In thinking it's not "YOUR" tax?

[Dillydaydreaming]

Am I?

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All these threads regarding benefits etc filled with people saying "my tax going to support the feckless blah blah".

Surely the whole point is that it's not YOUR tax - it's what your employer pays to the Govt. I pay tax and have never thought of it as "mine", in fact I rarely consider it as money I ever had, what I am interested in is the net amount left over and can I live on it + play all bills for the month (sometimes that's the scary bit ).
If you earn enough to pay higher tax rate then your take home pay (which, let's be honest is the bit wot matters) is going to be pretty good and certainly good enough for you to stop fretting about the single parent up the road having baby number 8 on benefits. I mean would you really want her life - honestly?

Or am I BU?

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"sensible post"? Cannot see a single sentence that would make sense.

Yes it is 'your tax' though. Well, not your tax. It is the government's tax of your money It is your taxes that you are paying. The portion of the money that you earn that is taken off you as your contribution towards the running of the country.

To say that it isn't 'your' money is like saying that your gas bill isn't your money because you pay it to the gas company. It is your money, you just have to pay it, like any bill.

Isn't the maternity pay and benefits far inferior in the Netherlands though? Perhaps its horses for courses?

YABU. The employer is a collection agency. The tax is collected out of people's pay. The income tax I pay is my tax as is the VAT and all the others.

I honestly don't know about maternity pay in the Netherlands, but I would be surprised if it is inferior.

Maternity care is definitely superior. It includes services that are not even heard of here like Kraamzorg

My friend is from the Netherlands - she had her children over here 4 and 2 years ago. Her friends over there get about 3 - 4 months leave in total, and then return to work. They are very envious of the benefits she enjoys here in the UK. Afaik, Kraamzorg is not free, although health insurance does cover if it you have the right cover.

In the UK although we can have 12 months off, only 6 weeks are paid at a level people can survive on. Then it drops to a pittance, then nothing so I am not so sure they should be so envious!

I personally wouldn't wat Kraamzorg either (far too interfering) - but I am sure some people would

YANBU ...I have always thought the same.

Living in the states, I am also sick of the "Its my tax dollars one" too!

That depends on the indiviudal, the organisation and the income iirc

Statutory Maternity Pay is paid at 90% for 6 weeks - then drops to just over £100 per week

There may be additional pay paid for by your employer but this is not from the government and has nothing what so ever to do with tax

I find astonishing in the US that all of the tax cut talk disregards the fact that the USA spends as much on "defense" as it does on education
www.usgovernmentspending.com/piechart_2011_US_total

Yeah I have to admit I didn't think this through. I guess I just thought PAYE and forgot (how could I) the myriad of other areas it takes in. Blame tiredness on a Friday eve. .....

I don't object to paying my taxes or what it goes on. I use most of the services it pays for and those I haven't used, I would expect to should I fall on harder times.

I just had a quick look and it seems like a woman in the Netherlands gets paid 100% for 4 months maternity leave which extends to 100% for 12 months if she cannot return to work due to pregnancy or birth-related illness.

That is FAR better than the UK

YANBU, I hate the "my taxes are paying your wages" comments directed at policemen, teachers, nursers, bin men, etc.

I don't want to spend much time with people with this attitude.

"I hate the "my taxes are paying your wages" comments directed at policemen, teachers, nursers, bin men, etc."

I know what you mean Lynette, but what about "my taxes are paying your wages" comments directed MPs? This is perfectly fair, no?

You may not like the comment, and I know the attitude that is delivered with is often way out of line, but there is no escaping the fact that it is true. Policemen, teachers, nurses etc are paid for by taxation and they are there to provide a service which is being paid for.

Doesn't give anyone the right to abuse them or be unpleasant of course, but it does give people the right to comment on the service they provide (although the delivery is often down to the way it is managed, not the individuals who are often doing their best with difficult resource issues etc)

bemybebe, you make a good point!

So, where do you stop? Chief of Police? Hospital Management? Head of the subcontracted company collecting the rubbish?

I think as catgirl people who actually have to endure these comments are the ones on the frontline and are not responsible for the overall running of the service, but the more of this attitude ("my taxes are paying your wages") directed into the right channel, the better it is for all of us as a society.

There is nothing wrong with demanding value for money, provided it is directed at the people who are in the position of power to do something...

Agree - there is little point saying it to a nurse / teacher, but a lot of point complaining to your council /MP about how services are run.

Not that I wouldn't complain directly if I though a nurse or teacher was sub-standard, but I wouldn't bring the fact they were paid by the public sector into the complaint.

I don't think individuals have any more "right" to complain about services funded by taxation than they do about services provided by the private sector. If you think a service is sufficiently substandard that you want to go through the hassle of a complaints procedure then you should do that. The funding of that service is irrelevent.
If you think overall a publically funded service should be changed then you vote for whatever political party supports your view in local and national elections.
Making snide petty remarks along the lines of "I pay for your wages, bow to my will serf" isn't on.
Complain properly or don't bother.

Of course it's my tax or your tax.

The employer doesn't pay the tax from your salary. The employer simply collects it via PAYE to make it simpler.

The money that is paid in taxes is the employee's money.

For that reason, YABU.

Well. It is MY tax, because I earned it. My boss doesn't pay the tax, I work for one day to pay that tax. Also, VAT and so on.

However, I am happy enough to give tax, yes, even to the scroungers, because I like the fact that we have a welfare state.