To begin with, Osborne, Cameron et al, are in thrall to multinational businesses who pay very little tax and are not prepared to upset them by doing business with smaller local firms.
This is why the Government spends £12 billion gbp a year on Big 4 management consultants and systems integration houses like IBM Global Services, whilst spending less than 8% on all other consultancies and interim management providers COMBINED.
That same percentage applies to all other Government contracts, including those for NHS provision despite the fact that there is supposedly a 25% target for Government Departments to deal with home-grown and smaller UK businesses.
Secondly, the larger businesses have CEOs who are donors to the major political parties and who are personal friends of Government Ministers, officials and Civil Service Mandarins, either through school, Oxbridge or by dint of membership of certain secret societies.
Ordinary people, even those who have built larger businesses are normally not part of this charmed circle, and are probably regarded as stupid for paying their full share of taxes, whilst the people within the charmed circle pay nothing or next to nothing.
For all their rhetoric, the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats are exactly the same because they know that if they upset these large firms they can base themselves in a tax haven just as Sir Richard Branson has done only last week.
Those firms that are based here and the people who are working are effectively “milch cows” to be put through an “olive press” far more effective than Don Croce’s fictional one in the Mario Puzo novel and even William the Conquerer‘s “Doomsday Book” backed up by armed knights to enforce tax collection.
Taxation in the UK is complex, too high and applied capriciously to those who have been thrifty, productive and honest who are regarded by Civil Service Mandarins as “our sheep”.
Then, of course, there are Local Authority Chief Executives, a group of people, who like the Local Authorities they run, are too numerous in number and in need of elimination, like Japanese knotweed. Already their councils are raising more money from parking and parking fines than they raise from council tax and as a result damage or put out of business those who might otherwise make a contribution.
The burden therefore continues to fall on those who are left which is why Dr Alf’s simple question will continue not to be answered in the way that he would like.
Related articles
- Boots owner Alliance ‘uses havens to save £1.1bn in corporation tax’ – Home News – UK – The Independent (dralfoldman.com)
- Sir Richard Branson Bids Farewell To Britain (news.sky.com)
- Sir Richard Branson reveals why he is bidding farewell to Britain (express.co.uk)
- Sir Richard Branson quits Britain for Caribbean tax haven (mirror.co.uk)
- Sir Richard Branson: I didn’t quit Britain over tax (thetimes.co.uk)
- Sir Richard Branson denies that he ‘left Britain for tax reasons’ (sott.net)
- Sir Richard Branson: ‘I’m no tax exile, my earnings go to charity’ (express.co.uk)
- Sir Richard Branson retires to holiday island (itv.com)
A pie chart showing the projected constituents of UK taxation receipts for the tax year 2008-2009, according to the 2008 Budget. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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