Cameron - tax avoidance morally wrong

bankhater_1965

i dont think its the layabouts living it up on public money is the prob, i think its the people you say are wealthy that have taken the country to its knees personaly , those people you say are layabouts most never saw the boom times whilst the wealthy worked there dirty ways with the massive bonuses and tax avoidence and prob many more dirty schemes that havent been found as yet,
also with news of cameroon now wanting to strip away the housing benifit for the under 25 for this already threadbare society

Thrugelmir

cottonhead wrote: »

I think tax should be set as a percentage of income - the same percentage for everyone.

K2 reduce the liability to about 1%.

So where's the fairness in that.

Simplification of the tax system is what's required.

pqrdef

wymondham wrote: »

The letter of the law only - there is no 'spirit' - you either break the law or you don't.

It would be interesting to know when the law first acquired this supremacy in people's minds, and what it's ever done to deserve it.

The offence of "taking and driving away" had to be invented because previously joyriders could argue that they weren't stealing cars, they were only borrowing them. Was that OK then? And if it was OK, why did they make it illegal?

Carl31

bankhater_1965 wrote: »

and i got screwed for owing a measly £500 out of a £7200 tax bill for self employment !! beggers believe

Thats not comparing the same thing, JC still paid what he owed, its just someone was clever in their calculation, hence he paid less than maybe someone else in that situation might

DiggerUK

A fair tax system, should be based on everybody paying the same percentage of income as tax, with the same tax free allowance to start with.

Then all that would be required, is a closing down of all the tax loopholes.

Dream on.
..._

bankhater_1965

DiggerUK wrote: »

A fair tax system, should be based on everybody paying the same percentage of income as tax, with the same tax free allowance to start with.

Then all that would be required, is a closing down of all the tax loopholes.

Dream on.
..._

perhaps so , but in reality this would make the wealthy more wealthy , already most of society has a hatred towards such people !

pqrdef

DiggerUK wrote: »

A fair tax system, should be based on everybody paying the same percentage of income as tax

Define "income".

vivatifosi

pqrdef wrote: »

Another part of the problem is that people have different ideas about what is fair when it comes to taxation. Avoiders may feel that they're just avoiding being unfairly penalised.

And then there's the common attitude which denies any moral responsibility and just says, if it's legal, it's OK.

Didn't catch it this morning, but Danny Alexander was apparently on BBC's Andrew Marr show and said that if tax avoiders paid their fair share, then the basic rate could be cut by 2p for everyone.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18570661

I also caught something similar on Sky's breakfast as I flicked between the two, saying that there was a danger that if someone like Jimmy Carr didn't put his hands up and say "I was wrong" then people would turn their backs on him and stop buying tickets.

Perhaps the fact that the effect has been quantified will now focus people's minds more on whether they feel it is right. My sense is that if people are paying more tax than millionaires and yet are finding times tough, they won't and that there could be a backlash. However again, I feel that the coalition should be careful what they wish for as a lot of their donors are likely to come a cropper. But you can't go removing housing benefits for under 25s and allow blatant loopholes to continue.

kabayiri

Gary Barlow's mansion du jour was £12m according to that DM rag. JC's personal London abode, a mere £8m [though I'm sure it's tidy enough].

Both paid for outright, no mortgage cream for the bankers then.

It seems clear then that if the government are short of funds, and want to raise a bit of extra tax, they know where to look; the so called mansion tax.

Looking to fix the income tax system anytime this decade is wishful thinking.

nicko33

pqrdef wrote: »

The offence of "taking and driving away" had to be invented because previously joyriders could argue that they weren't stealing cars, they were only borrowing them. Was that OK then? And if it was OK, why did they make it illegal?

So there was a "loophole" in the law, and it was fixed.

If there are loopholes in tax law, they can fix them.