I was at a board meeting last week of a charity that I am a trustee of.
We don’t do fundraising from the general public, it is mainly wealthy individuals who donate because they believe in our cause, and want to support the UK generally.
Many of them were not born in the UK, but chose to live here. Many of them own their own businesses. The message we are getting from them is that if RR’s budget is as anti-wealthy people as is rumoured, and if they continue to be demonised, then they will not stay in the UK, and will not support UK charities and causes when they leave, but will instead divert their charitable giving to causes in the country they settle in.
We are talking very very wealthy people here, who have the money and connections to move country if they want to. The sort of wealth where they give us a five/six figure sum every year without blinking, and give similar or larger sums to many other charities, because it’s not just us that they support. Year after year, they do this.
But, all that is at risk - not to mention the taxes that they pay, and the employment that they provide. And all because of jealousy and attacks on ambition from the left.
It makes me so cross when people say that “the rich” should pay more tax, donate more to charity - because they really don’t have a clue just how much “the rich” are already doing.