The top 10% of taxpayers contribute 60% of income tax...

[MsPinkMarshmallow]

I'm fed up of hearing that "high earners" will be targeted by the next budget.

The top 10% of taxpayers pay 60% of income tax.

Don't piss them off. They'll just leave the UK or work less so they're taxed less.

Some more stats: in 2024-25, the top 1% of income tax payers earned 13.3 per cent of total income and paid 28.2 per cent of income tax

35% of adults in the UK pay no tax at all

More from the Taxpayers Alliance here:

https://www.taxpayersalliance.com/briefing_share_of_income_tax_paid_by_percentile

<stands back and awaits kicking>

The U.K.‘s current problem compared to eg the more free market economy of the US is lack of productivity.
The key question is not fairness to all but how to make everyone more productive. If you want to be able to support an ageing demographic and have a free at the point of access health service, you must increase productivity.
If we were to rejoin the EU we may increase productivity. Brexit has been an abysmal failure. There are two choices- become a Reform style tax haven Singapore on Thames but everyone look after themselves vs get yourself back into a trading relationship with the EU that improves productivity and accept that we need migration and ignore the haters.
The rest is all lies.

We’re in the top 10% and could pay more. If it funds schools and hospitals I’m all for it

Brexit was horrible. Like we just made trade with our biggest partner more expensive and immigration went up anyway.

And we now cannot move and just settle and work in the EU. We're stuck here.

I'm sorry to tell you that If you have a car crash you are not going to a private hospital you are going straight to the nearest A&E, regardless of your status/income in life

Okay, more politely: I am surprised to hear that you didn’t understand my explanation of equity vs. salary in a professional services context. It is not credible to make a sweeping statement about legal salaries being too high when (as you concede) there are such vast differences between them. Overpaid lawyers is a lazy trope that is often wheeled out in discussions about tax, and it’s tiresome. Those who make it are often surprised by the (shit) salaries at the more public-facing end of the profession, that are not supportive of leftist arguments favouring lower pay for highly qualified professionals through some misguided notion of “fairness”.

As a low earning family this thread is so depressing. I don't hate people who earn more than me. I don't want tax hikes for those people (we need to spend the money we have in more efficient ways).

Most people I know are low earners. They work hard. They try their best to support themselves. They do jobs that help the higher paid workers to do their jobs. They are not bad people. They not stupid people. During covid these people were key workers. I remember how people said things would change and these workers would receive more respect. That didn't last.

There is a comparison between a barista and a neurosurgeon on this thread. Even a young child would comprehend that a neurosurgeon does a more important job and that is why they quite rightly earn more. I watch numerous medical shows and am constantly in awe of these amazing people. Conversely there are many high earners whose jobs purely consist of reducing costs or increasing profits for private companies. Are these people as essential as a neurosurgeon to society? Or a nurse? Or a teacher? A firefighter etc etc. People always compare low earners to higher earning essential workers which is not a fair comparison.

I have often wondered how a 'strike day' for both high and low earners would work. I think if we took the NHS out of the equation the low earners strike day would cause more upheaval but maybe not. I'd quite to see it in action.

@Lauren1983 to your final paragraph, there is an interesting “fake” documentary set in California called “a day without Mexicans” that might interest/amuse you.

If you contact your local school association I'm sure they would be delighted to let you pay more to help education.

So if you work hard at school to do well, you sacrifice years of your life to achieve professional exams, build up huge student debt, but then get a good job - you think you should then support everyone who can’t be bothered? I personally would give a tax break to those who get up every day and physically go to work. Don’t tell me it’s just as hard working from home, it’s not. And for those of you working all hours, I salute you. There are plenty of people who think you should pay more and more for working an 80 hour week.

I get what you mean.

Speaking about a neurosurgeon,nurses, firefighters and teachers they get paid a lot less than they would because it's a government monopoly suppressing their wages. Doctors and nurses for example make a lot more in the states. I believe American neurosurgeons can make into the millions a year.

If you think all corporate/business careers are about "increase profit and decrease costs" maybe you should try and do that then?

I think I'd like to see a business be more profitable and cut costs. Isn't that the goal of all business owners?

My main point is that if someone is earning a wage that's "ludicrously high" it's because (usually) the market deems that what the person does in their job is deserves heavy compensation.

Thank you. My DH is currently away from family, on business abroad. He yearns to be at home with us his family but has taken the sacrifice to go away. They'll pay him extra when he's there. But it's a lot of hard work and he's so tired always.

My own DC realise how much their dad does for them. My eldest directly looks up to him for all the hard work he's done.

"but oh no I never bothered at school, now I'm flipping burgers at McDonald's I deserve enough, just because"

Ok but this seems to go against your earlier posts? US salaries attract talent but you’d like to link wages here so the top isn’t as high.

I didn't read far enough tbh, happy to take your word for it.

I stopped reading at 'everyone who can't be bothered', as that's a massive red flag.

Some people just don't bother. I don't know why this offends you so greatly.

I don't know why you have to respond to every single comment I make, but there we are.

Me too. I was told by my own dad that he could have done as well as my brother and I have done put together if he’d tried harder. If only my dad had done that and I didn’t have to grow up in poverty….is it any wonder that I have short shrift for people who can’t get off their arses and make something of their lives when my own father told me that he couldn’t be bothered.

Because they are clueless to what goes on in the real world. Then think you are offended when they write ‘ I stopped reading at’. And that is the attitude of many.

I'm not clueless or offended, thanks.
I stopped reading because your comment was clearly not based in reality
Keep assuming some higher authority though, if it makes you feel better.

We went through this for 20 years. My husband worked in dangerous locations and we were left for weeks on end. But it was no different to service/ military personnel. I have 3 great kids, who all work full time and try their best to make their lives better. My husband was made redundant in 2020 during Covid. Did we sink - no.
we tried to swim harder. Money is now tight, but we would never expect to be funded by anyone else and we have a nice house and much to be grateful for. I am 59, work in education and also care for my elderly Father. I am genuinely knackered, but it is what it is and life throws challenges. I seriously don’t want to pay more tax. This government is throwing money away and we should not have to suffer for it.

you're not wrong with that comment…

i Will crack the jokes. I have worked all my life in the NHS and education. I see things you wouldn’t have a scooby clue goes on. Admit it. You work from home.

Which particular part? If that's some sort of dig at me then crack on, I've met enough folk who assume authority but honestly don't know about anything outside their often prejudiced bubble.