The Labour Government

[Mr Kobayashi]

It's just an endless circulation of the same money. No one is earning any money

Why are you still here? Can't you just admit you misread something?

 

[hilts]

I escaped the war by the slimmest of margins.

Flat feet?

 

[Vic]

You’re wrong. It’s not 25m, it’s much lower. 15.75m of tax payers are not dependent on the state (through direct and indirect benefits). That’s 23.5% of the entire population.

Our net dependency ratio for tax payers is 58% and that isn’t sustainable if we want to do anything other than exist as a nation slowly spiralling to oblivion. We need bold ideas, growth is great and necessary but moreover we just need salaries to rise more quickly than inflation so we can reduce in work benefits but how you do that without causing inflation or making the public sector too fat - given that’s the only pay the government controls and you can only employ so many people if pay is more attractive in the public sector. Maybe a new corporation tax for profits in companies where the median salary is below £xx,xxx would work - I’d like to see something like that as this topic boils my piss. It’s certainly going to take some nifty tricks to stave off a world that demands quick fixes.

Can Labour do it? I don’t know. I don’t know how much they see it as the problem but the noises I’ve heard in the last couple of weeks indicate they might well do. I hope they can as it’s in all our interests.

Before we go any further, what's the source either for the 25m or the 15.75m?

I thought the 25m was taxpayers in the private sector. What does your "not dependent on the state" mean? Does that inlcude recipients of child benefit? (Do two parents count as two recipients?)

 

[metalblue]

Some of it sounds good. Quite a bit of it sounds like a continuation of conservative policies.

Bizarrely the one thing that really grabbed my attention out of everything was limiting the non branded school uniforms. Simple in-touch policy, great idea.

 

[west didsblue]

I escaped the war by the slimmest of margins.

Just turned 41?

 

[hilts]

I did, you just either can’t or won’t see it. Anyway, it’s too much like hard work, so I’ll leave you to your sarky comments.

Sure you did, I'll leave you to your obsessive behaviour with a couple of posters, it's both mature and riveting:-)

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

.

 

[metalblue]

Before we go any further, what's the source either for the 25m or the 15.75m?

I thought the 25m was taxpayers in the private sector. What does your "not dependent on the state" mean? Does that inlcude recipients of child benefit? (Do two parents count as two recipients?)

It’s dependent on the state to provide benefits. Those benefits are either cash style or in services - health or education. Broadly speaking it’s those people who, if the state took it away, could not themselves make good the situation.

Record number of Britons receiving benefits that amount to more than they pay in tax, study finds

Analysis by think tank Civitas shows 83% of all income tax is paid by 40% of British adults. The study's authors say the "net dependency ratio" is the highest on record.

news.sky.com

Now that shows 54% as net recipients across the entire nation however when you drill in to tax payers it’s 58% (world bank). If you take the number of tax payers 37.5m x 42% you’re left with 15.75m. I’m not entirely sure of the 4% disparity as I’d expect it to be uniform but perhaps 4% is those who have access to other means etc or excluded on account of age - I’m not sure how they don’t drawer from society or net contribute more if not via tax and I’ve not had the time to look in to it.

Ultimately though, whichever side of the fence you find yourself on, it’s not a them versus us situation as there will always be people who need more than they contribute - it’s what a fair society is and should be - for sustainability and the good of those who need it most you really want the net dependency rate to be below 50%. Our system only works if those who can do and those who can’t are taken care of and right now we are taking care of more people than are contributing and that is damaging our public services which is not helping those who need it - it’s a vicious circle.

 

[kaz7]

Lots of good things in the kings speech , labour understanding our issues and sorting them out , added to all the other things they are going to tackle i feel in better hands, sensible and serving us , going to take a while to get used to !

 

[Churchlawtonblue]

Why are you still here? Can't you just admit you misread something?

I don't think you understand the point. The tax they pay obviously contributes to their salaries, but essentially it's just an economic circular moving of monies exercise.

There is an argument for saying public sector workers, despite being highly important for any society, should pay no tax as its essentially just an administrative task.