To think we can all afford to pay a bit more tax...

[HeyDuggee24]

Obviously I dont mean low earners, but anyone who earns the national average or above.

Both me an DH earn around the national average, and tbh I feel very lucky and a bit rich. That is with a ds in full time childcare.

I was looking at getting private health care at £100 a month and I've been thinking, I'd rather pay that in tax and have an nhs that helps everyone than pay an insurance company and probably never use it myself..

So, an extra 2% in tax each would be less than £50 each a month. Yeah, I'd like it in my pocket but I could live without it and if everyone who earned the national average or above paid it, it would add up to a lot surely?

It just all seems so dismal at the moment. The tories will take away from those who need it but everyone feels there is no way Labour can fund its manifesto.

Maybe if we all pitched in a bit we could still have good lives but makes others lives a little better too.

[Crumbs1]

We can indeed.

[diplodocus]

I wouldn't like to speak for others as to what they can or can't afford, but personally I don't see any other alternative if want to maintain reasonable services.

[WideHorizon]

It doesn't work that way though, after a certain point, increasing the marginal rate of taxation doesn't increase the revenue to the treasury.

The Laffer Curve

[WideHorizon]

I'd prefer to pay directly for private healthcare anyway, at least that way I can be sure that the doctor I am seeing has my, personal best interests at heart not targets, budget, selling my data or whatever other ulterior motive Jeremy Hunt has these days.

[Laura2507]

Er, no.

My salary is national average however I'm a single person household. Therefore my costs are generally higher than each person in a two person household pays - for example council tax is only a 25% reduction, not 50% reduction.

£50 goes a long way for me each month. I know there are people on lower incomes than me however I just can't afford to put anymore money into the system, and I've worked all my adult life. I would prefer to see cuts/reform (in the right areas) and better spending of the money we already put in. Some of the spending is illogical.

[AddToBasket]

The laffer curve has been rejected by lots of studies. What increases tax revenue is simplicity - e.g 10% tax on everyone, everywhere, and all transactions. Done.

I think lots of people cannot bear any more tax. This is especially true of regressive taxes on things like alcohol and cigarettes which disproportionately impact the poor.

[WideHorizon]

The laffer curve has been rejected by lots of studies.

I think what you actually mean there is that lots of left wingers don't like it very much and therefore try to discredit it.

N.B. There's no such thing as a 'study' in economics.

[SuperBeagle]

Considering wages haven't increased in years, while the cost of living has increased, it's absurd to suggest that increasing income tax is a sustainable policy.

While that might be okay for you and your family, for some families, that bit extra will be the thing that pushes them below the poverty line. The government needs to get their spending under control and erode the culture of entitlement that we have come to expect. That is the long-term, sustainable policy.

[HeyDuggee24]

Thats my thinking Diplodocus, we need more money for services and I was just wondering if there was a different way!

Wide - I've read that link and it suggests that we dont know where the hump of the curve is. So, I could still argue that a 2% rise would increase revenue. I also dont agree with your comments on private health care. They use the nhs anyway and I'm sure they have their own targets to meet. Every job does.

I expected that response Laura! But distinguishing between household income leaves it open to abusing the system so im trying to keep it simple!

[AyeAmarok]

I think we could, yes.

But I'm in Scotland and so I pay more tax than I would in England, and our NHS is still shit.

The more money you throw at it, the more it swallows.

[crazycatgal]

What about single people who only have one wage coming in and have all the bills to pay with that one wage.

[Jakeyboy1]

We pay tax on everything. Road tax, income tax,VAT, capital gains, stamp duty....


That's quite enough thanks.

[PickAChew]

You are very naive, WideHorizon

[Biker47]

I pay enought tax already thanks.

[olderthanyouthink]

I'm another singleton that wouldn't like this.

It would end up coming out of the money I save each month and then if I needed to use my savings I'd have less there and would possibly need more government help if say I couldn't work for a time.

[blueshoes]

I can but I don't think I will. If Corbyn goes down the tex route, I will have to vote Tory even though my constituency is a safe Labour seat.

[PortiaCastis]

I pay enough tax thank you and with a dd hopefully going to uni in September I have to find money for her fees rent and living costs.
Not easy when you're a single Parent

[Justaboy]

Don't give them any more then what they already get, they just waste it always have and always will:(

[SemiNormal]

They don't need more money for better services, they just need educating on how to spend tax payers money more wisely! You can't keep throwing money at a problem and hope it goes away when the problem is the system itself.

[TheExuberant1]

I pay enough.

[AnathemaPulsifer]

widehorizon That laffer curve link you posted, as well as being widely criticised, would seem to support the 2% tax increase suggested by the OP since it shows tax revenues peaking at, variously, 65%, 70% or 36-50% tax...? Could you explain your point?

[Fluffyears]

I earn a 'decent' wage but right now I'm down to my last £30 so how can I afford £50 more. I'm sick of it always falling on the taxpayer!

Turf the MP's out of second homes and give them halls to stay in when in London. Stop subsidising their meals and forget a pay rise as the earn enough already.

Tax big businesses properly as the tax they avoid is obscene.

Re-jig the NHS by cutting managers who aren't needed and focussing on care rather than targets and paperwork.

These are just the things that could instantly make a difference.

[LonginesPrime]

If I had to pay much more tax, I would need to cut down on my non-essential spending.

This would be extra-curricular activities for my kids and the small (but important) charities that I make monthly contributions to. I'm sure lots of other people who give to the same charities would be in a similar position if income tax rises are implemented, and this would likely affect the financial viability of these charities.

A couple of mine would be big enough to take a medium-sized hit (I'm one of those boring people who reads the accounts and sources and uses before deciding whether to support a charity long-term..) but I'm fairly sure some of the most important ones I support would be done for.

[sobeyondthehills]

While I agree in principle, I agree with Fluffyears

More needs to be done into looking at the perks MPs get, second homes, for someone like Gove or Hunt, when they live 40 minutes from London.

The fact they get a subsidy on booze, food.

MPs cannot relate to normal people because they don't face the same struggles and while I believe they should be paid more than NMW the "perks" should be stopped

[MrsLupo]

I'd prefer to pay directly for private healthcare anyway, at least that way I can be sure that the doctor I am seeing has my, personal best interests at heart not targets, budget, selling my data or whatever other ulterior motive Jeremy Hunt has these days.

Hilarious. The values and ethics people tend to associate with doctors are in fact the values and ethics of the NHS. Private healthcare is underpinned by a profit-making ethos, the same as private anything else. Your personal best interests are the least of it.

Depressing that so many people are saying they pay enough tax, thank you. People are happy to bang on about the superior health service in France or Germany, but it all has to be paid for. Even in the States, where the point-of-delivery costs are obscene, the % of GDP per capita spent is far higher than the UK. Everyone wants the NHS but no one wants to pay for it. Ironic, given all the crap right wingers talk about taking personal responsibilty, not to mention all the double-crap about "Jeremy Corbyn's imaginary pot of gold". It's only imaginary if I'm-alright-Jack types refuse to contribute to it.

YANBU, OP, of course.