Madam, We have been let down by the very people we elect and hold in high esteem. Pilfering our taxes through their own greed or via a rotten system to furnish their homes and further their lifestyles whilst the rest of us have to work harder to pay them through taxes made even more difficult with mountains of red tape, unwanted European legislation, imaginary climate change fears, petty police rules, and nannyish health and safety restrictions to name but a few.

I run a 22 year old company of 35 people, young and old, male and female, from all walks of life. We work hard as a team and these loyal staff will be rewarded with a generous bonus based on last year's performance and a pay rise this year. We can do this because as a supplier of products and services our customers reward good work with more business. Despite the current economic malaise, we are even hiring more staff so we can continue to deliver the quality of service which our loyal clients expect of us.

We pay taxes, on salaries, on profits, as business rates, as national insurance, on cars absolutely necessary to do our business, some even pay by being criminalised through minor excess speed.

When it comes to expenses, business or personal; we can claim for this, we can't claim for that, sometimes VAT can be claimed, sometimes it can't. The pernickety detail to ensure HMRC gets its pound of flesh from us regarding expenses is extraordinary. Of course we pay large fees to auditors to ensure that we do not upset HMRC.

What have we got to show for all these contributions to the public purse?

The debate round the lunch table is that the only way the system can now survive will be through a thorough purge. If the country is to survive this scandal, no one caught with a finger in the till must be allowed to survive. No-one who connived to allow this must be allowed to survive. The gangrenous rot must be cut out.

I never thought (as a private sector business owner) that I would champion the work of the tax inspector. I'm not a vindictive person, I believe in fairness and reward for hard work. But I want a ringside seat at this showdown - and my thumb will be down!

Charles Curry, Upton Bishop