COMPANY car drivers could find a nasty sting in the tail of the today's Government White Paper on Transport, according to a leading Oxfordshire business adviser, writes David Duffy.

Charlie Hall, partner at the Oxford office of Grant Thornton, says the Government is likely to use the paper to review the way in which it taxes company car drivers.

He said: "It is widely expected that drivers will be taxed on private mileage rather than business use. However, more worrying, is the threat of taxing company car spaces in city centres.

"To actually levy taxes of this kind against an individual will be very difficult and it will be down to the company or business in the end as to how it deals with the issue.

"Many companies might decide to absorb this cost as an overhead but to smaller businesses this could be an additional crippling burden."

On a wider front, he warned that the White Paper was likely to result in a price hike for motorist and non-motorists alike.

"Much has been made of the Government's ideas to tax parking at out-of-town shopping centres," he said.

"This could be levied against the operator or the individual shopper. Either way, it will fuel inflation.

"Similarly, any measures to encourage businesses to move freight from road to rail will have to be finely gauged so as not to add to overhead costs as this again could lead to additional inflationary pressures."

The motor industry said any extra taxation must be dedicated to improving the quality of transport in Britain.

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