IEA: Windfall tax extension will harm investment and jobs

Commenting on demands to extend the windfall tax following BP’s results announcement, Institute of Economic Affairs Energy Analyst Andy Mayer said:

“A windfall tax on UK firms for their global profits will mean fewer British firms to tax and fewer jobs for British workers. 

“The government’s existing windfall tax has discouraged investment in the North Sea and made Britain more dependent on oil and gas imports.

"The smart tax decision would be to define what ‘windfall’ means, and create a predictable regime that doesn’t change in reaction to hysterical headlines.”