I’m not too good with numbers, especially when it comes to tax. My sister, an accountant, reckons tax is shit too, because apart from having to pay it, there is no logic to it. The man at No. 11 makes it up as he goes along.
Apparently VAT is going to be dropped to 15% for the next year. That’s a cut of 2.5% but apparently it drops prices by 2.13%. Eh? How does that work?
Income tax has also gone up to 45% for people earning over £150,000. I don’t earn that much but I reckon that’s gotta hurt.
As usual, depending on where you read/listen, you’re either better off if you have an income of under £19k, worse off if you earn over £40k, both, neither or some other combination
What we have is an economic system that is supposed to be great. We keep hearing how many people capitalism has raised out of poverty and that it is the best system for economic growth.
If it’s so good, then why do we have more people in poverty than out? If its so good why does it keep crashing and wiping out peoples savings and chucking people out of jobs?
The captains of industriy cry for more privatisation, less regulation, to stop distorting the markets, to free the markets for wealth creation. But when it all goes belly up, it’s all because there was not enough regulation.
I heard a couple of times the word ‘radical’ being used in connection with what the Chancellor is doing. But it’s not is it? It’s just tinkering, rearranging the furniture.
Once we come out of this recession and downturn(TM) we will have another period of unprecedented growth. This period of growth will be followed by another crash.
Boom. Bust. Boom. Bust.
Ad.
Nauseum.
All the while the people able to insulate themselves from the downturns get more affluent, and the worst off get shafted, again and again. No. that’s not quite right. The worst off already have nothing, so it’s the not quite worst off that end up joining the worst off.
It’s not going to change either. Labour, Conservative or Libdems. We’re being taken to the same destination, it’s just the route that different.
Well said on all counts.
With this much debt, we’re already on the handcart and Hell ain’t far away.
Cheers
D
"a cut of 2.5% but apparently it drops prices by 2.3%. Eh? How does that work?"
Something that a shop wants to sell for £100 is currently sold for £117.50 (£100 plus 17.5% VAT).
With the VAT cut, the same item should be sold for £115.00 (£100 plus 15% VAT).
So you’ve saved £2.50 on £117.50 – which is 2.13%.
Hope that makes sense. This will be on the final exam.
Cheers for the lesson, Dave.
Also, I ‘ve corrected the number in my piece.