to think that 6000 per month is excessive for the government to take off my pay for tax?

[tootaxed]

Surely there should be a maximum limit that each person has to pay as tax? Six grand per month in tax is just excessive imo. And that is before NI contributions etc. If the government set a maximum tax limit they would take more care over how they spent their central funds. And I wouldn't have to work so many hours away from my DCs only to have 72 bloody grand a year taken off my income to fund their mis-spending.

well to whoever said my DH is alive and kicking - he most certainly isn't. Alive yes, but kicking no. He suffered permanent brain damage in the crash and that is why he does not work. I have never sought financial help from the government to cover loss of his earnings, as I feel that others who need the money more and cannot earn it within their household should get it instead. That is why I continue to work - and extra hard - to support my DH, children and my parents, who became his carers. Though given the vindictiveness shown to me last night - particularly about being away from my DCs - maybe i should reconsider this? And rather than contribute to society, maybe I should stop work and just claim lots of benefits instead?

And to all of you who seem to assume that I am too mean to pay for my daughter's operation. I am not. It is not covered under the health insurance I get through work. This was not a major issue, as she was due to get the operation on the NHS. Now, it has been cancelled 3 times which is very frustrating. But each time they cancel they give me another date (the one they have given now is April 9th) - and this date is always sooner than we would be able to get operated on if we went private and I paid (which i am willing to do). This is because the private consultant will re-do all the consultations and pre-op assessments so it is not simply a case of phoning up tomorrow and her being operated on the following day. But since it has now been cancelled 3 times (since the beginning of March) I will look be seeking private consultations in parallel as a back up.

Xenia - no - I can assure you that Hungary does NOT have a low flat tax rate.

tootaxed - I am sorry you have been given such a hard time.

It's just madness to not claim what he is entitled to and yet work 100 hours a week yourself. Some of that money will be what the tax man takes 6000 pounds a month for.

Ah may be it's romania then 16%? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_rates_around_the_world

Loads of women support entire families on our own with no contribution from our children's father and work 70 - 100 hours a week in stressful jobs and pay a load of tax and yes we have an option of going on state benefits or moving abroad although if you have brain damaged people in the group that would move in some states you are precluded from moving to because they will not take on the cost.

It would be much more helpful to the original poster to help her get her tax down. Are you an employee so it is all taken off via PAYE? First question.

whatever happened to sisterhood hey? whydo people have to be so bloody harsh-bloosy hideous

bloody hideous i mean

I think the Pope kept envy and the original seven deadly sins when he updated them recently although I'm not sure what his authority was to render a deadly sin the excessive accumulation of wealth. And we have the bearded Archbishop of C on the front page of the FT today (who has been attacking the creed of greed - nations' greed for oil, power and territory.

When the Tories reduce the top tax rate down to 40% it increased the tax take - more was paid in and since then the UK has been an attractive country compared say to France. We have benefited hugely from that including benefit claimants but Gordon Brown seems to want to destroy all that and it will all fall down on top of him. People will leave. We are all much more mobile today than we were. Many businesses can be carried out anywhere.

IN the 1970s my father a fairly modestly paid NHS consultant was paying 66% on his top earnings from the NHS. That is such a ridiculous percentage. He wasn't a tycoon. He was an NHS doctor. People were thinking it wasn't worth working. In addition there was an extra 15% on investyment income so if he had say £10,000 in Halifax building society he would not just pay 66% on that but 66% plus 15% - the investment income surcharge. That was partly because of left wing views in Government that we should tax the rich until the pips squeaked so that everyone earned the same. In practice it didn't work and that was the time a lot of people left the country. I think some very top earners were on about 99% tax.

Even 41% in addition to all the IHT, CGT, stamp duty and all the stealth and sales taxes is pretty high.

Ah, found it -and I'd better go and work now... but it was Bulgaria I was thinking of
"In Bulgaria income of any individual is subject to a flat income tax rate of 10% in 2008."

