To actually not mind paying tax?

[Squareplate]

I'm sick of hearing about how Labour will increase tax (they will, they'll have to, after the mess they've been handed) at the same time as demanding better services.

I quite like what Clement Attlee said
"Charity is a cold grey loveless thing. If a rich man wants to help the poor, he should pay his taxes gladly, not dole out money at a whim"

And yet I know loads of people who do great work for charity at the same time as doing whatever they can to hide their money from the tax man. They'll say taxes are wasted or there's corruption etc, but that happens in the charity sector too.

FWIW, I'm a higher rate taxpayer and my parents estate will likely be subject to significant inheritance tax, but I still think that's right and fair.

I don't understand why paying your taxes isn't seen as a social duty.

Not happy to pay more. There isn't much to show for what you pay.

I'd be pleased to pay more tax and see it spent on NHS, social care, education, housing, poverty, clean rivers, etc. I'm on low-middle income, no benefits and am single parent, but its really worth paying for things that make a better quality of life for everyone.

I'm in Scotland, so already pay nearly £2k more than I would if I was in England.

For a long time I was happy with this. It felt like a fair price for free prescriptions, better access to NHS dentists, and the fact that the people on the lowest incomes were paying less tax.

As time has gone on, I feel the balance has shifted. So many more people are paying extra tax and fewer people are paying less. I don't see the value any more.

Also happy to pay and think higher taxes probably safe money anyway.
Pay higher taxes or pay for dental treatment and knee replacements yourself.
Spend £1 on Sure Starts, libraries, and sports centres or spend £3 on prisons, benefits and youth offending.
Pay higher taxes or pay to fix the damage potholes did to your car.
And so on.
I think low taxes are just short sighted and will cost us all more in the long run plus lead to a less pleasant place to live.

Our household pay thousands a month in tax and I’m more than happy to. Providing it goes where it’s supposed to, public services and supporting the most vulnerable.

Yes the taxation of middle or high income single parents is really unfair. At a salary of £51k, you pay far more tax than two parents each on £25k. If you make much more, you lose child benefit and then childcare support despite a couple on double the income potentially still getting it. And it’s harder to earn the money in the first place because you’re doing everything yourself.

I’m on £80k but after childcare I’m left with £2k per month. If I paid another 10% tax on the top part of my income I’d be left with c.£1,750, which isn’t really viable to live on. I’d be worse off making over £100k due to the loss of childcare subsidy.

@bunchofforgetmenots

@AgeingDoc
@Roundeartheratchriatmas

Can you please specify how much more taxes you're happy to pay? In £?

The reason for asking is that people usually say they are happy to pay more when they mean couple of hundreds or so and usually they assume PAYE taxation.

If my assumptions of what's coming are correct, then someone on £125k+ will pay in a tune of £15-20k+ more via changes in pensions and dividends/interests taxation. This is excluding current childcare threshold. Before everyone jumps in about "tiny number of people" - it's going to be over 1m people in this tax band in 12 months.
If you're in this bracket and have at least one DC in private, your extra tax will be over £25k pa - still happy to pay more?

And let me repeat my question posted earlier - what extra share of your estate you're happy to take from your kids and pass to HMRC? or your own inheritance?

Statistically, people reach this level of pay later in life, 40+ or later (of course there are early stars etc but still) at the peak of their careers. Such taxation kills incentive to work so they will reduce hours or retire early. I've been trying to find a consultant privately for my SEN DC - all experienced ones have many months long waiting list, despite sky high fees. Why? they only work 1-2 days a week.

@nearlylovemyusername I paid £102k between income tax and NI last year. Obviously on top of that there is council tax, VAT etc.

If I could actually see a Dr, have a decent state school for my kids, and more importantly have the same for everyone else in society, along with revival of surestart centres, social care, etc so that people generally are happy, accomplished, well rounded and able to achieve what they want to in life (which benefits everyone), I would happily pay another £20-30k or more.

You must be on about £265k - well done you on both fronts.
I suspect you're in minority though.

