Pay your fair share of tax - everyone

[Robinho]

Let's see shall we?

Our Healthcare System | Ministry of Health


Good, affordable basic healthcare is available to Singaporeans through subsidised medical services at public hospitals and clinics. Our hospitals and healthcare system will never withhold help to a Singaporean because of financial limitations.

In other words, it's largely state run, but includes private practice where appropriate. Just like the NHS, but obviously run by doctors instead of these wierd, outdated 20th century pseudo-professionals called 'managers'.

Hows about some facts...

Singapore has a universal health care system where government ensures affordability, largely through compulsory savings and price controls, while the private sector provides most care. Overall spending on health care amounts to only 3% of annual GDP. Of that, 66% comes from private sources.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univers...ntry#Singapore

[Old Hack]

Just got this forwarded by a friend:

Good Afternoon

Following a review in May this year, the government introduced new legislation which requires government departments and their Arms’ Length Bodies to provide assurance that any ‘off-payroll workers’, including Limited Company Contractors, are meeting their HMRC tax obligations.

The ******* is aligning its contracts, as are all of our other public sector clients, to have the new legislation adhered to in a timely yet considered manner. ***** and ***** are working closely with ********* to establish an efficient process to provide the necessary assurance that Limited Company Contractor’s tax obligations are met, and will be looking to communicate the outcome of this to existing contractors on an individual basis.

We will be looking to issue the next communication in relation to the above towards to the end of next week. As your contract is with us and not directly with the ************, should you have any queries in the meantime, please can you contact ******, rather than your immediate manager within the ********.

Interesting times ahead it would appear....

[Ignis Fatuus]

Would I be right in thinking that the ways to "provide the necessary assurance that Limited Company Contractor’s tax obligations are met" will be twofold?

One-person Ltd Companies: force contractor into IR35.
Large consultancies: take their word for it.

[Mich the Tester]

Hows about some facts...

Singapore has a universal health care system where government ensures affordability, largely through compulsory savings and price controls, while the private sector provides most care. Overall spending on health care amounts to only 3% of annual GDP. Of that, 66% comes from private sources.

Universal health coverage by country - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yep, and Price Controls are a really, really free market idea!

[Robinho]

Yep, and Price Controls are a really, really free market idea!

I said "Other countries have it to varying degrees such has Singapore which does quite well.".

Please learn to read.

[Old Hack]

Would I be right in thinking that the ways to "provide the necessary assurance that Limited Company Contractor’s tax obligations are met" will be twofold?

One-person Ltd Companies: force contractor into IR35.
Large consultancies: take their word for it.

I am starting to think we'll all be moving from 25 week contract, to 25 week contract. No sucker's going to agree to voluntarily pay 50% tax.

[Mich the Tester]

I said "Other countries have it to varying degrees such has Singapore which does quite well.".

Please learn to read.

The three highlighted words show that your ideology is false. Singapore does well, partly because the government intervenes and plays a part in the economy, or at least the healthcare bit of it, which is the same for any country that's 'doing well'. Why can you not accept that government has a role to play in the economy, and there are some governments which do that very competently? I know why; it doesn't fit your ideology.

[Brussels Slumdog]

Not Enough Tax payers

Even if all individuals and corporations paid their fare share of tax it would still not be enough to pay for what the government would like to spend
There are not enough tax payers in the UK or Europe to pay for what elected governments have promised the people to spend on their behalf in order to be elected.
The Conservative/Lib Dem savings will be in vain as Labour will win the next election restart the spending program

[escapeUK]

Even if all individuals and corporations paid their fare share of tax it would still not be enough to pay for what the government would like to spend
There are not enough tax payers in the UK or Europe to pay for what the elected governments have promised the people to spend on their behalf in order to be elected.

Ive just spent the morning in the local shopping mall, it is chock full of people spending my taxes on their petty useless lives. As you say ultimately (if there isnt already) there will be too many parasites for the host to support, and I look forward to that day, cant be far off?

[Robinho]

The three highlighted words show that your ideology is false. Singapore does well, partly because the government intervenes and plays a part in the economy, or at least the healthcare bit of it, which is the same for any country that's 'doing well'. Why can you not accept that government has a role to play in the economy, and there are some governments which do that very competently? I know why; it doesn't fit your ideology.

The government does have a role to play in the econony. To protect its citizens from theft which also encompasses fraud and contract law.

Again i will stress that this is a personal belief and as there are limited datapoints available i am not going to claim it all as fact. Even the US system is about 50% state funded! The lack of datapoints is typically because in most countries people are of below mean average wealth, thus in a direct democracy it is common to vote yourself more wealth and universal healthcare is a very easy way to vote for more wealth.

However one datapoint in Singapore with 66% private funding does not prove that that is the optimal level of private/state funding.

Additionally i am against it on a moral ground as as i said earlier, i believe healthcare is a commodity and not a right, thus making it tax funded is essentially theft. Of course that doesn't mean i want to see poor people die in the streets, just i believe charity is the correct way to aid these people.