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69 Can. Tax J. 545 (2021)
Tax, Social Security, and Employment Status - Removing the Distortions in the United Kingdom

handle is hein.journals/cdntj69 and id is 589 raw text is: CANADIAN TAX JOURNAL / REVUE FISCALE CANADIENNE (2021) 69:2, 545-57 https://doi.org/10.32721/tj.2021.69.2.pf.freedman Policy Forum: Tax, Social Security, and Employment Status-Removing the Distortions in the United Kingdom Judith Freedman* PRECIS La pandemie de COVID-19 a mis les systemes fiscal et de s6curit6 sociale a rude 6preuve. Des fissures qui existaient depuis un certain temps deja se sont creusees davantage et il est peu probable qu'elles se referment sans travaux a la structure. De nouvelles connaissances sur la nature changeante du travail, combinees au developpement de technologies capables de fournir des solutions modernes et pratiques a de vieux problemes, offrent la possibilite de repenser la maniere dont nous imposons les travailleurs a la demande et autres fournisseurs de travail atypiques. Cet article soutient qu'au moment d'examiner la conception des dispositions fiscales et de securite sociale, nous devons nous affranchir des classifications de statuts d'emploi 6laborees dans d'autres domaines du droit, a d'autres fins. Afin d'accroitre l'6quit6 et de supprimer les distorsions, nous devrions chercher, dans la mesure oO c'est possible concretement, a harmoniser le traitement fiscal et de securite sociale de tous ceux qui fournissent un travail. Quand ce n'est pas possible, malgr6 les avantages que procurent les nouvelles technologies, ce sont les objectifs de la politique fiscale et des avantages sociaux qui devraient dicter les lignes de demarcation plut6t que les liens avec la jurisprudence qui a 6volu6 dans d'autres domaines. ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has strained tax and social security systems. Cracks that have existed for some time have been opened up further and are unlikely to close without structural repair. New insights into the shifting nature of work, combined with the development of technologies that can provide modern, practical solutions to old problems, offer the opportunity to rethink the way we tax gig workers and other non- standard providers of labour. This article argues that we need to free ourselves from the employment status classifications developed in other areas of law, for other purposes, when we consider the design of tax and social security provisions. We should aim to harmonize the tax and social security treatment of all those who provide labour as far as is practically possible in order to increase equity and remove distortions. Where that cannot be achieved, despite the benefits of new technologies, dividing lines should be * Of the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford (e-mail: judith.freedman@law.ox.ac.uk). 545

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