The shadow chancellor restated Labour plans to force those earning more than £1 million a year to publish their tax returns during a debate in Davos.
John McDonnell said that there needed to be transparency, adding: “I publish my income tax return, I think wealthy people should do it as well.”
He said that accountancy firms should follow a type of Hippocratic oath to prevent them aiding tax avoidance. “I just say to the super-rich and corporations: pay your taxes.”
The Labour Party was still examining the idea of a universal basic income, he added. “We are considering it. We have got a working party.”
He also reiterated his belief in workers having representatives on boards. “If you just learnt the lessons of what is happening on the shop floor your policies would be so much better,” he said.
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Mr McDonnell, who listed stirring up the overthrow of capitalism as his hobby in Who’s Who, said he had detected a sense of euphoria and complacency during his 24 hours at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.
He said: “Beyond the Davos compound people think the markets have been rigged against them, not for them. People no longer trust the system. There has to be a radical new agenda where people share in the wealth.”
Mr McDonnell said there needed to be a better understanding of what Britons had gone through in the past ten years.
He said: “Look at Brexit. There is an avalanche out there of discontent, resentment and alienation. The proportion of wealth and reward going to shareholders [is] greater now than is going to labour, the wealth creators.” In an interview with The Guardian Mr McDonnell explained why he had come to Davos. He said: “I got an invitation and I thought this was the time to check what the discussions were, the assessments being made by individuals and the feelings about the future.”
He said that he wanted to deliver a message that people needed to look at the result of Brexit, adding: “Davos is what I expected. I don’t think the people here have any comprehension of the contempt in which they are held.”