Mobile Network Comparison

EE, the network bringing 4G LTE to the UK and the parent company of Orange and T-Mobile, have been shown to be avoiding untold billions in tax. They join Vodafone and LycaMobile amongst the shamed ranks of companies avoiding their tax liabilities.

EE’s latest accounts show that it has not paid anything at all in corporation tax in the UK. It is thought that the company is manipulating accounts so it technically makes a loss in the UK and can avoid paying taxes. This is despite the company spending millions for the spectrum required to provide 4G services and annual sales of £6.8 billion in 2011. Vodafone have been reported to be dodging £6 billion of UK taxes but it’s not clear exactly how much EE should be paying.

The revelations come as the debate about mega corporations failing to pay tax in the UK hits a peak. Activist group UK Uncut points out that people are told they must pay their taxes and that there’s no alternative to the ideological cuts to public services. Corporate tax dodging is thought to cost the state almost £100 billion per year yet, thanks to the Coalition’s crippling cuts and normal people are suffering while HMRC allows companies like EE and Vodafone to avoid paying taxes.

EE may legally be allowed to make use of this loophole while it lasts, but the British public are getting impatient will morally dubious tactics like this.

What’s your take? What do you think of EE not paying any corporation tax? Are they greedy thieves or smart? Do mobile companies have a social obligation to pay a fair rate of tax? And do you think the government should do more about it?

We’ve taken the time to add some more coverage maps for newer networks. This is so it’s easier to find out how good the signal strength will be in a certain area whether that’s where you live, your place or work or even along your commute.

The new networks are: 4G pioneers EE, freebie favourites Ovivo Mobile and Samba Mobile and kids’ network Bemilo. Please go ahead and check the pages out for yourself.

We’ve also added the networks to our Coverage Comparison page. This allows you to see, at a glance, how the various mobile networks stack up on average across the country.

At the beginning of the month, budget mobile network Giffgaff implemented their latest price restructuring. After an in-depth community consultation regarding mobile data usage, they decided to retain their great-value unlimited data tariffs but increase the monthly cost a little. What was previously the £10 goodybag has now gone up to £12 per month and you still get 250 any-network minutes and completely unlimited texts and mobile internet. And that’s on top of unlimited Giffgaff-to-Giffgaff calls and texts.

While this might not seem like the best news, Giffgaff have claimed its necessary to ensure the longevity of the unlimited data deals. It may be an extra two quid a month but it’s still by far the cheapest deal in the UK for mobile internet.

Also, in our opinion, there’s actually a good side to this. Mobile users have long been requesting cheaper tethering-enabled mobile data from Giffgaff ever since they launched their long-awaited Gigabags. Now, Giffgaff have replaced the £10 goodybag with one than allows tethering. So you can finally get a package that includes calls as texts but that also allows you to use the same SIM in a tablet or dongle or even connect it to your laptop or PC. You can even use your Android phone as a portable wifi hotspot.

The new £10 goodybag will come with 1GB of mobile internet with tethering allowed as well as the usual 250 minutes, and unlimited texts. You’ll be hard-pressed to find any other UK deal than that. We’ve had a chance to try out the new goodybags over the last few days and have to say that the data speed on the new goodybags is very good indeed. And the tethering really is a godsend – it feels like a great luxury to be able to use your phone as a wifi hotspot for your laptop, tablet and whatever else when out and about, on a train or wherever.

Don’t forget, you can now get Giffgaff SIM cards including £5 extra credit absolutely free. And we’re still offering new nano-SIMs for the iPhone 5 and iPad mini – they also have the £5 free credit.

What do you think of this change? Was it for the best or are you annoyed to have to pay more? Have you found any better deals elsewhere? And are you enjoying tethering on Giffgaff?