Most of the vitriol surrounding tax and wealth, particularly on here, is driven by jealousy and not a misguided sense of what is fair. Example: The ridiculous OTT comment from the usual suspects like Jimmy Cricket...."Those benefit programmes are pure vicious hatred. They should be banned. The rich steal and lie and getaway with it shames us all that we accept this." Steal?? The terms "tax avoidance" and "tax evasion" are often used interchangeably, but they are very different concepts. Basically, tax avoidance is legal, while tax evasion is not. Most people who have worked and ended up rich pay what they have to. Demonising someone just because they are rich is illogical . Another example of socialist muddled thinking is the outcry over the so-called dementia tax, which in actual fact means that inherited wealth would have been capped to a not unreasonable £100k before people pay their own old age healthcare, and those with no real assets would no longer be subsidising those with property and assets worth a fortune by having to pay (via taxation) for medical/health care in old age for the rich whilst the children of the same inherit the entire estate. If this were to continue (the so called peace dividend comes into play here) for 2 or three generations we end up perpetuating (and increasing) the inequities in society the same people complaining about the dementia tax object to. 1 Corbyn regularly spouts "one rule for the rich and another for the rest of us" Wrong!! The same rule applies for everyone if they have enough money to pay advisers. Some people rant about those who use legal methods to minimise the amount of tax they have to pay when they themselves would do the same if they could. You can buy cash ISAs which are tax free and deprive the Govt of tax revenue. 2 Who pays more tax willingly than they need to? Err... actually the Queen does. Incidentally, she has nothing whatsoever to do with the investment management and voluntarily pays tax on the Crown income when , in law she does not have to. Incidentally, how many of you have private or are part of a company pension scheme? How many of you bother to find out where that money is invested? Pound to a penny many of them have money invested offshore. 3 Self employed. Do you have an accountant who works out your tax deductible expenses which reduces your tax bill? Does he make sure you have a tax efficient business i.e. pay as little tax as you need to? Tax evasion is rightly illegal and those doing so should be pursued and hounded as that does deprive the state of tax revenue. We should remember though that the top few percent do actually pay about 90% of the tax revenue of the country. Even middle income earners pay more. Example: Before I retired (pre retirement age) I found myself paying hundreds each month in NI contributions - far more than the minimum weekly stamp- and yet, when it came to any benefit entitlement after ceasing employment it only takes into account the previous two years contributions - the same as anyone who has just paid the minimum. Furthermore the state pension is based solely on the number of years and months contributions and not the total amount of monies paid in NI. I am not complaining about that but it does demonstrate that the unfairness in the system does count both ways.
This arguement makes me chuckle. Folks would still come to gawp at the buildings and such like. A bit like they do in France...
aye defend the indefensible. N Of course there’s one rule for the rich don’t be daft you say it yourself if you are rich enough to pay advisors who will tell you to manipulate the system. While you are correct of course it’s not illegal. It is morally reprehensible and still nicking you just hire someone to tell you how to get away with it. As for Queenie she is not the worst let’s pick that hypocrite Bono for that but anyone can insist to advisors that investment are all made on an ethical basis rather than to maximise savings if they care. The ownership of Brighthouse by Liz that aggressively targets the poorest in society again not illegal but absolutely wrong for someone in a position of privilege not to check what is done in their name. Anyway squeaky bum time for you migrants if we leave the EU with no deal...
https://www.theguardian.com/news/20...y-peer-paradise-papers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other People like this chap need stopping.
I see you chose not to comment on the other parts of the post. Is your pension fund 'squeaky clean' ?Odds are it is not. That makes you no different from the queen as she has no direct input into her fund management. It is the fund managers and advisers that need to be spotlighted given her unique position. As I said too many people posturing with moral indignation when in reality, many of them albeit on a smaller scale, do the same thing . i.e.seek ways to pay as little tax as possible whilst staying on the right side of the law, or not... ("cash in hand anyone?") What about my comment on ISA tax free savings encouraged by Governments)? What has my living in Italy got to do with this? Anyway, were you not the one who boast (among other things) that you went to the Royal Garden Party a couple of times" Who pays for those then? As regards as a tax paying migrant domiciled in a particular country for more than 5 years, why would I be worried? EU does not determine taxation. Dual taxation treaties exist between individual countries and are nothing to do with the EU. Immigration policy (same as UK) for non-EU migrants (which we will become post Brexit) are subject to the laws of individual member states. Again, nothing to do with EU Unless you are implying European states would change their laws to carry out mass deportations of people legally domiciled and paying taxes and confiscating their property it simply wont happen. In any case the ECHR and International law would simply not countenance it. It would be highly discriminatory unless they deport all Russians, Americans, Canadians, Australians etc. Besides, Spain has already stated that nothing will change for ex-pats currently living and working there. Italy will follow suit. UK residents contribute to the local communities buying goods and services, pay national and local taxes so no-one is going to upset the apple cart even if they could. Granted future applications for UK workers and retirees wanting to work in the EU may be a little more complex- visas, work permits etc. but that is again, subject to the laws of each State as we will be outside the EU. All the talk of blocks on travel,work and retirement abroad is just ramblings of the more extreme members of the remain camp who have not thought it through. I am surprised, that for someone who claims to be so well informed and travelled, you appear to fall into that category.
[/QUOTE]Having read through some of the musings on here ive come to the conclusion that jealousy would be behind a number of the comments. Lets be right. Except the mostly holy of virtue signalling attention seekers every one of us would avoid as much tax as possible if we could.
If we got rid of the Windsors and gave all their illgotten wealth that they've accumulated to the state for social services towards our old folk , nhs etc.. then we'd all be better off..?? There should be tax deductions for those who are republican and those who are royalists can pay for royals out of their taxes??
Having read through some of the musings on here ive come to the conclusion that jealousy would be behind a number of the comments. Lets be right. Except the mostly holy of virtue signalling attention seekers every one of us would avoid as much tax as possible if we could.[/QUOTE] Not everyone does or would. I’m not jealous of those who starve our country of resources by manipulating the system. I’m pissed off we all should be. I wouldn’t take an isa for ethical reasons what others chose to do is their business not mine. I bank through Triodos who hold my pension. I wouldn’t pay cash in hand or encourage anyone to do so. It’s not difficult. you take a throwaway remark at something I attended years ago when working for them TUc as a boast ironically I was low down and only had to go because I was lowest in the food chain. My employer paid for my attendance in terms of wages. I’m not particularly a remainer extreme or otherwise. Though I suspect a hard Brexit will have extreme implications for us and possibly for people like you who comment but don’t live here.
Isn't Bono Irish? Not wanting to defend him too much, but that is a matter between the Irish tax authorities and his conscience.
Worth a read: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/11/05/world/paradise-papers.html What are the Paradise Papers and what do they tell us? The leak of 13.4m documents shows the scale of the offshore empire and involves everyone from the Queen to Facebook https://www.theguardian.com/news/2017/nov/05/what-are-the-paradise-papers-and-what-do-they-tell-us
I just hate the sanctimonious ****. I suspect he has no conscience and the irish tax Authorities seem to encourage that sort of thing. But you are right.