Reply to: 22,000 reasons England should have a flat tax system

[The Master]

Perhaps we could retrain all those redundant civil servants as plumbers in order to break the evil monopoly that the International Plumbist Conspiracy has over the quoting of trivial 'fixit' jobs?

[DodgyAgent]

I'm all for the exploitation of children. Make them earn their keep. The little scroungers. They've had it too easy since coal fires went out of fashion.

Anyway, they'd do better than my accountant. I always end up having to make extra payments to Golden Brown.

Fungus

The Poles wouldnt like having their jobs taken off them by newly redundant civil servants would they?

[Fungus]

There is one problem though with the flat tax system...it's implications.

Imagine if the tax system was so simple that just about anyones 5 year old son/daughter could fill in their parents tax return each year...just think about it.

I'm all for the exploitation of children. Make them earn their keep. The little scroungers. They've had it too easy since coal fires went out of fashion.

Anyway, they'd do better than my accountant. I always end up having to make extra payments to Golden Brown.

Fungus

[Joe Black]

There is one problem though with the flat tax system...it's implications.

Imagine if the tax system was so simple that just about anyones 5 year old son/daughter could fill in their parents tax return each year...just think about it.

[Mailman]

Not really sure what planet this government is on...its obvious that the more you penalise the rich (ie. increase their tax burden) the more ingenious ways they will find to avoid paying tax (like Philip Greens avoidance scheme).

Just a pitty this government (and the next, and the one after that...) are so stuck on the idea that "the rich must be forced to pay more because its an afront that they are rich".

Mailman

[threaded]

22,000?

13,000 from Jobcentre
30,000 from Network Rail

that'll be 33,000, at least

So I guess 22,000 is the taxable amount?

[AlfredJPruffock]

Yes, it is an interesting read. I notice though that whenever the flat tax idea is being knocked it is slated as "tax cuts for the rich". It seems strange, and even I didn't realise how far the proposal went, that even its defenders aren't vigorously pushing where the real savings are and saying "actually it's all about ensuring that half the population at the bottom end pay no tax at all".

Given Cameron's talk of wealth distribution, I think we are stuck in the moral rut for quite some time that 'nice countries tax "the rich" heavily'. It is fast becoming a "no debate allowed" issue along the same lines as immigration.

Flat tax is all very well,yet not far reaching enough.

I propose abolishing Income Tax all together.

[The Master]

That flat tax document is a very good read indeed...no wonder Gordo ordered his minions to remove all the good things about flat taxes in their discussion papers last year!

Yes, it is an interesting read. I notice though that whenever the flat tax idea is being knocked it is slated as "tax cuts for the rich". It seems strange, and even I didn't realise how far the proposal went, that even its defenders aren't vigorously pushing where the real savings are and saying "actually it's all about ensuring that half the population at the bottom end pay no tax at all".

Given Cameron's talk of wealth distribution, I think we are stuck in the moral rut for quite some time that 'nice countries tax "the rich" heavily'. It is fast becoming a "no debate allowed" issue along the same lines as immigration.

[AlfredJPruffock]

[QUOTE=Tex]I think you must be mistaken. According to Benn0 we are living in a socialist utopia.[/QUOTE

Aye Tex

When I hear the phrase socialist utopia I reach for my revolver ...

[Mailman]

That flat tax document is a very good read indeed...no wonder Gordo ordered his minions to remove all the good things about flat taxes in their discussion papers last year!

I like how those guys called NI a tax (which everyone except the government knows!)

Mailman

[Joe Black]

Thanks Sergeant , I'll have a read when I have a spare moment (or two since it's 23 pages).

[Tex]

I think you must be mistaken. According to Benn0 we are living in a socialist utopia.

[BoredBloke]

"I suspect that the UK economy is slowing, and gradually we will feel the effects of the increased taxation, regulation and so on. "

You mean we are not seeing this already!

[Mailman]

Had a laff last year when Gordo got caught out when he instructed IR to remove all positive references to flat rate taxes in a paper they had put together on the subject!

Mailman

[Sergeant Apone]

Sure, Joe, here's the study the Adam Smith Institute put together. Having re-read it, they are actually proposing a 20% flat rate. Anyway, you can read all the details yourself. They also propose a £5k floating allowance for married couples that is freely transferable between the two.

The net result is that the lowest paid 50% of society end up paying no tax at all - a somewhat more efficient scheme than Gordo's over complex scheme to collect the tax and then pay civil servants to give it back again.

http://www.adamsmith.org/pdf/flattax.pdf