Photo: WENN.com
Example has criticised Gary Barlow after his involvement in a tax avoidance scheme was exposed, describing his actions as "pretty fucking disgraceful."
Barlow, and fellow Take That members Howard Donald and Mark Owen, were involved in a scheme that supposedly supported the music industry, but was in fact created solely for tax avoidance purposes.
The three were 'directors' of Larkdale LLP, which was one of 50 companies set up in partnership with the business Icebreaker. Shortly after its inception though, the company reported losses of over £25 million, which could be offset against tax, reducing the singers' tax bill significantly.
In a blog post for NME, Example said: "Even though I don't earn anywhere near as much money as Gary Barlow, I’m happy to pay tax because I live in this country and it’s my civic duty. It wasn’t illegal when Barlow – along with a couple of his Take That bandmates – hid £63m in the Icebreaker tax avoidance scheme, but he must have known he was doing wrong."
He added: "It annoys me when people argue: ‘Leave him alone – Gary Barlow works hard’. Normal people work fucking hard, whether you’re a journalist, plumber, builder or bus driver.
"There are people out there juggling three or four jobs just to bring in £25,000 per year. And out of that, the government takes at least twenty per cent of it away. He’s putting an extra burden on those on low incomes who are playing by the rules."
Example also discussed calls by many for Barlow to give back his OBE: "In my opinion, he should give it back. What he did was pretty fucking disgraceful."
Example's forthcoming fifth studio album is due for release on 30 June, and is titled Live Life Living. Try saying that after a few drinks.
