This time last year tax blogger Richard Murphy was anointed the guru of Corbynomics, unofficially advising Jez and John on policy. His role was significant enough for David Cameron to make a sex joke about his “Joy of Tax” during his conference speech. Yet somewhere along the way the relationship soured. Murphy started to make a series of public comments denouncing the direction Corbyn and McDonnell were taking. These days he is far removed from the Corbynista project. So what caused the breakdown in relations? A source with intimate knowledge of Murphy’s meetings with the leader’s office claims Murphy requested to be put forward for a peerage as a thank you for his contribution. Jez said no, and they haven’t got on since. Now if Richard were to agree to chair some sort of independent inquiry things might be different…

Last month John McDonnell’s economics adviser David Blanchflower savaged Corbyn’s plan to ban businesses from distributing dividends as “silly stuff“. Now Richard Murphy, the so-called guru of Corbynomics with his People’s QE, has twisted the knife into Jezza’s mad idea:

“I think it was one of those ideas that has been floated which… didn’t fly. Jeremy floated an idea – I don’t think we are probably going to hear of that one again. I would be surprised if we did. I don’t think that’s a runner.”

One of the more peculiar consequences of Corbyn’s leadership is that he makes the likes of Blanchflower and Murphy seem almost reasonable…

Anglia Ruskin University are very excited to announce a series of free public lectures taking place on campus this autumn, where Corbyn economics guru and Cameron joke fodder Richard Murphy will “share his Joy of Tax”. According to the press release, loony left blogger Murphy “is credited with shaping Corbyn’s economic strategy, also advises trade unions on tax policy. He is the author of The Joy of Tax and a founder of the Tax Justice Network”. The contents of the lecture will not exactly be kind to, say, former Belize-based tax exile non-doms. Appropriate, then, that it “will take place on Anglia Ruskin’s Cambridge campus in the Lord Ashcroft Building”…

Twitter’s favourite loony lefty tax blogger turned Corbynomics guru Richard Murphy went box office during Dave’s speech:

“There’s an academic called Richard Murphy. He’s the Labour Party’s new economics guru, and the man behind their plan to print more money.

He gave an interview a few weeks ago. He was very frank. He admitted that Labour’s plan would cause a “sterling crisis”, but to be fair…

…he did add, and I quote, that it “would pass very quickly”.

Well, that’s alright then.

His book is actually called “The Joy of Tax”. I’ve read it. It’s got 64 positions – and they’re all wrong.”

Moving swiftly on…

Obscure tax blogger and Twitter eccentric Richard Murphy is now unofficially advising Corbyn on his economic policy. Readers will remember Guido’s past stories on the hypocritical ‘tax justice’ campaigner, well today he got Brillo’d on the Daily Politics:

Including such gems as:

“One of the ideas I’ve got is to create modest amounts of inflation…

At the moment I would add to the deficit…”

Coming soon to a Tory attack ad near you…

In what is a bid to soothe ruffled LibDem feathers, rather than in response to the looter’s protest, the government has just announced a new clamp down on tax avoidance. Guido mentioned at the weekend how quiet the left were about the Guardian’s tax avoidance in contrast to their attitude to Philip Green. There hasn’t been a squeak from the likes of left-wing millionaire Richard Murphy, a Rowntree and TUC funded, self-styled “fair tax” expert. But then he did give the Guardian Media Group accounts his seal of approval, after GMG made a £302 million profit in 2008 and paid not a penny in corporation tax.

Murphy, of the Toynbee school of hypocrisy, seemingly wears his principles on his sleeve and argues for anti-avoidance measures and crucially that the philosophy behind tax collection should be judged by the spirit not the letter of the law. However has Murphy  always practised what he preached?

Before he discovered the cause of “Tax Justice” between 2001 and 2003 he wrote technical articles for The Guardian advising how to minimise tax on employing a nanny, how to minimise tax for the self employed, maximise your tax allowance through taking out a stakeholder pension and attacking legislation which requires accountants to report tax evasion. On second reading Murphy’s recent line that he was just highlighting the holes doesn’t really wash, especially when his own tax practises are examined.  Although Murphy puts his home address on all his business literature – it is the registered address for all his companies – he does not pay business rates on the property. Not quite within the spirit of the law now is it…