Vodafone shop in Angel closed by protest over unpaid tax

Published: 17th december, 2010
by TOM FOOT

MOBILE phone giant Vodafone was forced on the defensive after protesters blockaded its branch in Angel on Saturday. 

The demo which shut the Liverpool Road shop for an hour was called by Islington Hands Off Our Public Services (IHOOPS) over claims that the firm has a massive unpaid tax bill. Vodafone has reached a settlement with HM Revenue and Customs under which it pays £1.25billion, but critics say the figure should be more like £6billion.

IHOOPs member Linda Clarke, a lecturer at the University of Westminster, said: “We were there for about an hour-and-a-half until we ran out of leaflets. We had a very good response from the public.”

The protest follows similar action outside Vodafone stores across the country. IHOOPS chairman Gary Heather said: “There’s no need to destroy vital services when so much tax goes uncollected.”

A Vodafone spokesman said: “We pay our taxes in the UK and all of the other countries in which we operate.”