Is Bill Gates a hypocrite?
By Ian Birrell, The Guardian
Tuesday, January 7, 2014 6:08 EST
Tuesday, January 7, 2014 6:08 EST
Topics: Microsoft
The world’s richest man is seen as a secular saint. But he should question the example Microsoft is setting by avoiding tax
He made his name as a sharp-elbowed businessman who rode the technology revolution with such style. But these days he is far more famous for his philanthropy, as a saviour of the poor who has made it his life’s mission to change the world for the better. So it was something of a shock to see he is still the richest person on the planet, boosting his fortune by another £9.6bn last year to an astonishing £48bn after a big rise in the Microsoft share price.
It is easy to forget that Gates remains chairman of the software giant he founded in 1975, the largest individual shareholder with some 4.5% of the company’s stock. He may have invested vast chunks of his cash mountains into other companies and may spend much of his time campaigning for poverty relief, but Microsoft remains the rock upon which he built those Croesus-like riches.
This presents a problem given the company’s controversial record on tax. Gates has become something of a secular saint as he jets around the world discussing social justice and disease eradication. The left loves him as a rich man giving away much of his fortune for good causes. The right respects a business brain imposing financial rigour on a spendthrift aid sector. Charity chiefs and celebrities adore him, while politicians jostle to join him in the spotlight.
Clearly, he relishes his latest role, becoming increasingly influential and outspoken. He loves to lecture nations on how they should give away more of their taxpayers’ money, urging them to hit the arbitrary and anachronistic target of handing over 0.7% of gross national income in foreign aid. He has applauded David Cameron for Britain’s embrace of the target, even condemning a Lords’ committee that criticised this cash cascade, while constantly telling other countries to do the same.
But like those other aid apostles Bono and Bob Geldof, he risks being perceived as a rank hypocrite. For he sees nothing wrong in complex tax avoidance schemes while telling nations how to spend their revenues, notwithstanding the growing body of opinion that aid undermines