Good question. Firstly can you reveal your source for 7% above the EU average?
Your link below - it's at the bottom. Although forgive me I had remembered in wrongly and was thinking Jez was planning on 27%, not 26%
Although it is interesting you used the term average knowing that most are in countries that are termed less developed and not in the picture.
Lets look at equivalents and you can stop running the country down. Germany 29.29%, France 33% and Italy 24%.
https://home.kpmg.com/xx/en/home/se...x-rates-online/corporate-tax-rates-table.html
I have picked those 3 as we are all in the top 10 economies. Now, moving up to 26% is not that bad is it?
It's still very bad compared to say Hungary at 9% or Ireland at 12.5%. There's little drive for a German company in Germany to relocate to Hungary, since both Germany and Hungary are in the EU, and exporting freely around the EU is just as easy from either country. So the only incentive would be the lower corporation tax rates, and on balance most consider it's not worth it. But we are not in that position. European businesses presently in the UK, will be considering very carefully whether they want to move somewhere else in the EU and putting up corporation tax rates at this really precarious juncture is absolutely the wrong policy.
Seems more line with what our similar competitors are charging. In fact the top two are higher, so all those companies will not be jumping that quick.
I realise that the tories want to see us as an offshore tax dodge but that will not help us, the people living here.
OF COURSE IT WOULD. A lower tax base makes businesses want to come here. It means they can pay people more and retain the same levels of profit. It means they can employ more people. Low taxes is good. High taxes is like driving with the break on. If we want our businesses to struggle, the very best thing to do is to raise the tax burden. If we want them to thrive, reduce taxes.
The brexit negotiations will be difficult but trotting about saying if we dont get our way its no deal and the equally moronic bad deal are setting us up for a fail. To get a good deal, both sides have to walk away with something. There will have to be give and take and compromise.
Totally agree with you. May has handled this all wrong. She's from the outset made this all about confrontation when it should have been all about building bridges. She should be talking about getting the best deal for the EU *and* for the UK and talking about how she fully expects everyone on both sides to work together for what's in all our best interests. But no, she's just talked about a fight and made it sound like we are going to have a battle. It's completely the wrong tone and wrong approach. Threatening them from the outset with stupid shit about withdrawing cooperation on counter-terrorism. What on earth was the daft woman thinking of???!
Now, here is a thought, one of the gives we can deal with is corporation tax and the fact we know the EU are not happy with the threat of 17%. We can use that as a barter for other things that will benefit the country. We are happy we have the extra tax money, the EU will not see us as an offshore tax haven and the companies might as well stay as they would have to pay more if they went to France or Germany anyway.
Well they might. Or they might go to Bosnia (10%). Or they might go to Germany because the rates are no higher and Germany is IN the EU.
Now you seem to think that employment costs, the biggest being paying the ungrateful wretches that work in those places, is a problem. Now, when we give those workers a rise and the companies rattle their jewelry and threaten to do one they will go to Germany and France and see just how much those workers earn. We are ten years behind them. Those companies will re-think when they see those end of the months payments in Europe. Of course they are happy paying us when Germany pay a minimum wage of 1,500 Euro.
http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/web/products-datasets/-/EARN_MW_CUR Thats £1300 a month. Now with strong management and strong unions they have figured that out in Germany.
Have you looked at productivity rates in Germany compared to the UK? It is true our wages are not that high, but our unit costs are still very high because our productivity is so low.
Just think that extra money now flooding into the UK market from people working with a decent wage and buying gear. Now thats euros but a tenner is a tenner, well £10*37hours per week*4 weeks in a months is £1480 not much more than the German wage. Where do they move when they know the wage is the same there? Is it worth the move when corporate tax and wage is the same?
What extra money? Paying people more does not "invent" money. It takes it out of one pot and puts in a different pot. There's no extra money. Extra money comes from making more stuff, selling more stuff, exporting more stuff. We don't get any of that just by paying people more. In fact, the opposite since our unit costs go up and sales go down. And that's assuming that all the businesses don't bugger off, which in fact they very well might.
I know you are a remainer and that question has already seen the horse bolt. The tories let it bolt when Dave shat himself when Nige shouted at him. However, we are in that basket now and if the EU see us as happy to compromise on such things as the tax it is possible we can see that the financial market could keep moore of its assets here.Clearly it not a given but you have to thank the tories for putting in that basket.
Agreed it's a fuck up that we are in this situation. But I don't know how you can extrapolate that by putting up taxes, MORE asset may stay in the UK rather than less. That is totally counter intuitive, and in fact illogical.
It is indeed uncertain times but acting like a pissed prick at a funeral (not you, this government) and having seen the destructive and divisive ways of this tory government we will do much better with someone who understand listening is as important as talking and certainly better than acting the jerk as Boris, Gove and the rest of the clowns on the good ship UK that May runs and has us on full speed into an iceberg.
The question was about policies, not personalities. Is raising corporation tax right now, the right thing to do? No, it isn't.
