How times have changed.

vivatifosi

chewmylegoff wrote: »

The legacy of brown is that it doesn't pay to work.

A legacy of Brown is that it doesn't pay to work.

Another legacy of Brown is that pensions are screwed after he raided them.

Another legacy of Brown is that he didn't believe in boom or bust and so stuck us down the wrong end of the tunnel marked deficit.

Not a great record.

PaulF81

Not to mention the gold sale, lack of relevant regulation, allowing the house price bubble, thats before we get onto the deficit he created through creation of a socialist superstate.

vivatifosi

PaulF81 wrote: »

Not to mention the gold sale, lack of relevant regulation, allowing the house price bubble, thats before we get onto the deficit he created through creation of a socialist superstate.

I can't believe I forgot the gold sale, especially considering it was mentioned in the budget today. My word, he really was Captain SNAFU wasn't he?

Thrugelmir

StevieJ wrote: »

In the 70's we had the rich marginally taxed at (up to) an incentive busting 98% of their income :eek:

and the Rolling Stones became tax exiles........ So rarely played UK Gigs. :mad:

StevieJ

Thrugelmir wrote: »

and the Rolling Stones became tax exiles........ So rarely played UK Gigs. :mad:

Tax exiles - that isn't Rock and Roll (or R and

oldvicar

StevieJ wrote: »

In the 70's ...

Happy days.

Pocket money rising from 10 New Pence to 12.5 New Pence in a single year, due simply to inflation (at 27% - was I robbed ?).

Halifax Building Society (as was) paying over 13% on my small savings account.

And best of all the power cuts and 3 day week. Torches, candles, cold school classrooms. Such fun and larks when the lights went out.

Dad made a lighting contraption out of torch bulbs and an old car battery - he was a genius - and other homes didn't have such luxury. Mind you he had plenty of time on his hands - he had to close his no longer viable business a couple of years earlier, and still hadn't got himself a job.

I can't understand why mum was in such a state trying to get the fish fingers (frozen) cooked (electrically) by the time we got home from school.

If only we could turn the clock back. :j

PaulF81

oldvicar wrote: »

Happy days.

Pocket money rising from 10 New Pence to 12.5 New Pence in a single year, due simply to inflation (at 27% - was I robbed ?).

Halifax Building Society (as was) paying over 13% on my small savings account.

And best of all the power cuts and 3 day week. Torches, candles, cold school classrooms. Such fun and larks when the lights went out.

Dad made a lighting contraption out of torch bulbs and an old car battery - he was a genius - and other homes didn't have such luxury. Mind you he had plenty of time on his hands - he had to close his no longer viable business a couple of years earlier, and still hadn't got himself a job.

I can't understand why mum was in such a state trying to get the fish fingers (frozen) cooked (electrically) by the time we got home from school.

If only we could turn the clock back. :j

life under Old Labour sounded Top Notch!

misskool

chewmylegoff wrote: »

Interesting that socialists created both the stupid tax rates in the 70s and the ludicrous tax credit system, and they both failed horribly. The legacy of brown is that it doesn't pay to work.

The 90% marginal rate of taxation is not a taxation rate at all, but a combination of tax and subsidy removal. Hopefully this will be properly addressed by the universal credit, but I somehow doubt it.

What I really have never understood about this country. Why tax people and then give them tax credits? Surely the same effect can be achieved much more effectively by having a lower tax rate?

The amount of money it costs to administer tax credits can be used to offset the lower tax receipts.

Fella

misskool wrote: »

What I really have never understood about this country. Why tax people and then give them tax credits?

Tax credits were a creation of Gordon Brown, who loved nothing better than to add huge complication to the tax system. It served him in two ways:

Firstly it gave him lots of extra room to put whatever spin he wanted on a story (just one example of this would be the way he liked to leave income tax unchanged but raise NI - allowing him to crow about not raising income tax whilst actually....raising income tax).

Secondly under Brown we ended up with a tax system so complicated that almost no-one understood it, which went hand-in-hand with the first point.

Perfect examples of why Brown was a horrible horrible failure as a chancellor (let alone a PM). His policies were always based on politics & not econmonics.

Whilst we still have the economic legacy of his mismanagement to deal with, at least we can take comfort from the fact that ultimately his political aims failed spectacularly. Booted out at the first opportunity & destined to be rememebered for ever as someone who was outmanouvred at every turn by grinning liar Tony Blair.

stewil18

StevieJ wrote: »

As was the case with the well heeled in the 70's you need to incentivise people to want to earn more (one way or another).

what about a flat tax.....oh sod it, i'm not going there.......;)