael Ashcroft is a “belonger” - a citizen of the Turks and Caicos (and Belize and the UK) but pays no tax in the little palm fringed island he calls home.

I suppose we are bailing him out.

Personally I find this very difficult to take.

Richard Murphy, director of Tax Research UK, writes today:

“We are in the extraordinary situation that the British taxpayer is underwriting a loan to support a tax haven, which will take away our tax revenues. There is absolutely no sense to this. The condition of these loans must be that they strip these tax haven practices.”

Sounds like something Matthew Oakeshott might say.

Summoned to account

The former Canadian “Integrity Commissioner” has gone AWOL.

Summoned to appear before the Canadian House of Commons Commons Public Accounts Committee, to account for her woeful performance, the woman responsible for “integrity” does a runner.

Christiane Ouimet served three out of a six year term getting paid $200,000 a year for “sitting on her bum”.

The Committee has vowed to track her down.