BORIS STRANDED UP THE AMAZON

BORIS JOHnSOn once said that his policy on cake was ‘pro having it and pro eating it’.

Like Oliver Twist, Boris always wants more. One of anything is never enough. So it’s no surprise that he retains his dual British and American citizenship, to which he is entitled by accident of birth.

It’s been said that Boris couldn’t make up his mind whether to run for Prime Minister or U.S. President.

But despite their obsession with hyphen-American identity (African-American etc), our cousins across the Atlantic aren’t that comfortable with dual nationality.

Either you’re American, or you’re not. Those who choose dual citizenship are expected to pay U.S. taxes, wherever they are in the world. Which is why Boris has been landed with a £100,000 American tax bill on the profit he made when he sold his last house in London.

The American ambassador, Matthew Barzun, said that if people want the benefits of being a U.S, citizen they should pay their ‘fair share in taxes’.

If Boris doesn’t like the rules, he could always renounce his American citizenship. He can’t have it both ways.

But this week Ambassador Barzun leapt to the defence of U.S. companies such as Facebook, Google and Amazon, who avoid billions in British taxes even though they do business here.

Hang on. If it’s only ‘fair’ that Boris pays U.S. taxes, why shouldn’t Facebook, Google and Amazon pay their ‘fair share’ of taxes on profits they make in Britain?

They c an’ t e xpect t o have i t both ways, either.