How should covid be paid for?

[KenDodd]

I think there should be a small wealth tax (up to 1%) and before anyone starts saying I'm just jealous or whatever, I would be in for thousands of pounds that I don't have and would have to owe. I feel really strongly that we can't just load yet more debt onto the young, they have it much worse than my generation did already (I'm 51).

Yabu - No to wealth tax
Yanbu - Yes to wealth tax

If you vote No, please suggest an alternative that you think would be fairer.

@Rhayader

There’s a house round the corner from us which was last bought in 1995 for £250k, it’s now on the market for £2.7m. All of that income is unearned and untaxed. If that was a pension it would be above the lifetime limit and they would be paying tax on it

Can you point me in the direction of the income I have apparently gained since my home has gone up in value please, because I don’t know where it is. It’s the same pile of bricks it always was to me, I’m not sure where the extra income is supposed to come from???

I could sell my house of course, but then I’d still have to live somewhere and strangely enough, all the other houses have gone up in value too so the fact that the sums of money shuffling through the solicitors are bigger than when I bought is pretty irrelevant.

I could downsize of course and see some cash that way, but if I do I’ll spend it and pay VAT which would help the economy and free up a family sized home in the midst of a housing shortage, or I could stay put and let the tax man take their cut before my kids get their inheritance. Either way, the government already benefits as much, if not more, than I do from house price inflation, without needing to introduce a wealth tax.

Of course I know none of this will ever happen, it would affect Tory voters and MPs too much.

Covid (and Brexit) will be paid for on the backs of the young and the poorest.

Put a much higher tax on all imports (not food) but all other commodities. That would help bring manufacturing back to the U.K., which would help create jobs, which stimulates the economy. Better for the environment too, as over time there would be fewer cargo ships crossing the oceans.

NOT by more austerity anyway that's for sure!!

Do people realise that benefits were frozen for the past ten years?? Yes, even in work benefits for those on minimum wage or zero hours, and disability benefits??

Sunak said they wouldn't be imposing more austerity to pay for COVID, but later said they are considering another benefits freeze.

It's sickening.

Absolutely @NailsNeedDoing, common sense spoils a good envious rant though!

NailsNeedDoing

I wouldn't worry. The reality is nobody is going to touch a penny of your million pound house. Poor people will just have to pay more.

Confiscate the vast amount of land the aristocracy and royal family have been given over the years. Put it in public ownership and rent it back to them. They’re all up to their usual tricks, getting the working and middle classes to argue between themselves, while they continue to sit pretty on massive wealth.

common sense spoils a good envious rant though!

Again. Did you miss the bit were I said I'd have to pay thousands in a wealth tax?

@sst1234

This thread sums up the mentality of everyone wants to raise taxes but no one wants to pay. This is most true of socialists and lefties, which are plentiful in supply on these forums. So there we have it, raising taxes is a bad idea, as if it needed to be confirmed.

I actually proposed several options, just not taxing people on the value of their primary residence.

I bought a smaller house than I could afford and so have now paid off my mortgage. Why should I pay tax when I could have bought a more expensive house on 100% mortgage and therefore owe nothing?

I pay income tax at the 40% rate and don't begrudge paying more income tax. I can't see any reason not to reduce the IHT threshold back to about £250K (but maybe charge only 20% up to £500K and then 40% on the remainder).

Get rid of NI and increase taxes on profits and income for employers and employees - you could save a lot by making the system easier to navigate.

@KenDodd, no I didn’t miss that. I agree with you 100%. It wasn’t directed at you at all, it was meant for the pp getting bent out of shape by house price inflation. Not only could we afford the 1% but I’d happily pay it.

@NailsNeedDoing

Equity release

Yes and Londoners shouldn't be the ones having to pay for everything

@Shxx

Yes and Londoners shouldn't be the ones having to pay for everything

They’re not.

@SomewhereEast

That demography can start by accepting that selling your house to pay for your residential care in old age is completely legitimate & reasonable (and a lot better than placing the burden on younger taxpayers who may never be able to own a house at all). I honestly have no idea why that's so controversial.

I agree 100% and firmly believe that is what my pension and house is for, if needed.

wealth tax is fairer than just focusing on income.

[quote VinylDetective]@KenDodd, no I didn’t miss that. I agree with you 100%. It wasn’t directed at you at all, it was meant for the pp getting bent out of shape by house price inflation. Not only could we afford the 1% but I’d happily pay it.[/quote]
Actually I missed her last sentence, it was the rest I was agreeing with 🙄 That’ll teach me not to skim read.

Raise tax on alcohol, tobacco and increase the sugar tax. Scrap child benefit and maternity grants. Rather than council tax, an amount per household member. Close education establishments down and go remote so little running costs or cleaning costs needed in schools.

Start fining more people caught breaking the law, offer a percentage for people reporting. Given how many aren’t following the rules, it should make a huge amount.

There should be no wealth taxes or tax increases for people who have been negatively affected by the virus. People who have been furloughed and the businesses that furloughed them should repay the money along with the businesses who profited from the pandemic.
I have been unable to earn any money since covid so will leave the country immediately if any wealth taxes are brought in.

We also need to see large cuts in government spending to pay for this.

We also need to see large cuts in government spending to pay for this

There’s nothing left to cut.

People who have been furloughed and the businesses that furloughed them should repay the money

DH & I worked throughout lockdown. A friend is in the travel industry, she was furloughed & may lose her job. I feel very fortunate Im not in that position.

Off the top of my head...

Significantly increase court fines for racist/homophobic behaviour and coronabreaches.
MP bonuses scrapped.
Tax evaders/avoiders made to pay.
Means test the free TV licence for the over 70s. Same for the Winter Fuel Payment.
Council tax per head, not per household.
NHS services for needs only, not wants.
Prescriptions for paracetamol & ibuprofen scrapped.
Cannabis legalised & taxed.

Those who took furlough should have a separate tax band created and have to pay higher tax to recoup the money. Why should I pay for those on furlough when I worked through it all.

@IceCreamAndCandyfloss

Raise tax on alcohol, tobacco and increase the sugar tax. Scrap child benefit and maternity grants. Rather than council tax, an amount per household member. Close education establishments down and go remote so little running costs or cleaning costs needed in schools.

Start fining more people caught breaking the law, offer a percentage for people reporting. Given how many aren’t following the rules, it should make a huge amount.

What about families who genuinely need their CB to feed their children? Who's going to stay at home and look after the children if schools close? What about the cleaners, TAs and dinner ladies who would then be unemployed?

@Rhayader

100% agree, we should be taxing wealth not income.

The top 10% of wealthy households own 45% of all wealth. The bottom HALF only own 8%. There is a huge intergenerational inequality with home ownership rates ridiculously low for under 40s.

There’s a house round the corner from us which was last bought in 1995 for £250k, it’s now on the market for £2.7m. All of that income is unearned and untaxed. If that was a pension it would be above the lifetime limit and they would be paying tax on it.

If it was up to me there would be an annual 0.5% tax on all first homes and 2% on all second/third homes, empty homes or non dom owners. That would encourage people to move out of huge family homes once kids have flown the nest, ensuring a more efficient use of the housing stock. We should also remove stamp duty to remove costs associated with downsizing.

Um no. So I would owe £15k a year on my £300k house when I only have £70k equity on it? Just because I live in a high house price area? I don’t have £15k a year, where do you propose o get this money from?