Not sure what to think of this issue. Yes, it definitely needs to be fair, ie all companies have the same chance. And I’m not convinced that recouping already paid money is fair at all. (More supportive of the idea that you can carry your losses forward, but not claw back previous payments)
I’m definitely sympathetic though to the idea that a company that has ups and downs should be able to spread it’s costs and losses over multiple years. I work in an industry where you have expenses and costs for years then 90% of your revenue in a couple of months. Taxes on this kind of business model are really lousy and I don’t see any reason that such a business model should be discouraged by the taxman.
