Unity Trust Bank’s Hogan: Fair Tax Foundation crucial in fostering culture of accountability
Fair Tax Leaders features senior professionals from across the Fair Tax Mark accredited business community.
Here, Unity Trust Bank CFO Penny Hogan reflects on 10 years of being Fair Tax Mark accredited, how she would encourage other businesses to apply for the Mark and the importance of the G in ESG.
Unity Trust Bank are a specialist bank for social economy organisations and the wider civil society in the UK and the first bank to achieve the Fair Tax Mark.
Tell us about your professional journey, Penny.
I have 24 years’ experience in financial services and previously held senior positions at the Co-operative Bank and Deloitte. I first joined Unity Trust Bank as Financial Controller in 2021 and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer this year.
As an ethical bank, Unity’s mission is to help create a better society and our ‘double bottom line’ strategy looks to maximise positive social impact alongside financial returns. This strongly aligns with my own personal values and it’s incredibly rewarding to work for an organisation that balances profit with purpose.
How has the role of the tax or finance team changed in this time, especially in relation to stakeholder expectations around fair tax and corporate transparency?
During my time at Unity, I have been proud to spearhead the bank’s ongoing support for the Fair Tax Mark accreditation scheme. Not only is this important to us as a team and business, we also know it’s what our stakeholders expect.
Organisations like the Fair Tax Foundation play a crucial role in fostering a culture of increased accountability, and this mirrors a wider public appetite for more responsible and values-based business practices. I’m passionate about increasing awareness of fair tax among stakeholders and advocating for the value of the Fair Tax Mark.
Under my leadership, Unity sponsored a major report for Fair Tax Week 2023, which collated seven years of polling data and provided important insights into UK public opinion on trust, tax disclosures and procurement. The report found consistently high public support for responsible tax conduct, with 62% saying they would “trust a business with the Fair Tax Mark more than one without it”.
What drives your business to pursue responsible tax conduct and gain the Fair Tax Mark?
As a long-standing advocate of fair and transparent tax practices, Unity were proud to be the first UK bank to be awarded the Fair Tax Mark in 2014, and the bank has retained this important accreditation for 10 consecutive years.
In line with Unity’s mission to deliver social, economic and environmental benefit to UK communities, we must continue to highlight the positive contribution that proper tax conduct can make to wider society. We also want our customers to know that their deposits are being invested responsibly, and paying a fair amount of tax is part of this.
What would your advice be to other professionals who are thinking of applying for the Fair Tax Mark?
The Fair Tax Mark recognises businesses that ‘pay the right amount of corporation tax at the right time and in the right place’. Among many reasons why this accreditation is important, it can help demonstrate a credible environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy, it resonates positively with customers and employees and shows investors you are managing tax-related risks.
Most importantly, accredited businesses can join a network of like-minded organisations that are proud to promote responsible tax conduct and financial transparency, and to help highlight the critical contribution this makes to society.
For those interested in applying for the Fair Tax Mark, I’d advise reaching out to other accredited businesses to gather learnings, insight and best practice from their own application experience. It’s also important to take your fellow colleagues on the journey with you, to help fully communicate your organisation’s fair tax credentials and highlight to key stakeholders the value the accreditation can add to your business.
What are your thoughts on the future of fair tax and corporate transparency?
Corporation tax plays a crucial role in the wider tax system and it’s vital we continue to advocate for fair and responsible tax conduct.
As seen in the Fair Tax Week report, financial transparency is a key motivator for both customer and employee loyalty, so it’s important to advocate for trusted accreditations that can highlight a business’ adherence to industry best practice.
For many businesses, it’s easy to overlook the G in ESG, but paying fair tax should be a critical part of corporate governance and, beyond this, is perceived by some as an ethical responsibility. As the shift towards better business practice becomes more favourable among customers, so too will it be attractive to future investors.
Since 2014, Unity has maintained a strong commitment to the Fair Tax Mark and the bank will continue to proudly champion its values – for the next decade and beyond.
What one word or sentence would your team use to describe you?
Penny’s genuine commitment to deliver good comes across in everything she does; from developing people, supporting impact initiatives to being a strong advocate of the Fair Tax movement.
