What should be most heavily taxed? Poll discussion.

taboo2

hey peoples... as an alcy and a smoky i can tell you the most hateful is the alcyhol. destroyed me. family. children. 18 yrs now. hate it.

Dead_Eye_Jones

I voted alcohol. I think the point is not that people want to vote for taxes on things they dont buy but rather its a tax you can avoid - dont drink.

The idea that the rich should pay a higher % of their money doesnt make sense to me. So we agree that they should pay more tax? Well they do! 40% of a million is a little bit more than 20% of 20k isnt it! They are already contributing a load more to society than the rest of us! Put it up too high and these people will just domicile elsewhere and then pay nothing. Nice going Einstein!

What I dont get is why should tax go up (faster than general inflation) in the 1st place? If we managed before we should manage now. Why does it seem things are much more expensive?

Personally I love the idea of a flat tax. Do away with all the red tape and we are quids in. Maybe ! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_tax#Arguments_in_favor

Barlicker wrote: »

My pet hate is dog dirt on our streets and parks.

Yeah its pretty grim isnt it. Often see owners let their dogs poop in my street. They dont seem to even think its wrong And its a street where kids play outside their houses.

Former_MSE_Andrea

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Poll Started 26 June 2007.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Will our new Chancellor be brave enough to change what the old one did? Who knows. Yet for a bit of fun, let's pretend you're Gordon's Darling and need to raise more tax. If it were in your power, which of the following would you raise? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So what should be most heavily taxed? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]A. Alchohol Tax 16% (1555 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]B. Cigarette Tax 67% (6427 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]C. Council Tax 0% (26 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]D. Income Tax 6% (531 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]E. Inheritance Tax 4% (352 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]F. Petrol Tax 4% (385 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]G. Stamp Duty 2% (161 votes)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]H. VAT 2% (228 votes)[/FONT]


[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Total Votes: 9643[/FONT]

Al-Aaraaf

MSE_Andrea wrote: »

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Will our new Chancellor be brave enough to change what the old one did?[/FONT]

In one word: No.

In several:

Gordon did something very cheeky with his last budget.

He opened with a joke that no-one has delivered more budgets, apart from... Hmmmm. Too lazy to look it up just now. Chamberlain maybe? Anyhow, the joke was that whoever it was combined the role of PM and Chancellor. Which is unthinkable now. -Belly laugh-

Ok, I said he made a joke, not that it resembled funny...

No, no, that's not the cheeky bit! He set out a stack of policies that as much as bind the following chancellor to the plans he laid down then. And given that he's now the PM, the chances of anything changing is around about the same my chances of winning the lottery.

Never mind...

isayso

as i read through the postings it is quite clear you will never get unanimity on who or what to tax heavily.excessive taxation is all very fine, so long as you're not on the receiving end.taxing heavily is unfair,unequal,leads to non payment,avoidance & evasion.examples are punitive personal income tax,poll tax/community charge,vat.keep taxes low & fair and you will collect more tax in the long run.taxation used to be for the wealthy,now even the poorest members pay tax. eg. VAT.heavy taxation has a disproportionate effect on those who can least afford it.

isayso

as i read through the postings it is quite clear you will never get unanimity on who or what to tax heavily.excessive taxation is all very fine, so long as you're not on the receiving end.taxing heavily is unfair,unequal,leads to non payment,avoidance & evasion.examples are punitive personal income tax,poll tax/community charge,vat.keep taxes low & fair and you will collect more tax in the long run.taxation used to be for the wealthy,now even the poorest members pay tax. eg. VAT.heavy taxation has a disproportionate effect on those who can least afford it.

madnlooney

astephens wrote: »

Income tax for the rich-I agree with Al Mac-up to 75%. When I was working I was just into the 40% bracket, yet the likes of Elton John and David Beckham still only pay 40% on their millions.

They use a loophole not to pay 40% by being out the country for a certain amount of days a year

star2007

My view on what should be taxed (& general points on economic policy):

Raise the personal allowance to something like £17,000, what a thrifty person can comfortably live on. After that raise the rate of income tax a little, but not so much to discourage self-improvement. This way EVERYONE benefits on the first £17,000 they earn, and only start paying tax after that. People can be more responsible for their own welfare if they have more money in their pocket for life's essentials. And scrap the ridiculous system of tax credits.... the government takes the tax off you with one hand, and gives it back to you with another, creating a whole layer of bureaucracy that needs to be paid for.

Flat rate of income tax... I'm intrigued by this idea, but the jury's still out for me. Traditionally I've been in favour of progressive taxation where the rich pay proportionately more. But I like the fact it massively simpifies the tax system, and gives the rich fewer loopholes from which to wriggle out of their obligations, with the help of accounting acrobatics. If it could be shown to increase the efficacy of revenue and/or lessen spending overall, I could well be convinced....

Increase the VAT/ duty on luxury widgets, unhealthy substances (alcohol & tobacco & processed junk food) and noxious/ greenhouse gas fuels.... anything that impedes the health of the individual and the wider environment, and helps ppl take responsibility for these issues.

Shift the balance of taxation from income to wealth. That way you're not taxed on earning a living for what you need to support yourself and your family responsibly in this life. But once you start accumulating much more than you need to live on.... then taxation begins to kick in.

But most of all... cut out the loopholes like non-domiciled tax status that billionaires hide behind, whereby they end up paying less tax than their cleaners.... not just in terms of proportions, but actual amounts! This really gets me, when the government and tabloid press bang on about benefit cheats (who cost the country a few £100 million a year, whereas the tax cheats are costing billions). Obviously both problems need to be tackled, but prioritise the latter. They don't create wealth for this country, the suck wealth out of it.

We need a nation of small businesses and social enterprises exchanging wealth with other small businesses. That way, ordinary people will have more autonomy and responsiblilty over their own lifes, not having their hard earned salaries sucked up both by big corporations, and large governments. The cost of living would be lower, so parents could choose for one to stay at home (or split their hours half and half). This would help the country from the breakdown of the family as both parents often have to work long hours in order to pay a huge mortgage for a modest house for their family.