to think 51% tax is ridiculous, and already to be planning to move to Asia

[hedgiemum]

Namechanged. Married to someone who earns well in excess of £150,000 a year, though neither does he earn 7 figures.
He is still quite young in his career - a recent promotion to a senior position, but has not been earning this kind of money of long, so we still have a mortgage and haven't saved large amounts (what we have saved is through his pension which is no longer going to be particularly worth doing.)

He phoned me a minute after end of budget to say he'd watched it with his boss whose reaction was that he would move the company (not a bank, but in finance) to Asia. Probably Hong Kong - 12% tax rather than the 51% we'd be paying here.

Seems like a kneejerk reaction, and clearly we can afford to pay more, but boss doesn't feel he'll get good productivity from staff if they are getting to take home less than half their income. Plus it decreases ever-present risk of them being headhunted by companies in lower-tax economies.

AIBU to be PLEASED (I used to hate tax exiles.) Partly because it just does not seem fair. Partly because this country has been run so badly by New Labour of whom we had such high expectations, and the medical care we have received has been shite, the local schools are shite, the roads are insanely busy and yet is costs so much to live here.

Litchick exactly. Services will still be cut, dramatically just wait and see.

We need to reduce the hugely expensive and lumbering government machine that is ineffective, fat and complacent. That would save real money.

im happy for dh to pay more, we have all we need.

and i would hate to live in hong kong!

But the hole of debt isn't something we can ignore, and every little bit will help. I agree with the point about costly wars, but you can't go back now, can only go forward. And those earning over £150 can afford to pay more and morally (imo) should.

I don't think its all about the amount raised but the message it sends.

But the message seems to be that they got us in this mess they can jolly well help to get us out.
And that is so puerile and simplistic.
It just makes someone who is losing their job feel better by distracting them. It won't help them keep their job will it?

My family for example are lapping it up.
Their view is that you lot down there ie anyone below the Watford Gap is part of the city and the finacial crisis.
So many of them are facing or have been made redudant it is shocking but today they are happy because I've been made to feel a little pain. Distraction tactics.

But isn't the borrowing at 180 billion? Or did I dream up that figure?

Feel a little pain?Nothing in comparison to what they are going through.Old labour would have done this and more so I am surprised at the surprise iyswim.

me too noddy. I'm not sure it's quite as arch as you think Litchick. It's raising necessary funds in dire times. Am sure yes it's calculated to make some people like Labour a bit more, but there's a sound economic reason there too.

But that's my point Noddy. Really it is only a little pain - more a shock really. I'll still be fine.
But for today at least the government has distracted people who are really suffering into feeling that little bit better. Today they are not demanding to know why they are being made redundant etc
I feel they have done this cynically rather than through any real desire to achieve something.

Crossed with you Smee.
Maybe and I'm no financial wizard, but the polices seem all over the place. Only a couple of months ago Gordy was cutting tax to encourage spending. He said that would boost the economy and thus safeguard jobs etc. Now he's increasing taxation thus taking that money out of the economy. You can't have it both ways can you.

Litchick on Thu 23-Apr-09 12:18:36
"Cory - though isn't it the case that many would stay in the Scandi countries because the servises really are second to none whereas here they can be seen as poor."

yes, certainly. you have to avoid spending the money on unwanted wars and other frivolities if you want to retain the credibility of the tax system

though having said that, the NHS is sometimes second to none

not everything works perfectly in the Scandinavian system either
(thinking of the completely bonkers doctor I had an argument with over dd's chickenpox)

Not sure that adds up totally Litchick. The 1% who will now pay more tax will still spend as thy've still disposable income. And as the increase doesn't apply to the majority, Gordy's VAT cutting, etc will still help them won't it?

Maybe it is just phase one though of really redistributing £ and there is more pain to come for top earners?

slug - i do rent and have always done so. i consider it foolish to pay a ca. 30% premium to buy vs. renting. (until the market readjusts)

triggles - fair enough, healthcare is a huge issue for the U.S., but there is plenty of homelessness and gang violence here in the U.K.

honestly i think this thread is missing the real losers of this budget: all of us. Public spending is dropping off a cliff and services will suffer accordingly.

The £1B or £2B raised from this tax increase is negligible against a £160B budget gap.

O just go, carry on moving around the world to suit your incomes, all that matters in life is money,

Next .....

goodnightmoon - I've worked in law enforcement in both the US and the UK - I've seen from experience - the levels in the US for homelessness and especially gang violence are off the charts there in comparison to here. Public services in the US are a joke.

I'm not saying that the government here doesn't need to fix some things - my main point was that I was tired of some people going on about how much better it was in the US than it is here and how the US is so superior - it absolutely is not. In many ways, it is far inferior to the UK.

Triggles - guess it depends on where you are. I know NYC has really cleaned up its act, but I still find it shocking that Londoners are six times more likely to be robbed or assaulted than New Yorkers.

some of the debating points here are facile

to say that all the op cares about is money is spiteful

I doubt those on "the other side" of this argument resent giving money for roads, good schools, care for the elderly, decent NHS and so on

but it's plain they don't think they get value for money plus a great deal is blown away, wasted, not spent on services they would choose to support

and to compare it to children who won't share is patronising

look at it from the other side: some would say if they work hard for an A they don't want to share it with someone who didn't work and got a D

likewise the resentful high earners should refrain from blanket and insensitive complaints

if you can't even try to see how things might work on the other side of the fence you might as well hit each other with pillows

no I can't explain that cory, I only mentioned you as having made a good point about the gap bewteen low and high earners being less in European countries.

boredwithmyoldname - that is a very good post.

I'm surprised that the general opinion on this thread seems to be that public services are great in the UK. Friends & family living there talk about fortnightly garbage collection and waiting weeks for a doctor's appointment.