I've no issue with tax, I use public services and I want those less fortunate than me (particularly children and disabled people) to all have a good quality of life. I can't expect that to happen without taxation.
People who use public services and complain about tax drive me mad. What's been worse recently has been working class people having their wage topped up with benefits complaining about how labour will increase tax and we need Reform in government. They are blind to the fact they are the ones who would be worse off with a right wing government.

We should certainly be giving healthy tax breaks for childcare. It's astronomically expensive in the UK.

And what tax breaks can a single childfree person get? Love to hear what you want this group of people to have....since they get duck all

They haven't the expenses of childcare. They can get partnered up - or not - and have children. Mothers and children need support so we don't end up with Victorian baby farmers - working mothers even more so.

If you don't mind my saying, you sound awfully bitter.

This.

If the number of net beneficiaries is ever increasing, more and more money is needed to keep propping up services that can’t cope with the ever increasing demand.

I am after being made redundant and not even being allowed JSa (at the time) when I should of been entitled to it.

Yet everyone wants more and I end up stumping up for it and handing over more of my money because people say they need more help and want more handouts and i get fuck all for it, not even a safety net if i fall on hard times. So how about there is enough help and how about people saying we shouldn't being tapping up others for more money it isn't fair.

Oh and what taxes are paying for me? I have private health care, private dentist, I don't have children so no childcare no need to use state education. I have my own private pension so I don't need to rely on state pension incase it ends up being means tested. I'm trying to use what disposable income I have to put away to cover my care costs when I'm older as I won't have children to rely on.

In answer to the question in your last paragraph.

Your neighbours children are educated and not roaming the streets. They will therefore become the doctors, nurses and care workers who will take care of you in the old age you are saving for. (And the sanitation workers, the retail workers, the accountants, the brick layers, and all the other jobs needed for the society you live in to function.)

There is a rule of law. If someone strolls down your street shooting people, the police will come and they will be taken away and put in front of a judge in a court of law, and then kept in prison.

The streets are lit. There is investment in industry to create jobs. There are national parks that you can visit (and that safeguard biodiversity and the ecological health or the nation). There are national vaccination programs. There is arts funding. You know that musician you liked when you turned the radio on? They will have been impacted in some way, even if indirectly.

These and more are what your taxes are paying for, so don’t claim that you don’t benefit. You benefit by being able to live in a society that brings all of this together, and that’s why we all contribute.

You should be entitled to the ‘new style’ JSA if you’ve worked long enough. It’s contribution based. Perhaps you’ve been gatekept?

www.gov.uk/guidance/new-style-jobseekers-allowance

I'd pay more if I knew I was actually getting something for it.

It seems a cheek now that people may be paying less, but are then left to die because there are no ambulances.

Well I am talking about 10 yrs ago when it happened but no I'm not going to ever allow myself.to think there is a safety.nrt for me from.the government despite paying my taxes. I've finally saved enough to cover me for 6 months if I ever lose my job again. Except.labour see anyone woth savings as rich even if those savings are a safety net

Yep, completely agree. We don’t fear the inevitable tax rises and are optimistic for public services for the first time in many years.

inevitable tax rises

Wasn't it there won’t be tax rises under Labour just a couple of days ago

Has that changed?

This is true.

I feel penalising people for working hard and saving is perverse. There will be a point when there just aren’t enough net contributors to sustain the massive state machine and it will fall regardless. Because most of the people who bore the financial burden of the ever expanding state will have either left the country or can’t be bothered anymore.

Of course there should be a safety bed for everyone but this isn’t how the system works now.

Penalising those who can see it coming for trying to secure their own future is immoral.

P.S. It’s likely that you were gatekept.

Whoever got in there will be tax rises, an extra £20bn is needed just to stand still, such is the state it's all been left in. They've said no income tax or NI rises, not no tax rises.

You and others who are keen to have these inevitable tax rises which tax do you pay that you want to increase?

I'm not keen, I just know that they'll have to increase tax to balance the books, even without increasing spending (as whoever won woukd have had to).

Personally I'd put it on VAT, a truly marginal tax and difficult to avoid.