Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) has joined the growing number of companies considering moving their headquarters offshore to avoid the increasingly expensive tax regime in the UK.
Shire Pharmaceuticals and publisher United Business Media recently moved to Dublin, while advertising giant WPP is also considering a move.
Andrew Cosslett, chief executive of IHG, said the hotel group would also be considering its position over the next few months.
“It is a hugely complicated and life is becoming increasingly difficult, there are pros and cons to staying in the UK,” he said.
“We are in the very early stages of reviewing where we stand, but will not rush into a decision as we have a duty to our shareholders who are mainly based in the UK to explore all our options.”
The revelation comes after IHG announced it would report in US dollars from now on as well as denominating its dividends in dollars.
The bulk of its income already comes in the form of dollars or linked currencies and the period up to June will be the first period to be reported differently.
Cosslett said the credit crunch had only had a soft impact on IHG so far, with a 2% dip in occupancy being compensated for by an increase in rate.
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By Gemma Sharkey
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