Tax on wealth suggested

kinger101

ZingPowZing said:

kinger101 said:

ZingPowZing said:

coyrls said:

I was making the point that a wealth tax on capital shouldn't logically be applied to a pension that is designed to provide income that will be subject to income tax.  As you know, you do not pay capital gains tax on your primary residence but that is a tax on capital, as it's name suggests.  I am not against a wealth tax but applying it to pensions is not logical.  I suspect they had to include pensions to make the numbers big enough.  When calculating net worth for example, pensions are usually excluded.

Logically, pensions should be taxed more punitively than PAYE. 

It's not logical at all.  For a start, PAYE is not a tax.  It is a method of collecting tax.  That is also used to collect tax from pensions.
Secondly, income taxes are not punitive.  Her Majesty's Government is not trying to punish us by collecting income taxes.  
But if you mean pensions should attract more tax than earnings from employment, then nobody is going to pay money into a pension so that it can attract a higher rate of tax than if they just took it as salary.

Pensions should attract more tax than earnings from employment, to compensate for the decades long advantage of attracting less tax than earnings from employment.
Academic though; if Govt so decide, pensions will attract more tax than earnings, with no argument from this poster.

Academic because they won't.
Silly argument anyway.  Many of those drawing pensions now paid much higher levels of income tax during their working lives.  As for those saving now, the government will actually get more tax eventually because they'll get about 15 % after decades of capital growth rather than 20 % - 40 % if they tax today.