Tootaxed,
I think you should look into DLA / incapacity for your DH. It may give you more of an opportunity to get a better work life balance. I would reconsider tithing for the moment if finances are a bit tight.

And surely you can speak to your employers about getting a better work-life balance - can you apply for flexible working? It must be a massive strain being the only breadwinner, but surely you must be able to get something that means you are not working those long hours?

I hate seeing how much tax I pay, but I get round this by not looking at that part of my payslip

I'd be delighted if the amount of tax you paid was out household income. As it is it isn't even half.

oh this is a wind up.

Can someone give me a run down of what happened on this thread since I left it last night please? TIA.

Why should it be a wind up. I think it's obscene how much tax I pay. And I'm not joking about Bulgaria etc. Most of what I do I can do anywhere with an internet connection. I don't rule out moving abroad if I get to feel tax rates are too high. I know someone (male in this case) who saw how high his tax bills were and now works only half the year and spends the rest of the time at his places in NZ and Greece as no pont in working if so much tax is taken.These are real issues for lots of people. The fact so many women pick low paid work or low paid husbands and then are jealous when others are more successful is very funny really but I don't think the sin of envy is admirable.

Can someone tell me what kind of job would pay that much money? It is so totally out of the realms of my experience that I can only stand by and gape.

I think it's a wind up because no-one I know who earns that much would wait months and months for an operation for their child that they could afford to pay for.

Our monthly household income is less that the amount she pays in tax per month and we pay for private health care when we can afford it for the kids if the alternative is a long wait.

Why do you think people are jealous? I actually agree with you about people clearing off abroad. According to my very wealthy friends the Bahama's are now full of Brits and I know my friend has an exit plan in case of further tax rises. I've never been remotely jealous of their lifestyle. It would be nice, handed to me on a plate, but I wouldn't want to do what she's had to do to get it. Because like many people, I would hate my life to revolve around money. I really don't understand why you don't get that Xenia. If I'd wanted her money I would have done the same job as her (we came out of the same university at the same time with a degree in the same subject). We made clear choices at 21.

I still think this is a wind up. No-one would leave their child to wait if they didn't have to.

City work probably Shitemum.

Maybe they just want money more than to pay for an op.

The only reason people on this much money earn so much is because a percentage of tax is taken. If the tax taken was less they would be paid less. So I can never understand why people moan about the tax.

I'm more concerned that the government decided to take away the 10% band and as such the low earners, like myself, are being taxed an 20% on anything above the personal allowance. Now that is mean

Good point Eddas.

Totally agree with OP - haven't read all thread. DH earns a similar amount and works all the hours god sends and I think it is criminal what he pays in tax. Esp with out any relief at all.
On top of that you have to pay for private school as the state ones in our area are really really awful. It is people earning well working very very hard who are penalised and it is wrong imo.

tt - although i also moan about my tax and deductions (and they are substantially less than yours) moaning about it on MN will only get you shot down in flames.

i too have had to work long hours in the past to support the family whilst DH was ill but you cant do it on a permenant basis. you will end up ill and then will be useless to your DH and DC. there are no points in this life for being a martyr so do see if there are any benefits you and DH are entitled to (carer's allowance etc etc) so that you can reduce your hours and maintain your sanity. Life is too short to waste so do something about it now whilst you can.

'The fact so many women pick low paid work or low paid husbands and then are jealous when others are more successful is very funny really'

Yes I think its hilarious that I chose my profession because it is 'low paid' and didn't choose to do something I wouldn't enjoy just to be rich.

I've also just PMSL that I didn't choose some rich twat rather than the bloke that I fell in love with. Hmm, unhappiness and money and happiness and not a lot, well I know what I would rather. Money is tight, but I am happy with my lot.

We also had to pay for a private consultant for DD health problems as our NHS Doctor said "it's not urgent" -excema and acute impetigo that was not responding to treatment-. What exactly are we getting out of this taxation as working people?