The thorny issue of how much tax is paid by corporate giants operating in this country has surfaced again after Google’s controversial £130m deal.

Google has reached the agreement with HM Revenue and Customs over taxes owed since 2005 – but the amount to be paid has been branded “derisory” and “trivial” by Labour.

The tech firm's sales were valued at £3.8 billion in Britain during 2013 but it paid just £20.4 million in UK taxes that year.

Between 2006 and 2011 the company's revenue in the UK hit around £12.6 billion but its corporation tax payments for the period totalled £11.2 million.

Other multinational firms such as Amazon and Facebook have also faced criticism for paying too little tax in this country.

London Mayor Boris Johnson has weighed into the row, saying action needs to be taken but corporate giants shouldn’t be blamed for minimising tax bills using legal loopholes.

News Shopper: Google has agreed to pay back taxes of £130 million to the Government

In his column for the Daily Telegraph, Mr Johnson wrote: "It has never seemed fair that some of these companies - no matter how wonderful the service they provide - should be paying so much less in tax than the high-street tea rooms and bookshops they have pulverised.

"It would be a good thing, both for the UK finances and for the image of these great companies, if they paid more."

Mr Johnson said the "problem does not lie with the firms", insisting "we should recognise that the fault in the whole affair lies with our national arrangements - our own system for not getting a fair whack from the tech giants".

He added: "George Osborne has made progress. The Google payback is a start. We now need to go further. We want, need and deserve these companies somehow to pay more tax in the UK."

How do you think tax-dodging should be tackled? Should there be new laws, tougher enforcement or more shaming of companies until they voluntarily cough up? Add your comments below.