The world doesn’t make anyone rich, that’s only something that can be achieved somebody’s hard graft and clever decisions. Higher taxes for the rich only encourages 2 things: - The rich individual to leave the country of high taxes, taking the opportunities and jobs with him. - Makes the country of high taxes a less desirable place to start a business, again meaning less jobs and opportunities. Personally I would lower the tax for the rich in the UK. That would encourage clever people from all over the world and the UK to bring their business here, meaning more jobs, better economy. At the moment we ask people to do all the hard work, the responsibility, the sleepless nights, getting their businesses off the ground, and if they manage that, and start to get the fruits of their labour, we then take 50% of their profits. In return of their monstrous taxes, we provide them a poor health system, overcrowded schools and a general public that have been groomed into disliking anyone that achieves anything in life. No wonder rich personnel go to tax havens.
The idea of less tax is quite beyond me. Rewarding greed just isn't a good idea. I do love the idea that these hard-working mega rich do all the hard work and get punished for it. While the plebs they pay to do the actual hard work should be grateful to walk in their shadow and actually have to pay their taxes.
New business people do work hard but new business people are rarely rich. Those with cash just invest and pay workhorses. Honestly if people make shed loads of money and won’t use it to create a better world let them **** off. Why would anyone want to be rich while people around them suffer. They’re mentally ill if you ask me.
Of course some do. And one really shouldn't generalise one way or the other. But there's plenty of rich business owners out there who make an absolute mockery of the people who prop them up. Not all business is ethical. Why are people like Mike Ashley and Philip Green rewarded for criminal behaviour? Or bankers who get eye watering bonuses for poor performance and criminal behaviour. No wonder those poor souls rush off to Monaco on their superyachts when they've assets stripped and kept people on zero hour contracts. I have no bee in my bonnet about owners of small to medium enterprises who do well for themselves. I'm sure there's plenty of decent sized big businesses who actually do their bit. But there's plenty who don't. Encouraging people to do less is just a bad idea in my mind. The gap needs closing just a little but, not widening astronomically.
I can't disagree with anybody suggesting that all businesses pay their correct taxes. I will never agree with anybody suggesting that once you hit a certain level of financial success, you will then be told what to do with your money. Why is the onus being put on the man/woman who started with nothing and become a self made multi-millionaire to then be responsible to feed Tracey and her 5 kids? Why isn't all the responsibility on the parents? We should always be encouraging entrepreneurism. Telling people we'll only allow them to reach a certain level of success does the exact opposite. That 500 million that they've got in the bank would be better served allowing them to start new businesses, creating more jobs, lifting the economy. That won't happen if the state becomes involved and starts distributing some of their finances out. Business owners would just leave the country at that point and take their ball with them. Then they'd be job losses, which in turn would mean more child poverty and an even bigger reliance on the state who wouldn't be bringing in as much revenue to help deal with said issue. Folk shouldn't be bitter about successful people in business. It's a ****ty mentality.
Good post saff. At the end of the day these people will do what they can legally do to reduce the tax they pay (lets be honest, we all do). The multi billionaire type of people won't care where they live and still be able to run their businesses. Lets break it down simply. If i ran a business that made 1 million profit and the average worker was earning 50 thousand per year then that's potentially 20 people i could employ and break even., Now if i lose half of that 1miilion in tax then that's only 10 people that i could employ. The trick is balancing the tax rate so that it profits the government yet doesn't put off the businessman from growing and therefore employing more staff.
Probably because the answer to creating a utopia is somewhere in the middle but neither side is quite able to grasp it. There is a reason we are debating it here and it hasn't happened after two million years on the planet.
Your two posts sum up the situation perfectly for me. The capitalist theory of work hard, make money, create jobs, the wealth gets spread around, everyone can support themselves/their families makes perfect sense in theory. The socialist theory of everyone contributes to the state-held pot of money, everyone gets the same, and the state supports everybody makes perfect sense in theory. The reality is that both systems are unfair to someone somewhere along the line. That's why we have the system we have, never quite doing one thing or the other. That just about works enough to keep us ticking along. But it means that we have to lean one way for a bit and then lean back the other way for a bit. And this is why it makes absolutely no bloody sense whatsoever to position yourself on either side of the divide. As responsible citizens we should all adopt the middle ground.
The bit I don’t like is someone having £5+ billion and just keeping it in a stash or not paying the employees another £X amount an hour.
I'm all for people making millions, does me no harm generally, I've worked for quite a few and they provide lots of employment. The Russian Oligarch's wife had a travelling maid to pack and unpack her clothes. She travelled the world and went on the private jet, yacht, helicopters etc. That's all fine but what did bother me was the way I was paid to save them paying tax. I had to set up a company in Portugal to provide services to the house in France. I then had to sub-contract Mrs Smug to work for me. This is a billionaire, who has pretty much limitless money, who saved pennies in French tax. I once asked the boss for money, to sponsor a local kids football club, and received a solicitors letter from the company's, well known, London barrister. Still bugs me that, still have the letter somewhere.
