Originally posted by DoctorStrangelove
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Bring back Purchase Tax.
The ins & outs of that little miracle would boggle the mind.
Rates of 33%, 66%, 100% according to the whim of whatever feckwhit Chancellor we had at the time.
Not to mention deemed taxation on the rent you don't pay because you own your own house.
Hearth Tax wouldn't bring in much, but just think of the killing they'd make on Window Tax these days.
The ins & outs of that little miracle would boggle the mind.
Rates of 33%, 66%, 100% according to the whim of whatever feckwhit Chancellor we had at the time.
Not to mention deemed taxation on the rent you don't pay because you own your own house.
Hearth Tax wouldn't bring in much, but just think of the killing they'd make on Window Tax these days.
However, I believe that VAT was a favourite tax system of the EU and so purchase tax was abandoned here in the UK when we joined the EU, in favour of VAT, and was systematically rolled out to items that were never taxed previously. Initially it was hoped that cars and other luxury items would go down in price, but this never happened. A "special car" tax was applied which made the VAT + this tax total much the same as purchase tax.
By the time the Labour government left power in 1979, the income tax rate was 33%. So, it's swings and roundabouts. It could be argued that VAT allows the consumer some element of choice, whereas income tax doesn't, but that's all supposes there are some items which do not attract VAT that you need for your lifestyle.
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