hmrc collecting tax from public sector workers

The_White_Horse

why? why not just pay them a net sum and be done with it. won't that save money - presumably hundreds of people are paid at hmrc to deal with this charade? sack them all and just pay public sector jobs 20% or 40% less.

Radiantsoul

I suspect it is more complex than you imagine otherwise it would already have been done.

How would you handle other income(interest, dividends, rent) in terms of thresholds. Public sector workers would still have a c£10k free allowance.

ruggedtoast

Radiantsoul wrote: »

I suspect it is more complex than you imagine otherwise it would already have been done.

How would you handle other income(interest, dividends, rent) in terms of thresholds. Public sector workers would still have a c£10k free allowance.

Public sector workers should be exempt from all tax.

We get precious little else so this would be an incentive to keep the best workers doing what they should be doing, working for Britain and making sure Britons continue to receive first class, first world public services.

GeorgeHowell

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Public sector workers should be exempt from all tax.

We get precious little else so this would be an incentive to keep the best workers doing what they should be doing, working for Britain and making sure Britons continue to receive first class, first world public services.

Continue ? Continue ?

Remind me again -- what planet are you living on ?

Radiantsoul

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Public sector workers should be exempt from all tax.

We get precious little else so this would be an incentive to keep the best workers doing what they should be doing, working for Britain and making sure Britons continue to receive first class, first world public services.

Presumably it would be better to simply pay public sector workers more, rather than offer a benefit that is more useful to public sector workers with other income sources.

ruggedtoast

GeorgeHowell wrote: »

Continue ? Continue ?

Remind me again -- what planet are you living on ?

Well right now I'm in India. If you would like to come over here and see what the alternative is and how much you take for granted first hand, you can probably get an Emirates flight with a Dubai layover for about £600.

To make it more authentic you should agree to only use Indian public services. That means no taxis or private doctors, you should use your feet, the bus or the trains to get around and if you get sick you better go to a public clinic.

Try not to get really sick really fast or need a policeman as the emergency services aren't quite what you will have grown used to in the UK.

I'm sure you'll be pleasantly surprised by the tax regime though.

ILW

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Public sector workers should be exempt from all tax.

We get precious little else so this would be an incentive to keep the best workers doing what they should be doing, working for Britain and making sure Britons continue to receive first class, first world public services.

Apart from comparatively massive pensions, very generous sick leave, nice big pay offs in the unlikely event you ever get laid off, etc etc.

ruggedtoast

ILW wrote: »

Apart from comparatively massive pensions, very generous sick leave, nice big pay offs in the unlikely event you ever get laid off, etc etc.

I have seen private sector places. You get air conditioning and gyms and salad bars and people bringing you fruit. You also get bonuses.

But now you begrudge me a few days sick leave although I rarely take any, and a pittance of a pension to supplement a lifetime of low wages in the service of Britain.

Not a very motivating employer are you?

angrypirate

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Public sector workers should be exempt from all tax.

We get precious little else so this would be an incentive to keep the best workers doing what they should be doing, working for Britain and making sure Britons continue to receive first class, first world public services.

Err, pension? Puts any private pension scheme to shame. I suppose it is massively loss making though.

ruggedtoast

angrypirate wrote: »

Err, pension? Puts any private pension scheme to shame. I suppose it is massively loss making though.

Well my pension scheme is funded and every public sector worker I know is in the same one.

If you mean the civil service pensions then yes you are right but the civil service has always been a gravy train destination for Eton silver spooners.

Its funny how the rest of the public sector keeps having to contribute more for less for our pensions but if you ponce around in a blazer and old school tie the gravy keeps flowing for you.

Andy_L

The vast majority of public sector workers are PAYE so the cost of calculating their income tax is minor. Were you to abolish it you'd then have the admin overhead of:
1. Recalculating their salary everytime the tax codes change
2. Working out a pre tax salary anyway so, as said, you can work out the tax on other income

You'd also distort the cost of running departments as the in-house option will apper cheaper, compared to outsourcing, as the in-house staff are "tax-free"