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Salmond's gift to the rich



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Published Date: 06 September 2008
I was intrigued to hear Alex Salmond describing the council tax as "regressive" (your report, 4 September). It may have its faults, and certainly needs rebanding, but it does at least oblige the very wealthiest to make a contribution to local government finances, based on the value of their property.
The First Minister's proposals will exempt the rich completely. Anyone fortunate enough not to have to work will pay nothing. That's right, millionaires living on share dividends or an inheritance get their bins emptied for free, but workers on the
minimum wage get a 3p in the pound tax hike.

The SNP, rightly, condemned the Conservative Party's poll tax for levying the charge equally on rich and poor. The local income tax goes one better and shifts the tax burden away from the super rich completely. The fact that the SNP has devised a system less fair even than the hated community charge and is selling it as progressive takes the breath away.

TONY ROSSER

Cambusnethan Street

Edinburgh

You give 25 reasons why Alex Salmond should drop his local income tax proposal. I can give you over 25,000 reasons why he should proceed with it. They are called pensioners and low-income families who at present are struggling to cope with rising prices. Many of these people would be exempt from paying LIT. Why anyone object to a tax based on ability to pay baffles me. It works in other countries, why not here?

JIM CARSON

Larchfield

Balerno, Midlothian





The full article contains 255 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 05 September 2008 11:28 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

Team Scotland,

FC UK No! 06/09/2008 01:42:19

Alex Salmond is correct currently on average the wealthy pay a lower proportion of their income in council tax than the less well off. That is a regressive tax. LIT as currently proposed is a neutral tax as the percentage of income due will be the same for all. Income tax is (somewhat) progressive.

Issues such tax avoidance and ‘non doms’, needs to be addressed but the Scottish Parliament has no power to do this. Why does the ‘peoples party’ allow so many of the UK’s super rich to pay little or no tax at all. For them local tax is a drop in the ocean compared to what they currently get away with.


2

terry osser,

morden 06/09/2008 04:55:40
council tax is supposed to be a service charge for services rendered. should have no relationship with earnings. thats what income tax is for!
3

Miles,

Better away from Glasgo 06/09/2008 07:27:53
#2

I don't live in a town, but pay for street lighting. I have no children of school age, but pay for schooling. I don't have a social worker but I pay for that service. I get no separate collection of recyclable waste,I am expected to drive my own to a 'local' collection point a considerable distance away. I don't use the library service (Internet is wonderful), or the swimming pool, or the health suite facilities. The list could go on and on. Can I have a rebate on the £2,300 pounds or so I pay in Council tax so that my pension, which is taxed at 40%, can stretch a bit further than the basics?

On the basis of a 3p LIT I would save around £1,900.00. Roll on LIT. The parties in Scotland that oppose it should be expect to be hammered at the next round of LG and Holyrood elections.
4

StuartAD,

West Lothian 06/09/2008 08:04:21
With every one being better off, & so many people on benefits of some kind; Who will pay the tax, where will all the money come from to pay for all these services that 3# does not use? When Councils run out of money as in Aberdeen, what will happen then?
I was better of when the poll tax was introduced, no one thought through the result of banning that either.
5

Joe,

Home Street 06/09/2008 08:20:14
SNP are a right wing political party, anyone who fails to see that is seriously deluded.
6

Mikey,

06/09/2008 08:47:07
Joe,Home Street:

Hahahahaha!!!! You'll be telling us next that Liebaa are socialists!!!
7

Martinh,

06/09/2008 09:07:09
Ask anyone if they would like to pay more or less tax, then apart from a handful of extreme egalitarians, there is only going to be one answer. That explains the apparant popularity of the SNP proposals for a flat rate additional income tax to pay for local services. Income tax it is, but local it is not. All the indications are that even if the £400 million currenly available from Westminster as Council Tax support grant are included that the anticipated sum raised by the SNP proposals would fall short of current revenues by £350 million. No-one has yet explained where this is to come from. If from the block grant to the Scottish Government, then that is $350 million less to spend on other pressing priorities.

No-one has revealed how water charges are to be collected, which probably amount to c.£20% of the average council tax bill. Until these and many other questions are clearly answered then it is far to premature to consider such a leap into the unknown. I have much sympathy for the plight of pensioners and low income families struggling to pay their fuel and fuel bills, but I just don't see how the imposition of a 3p National tax is going to alleviate the situation if it means massive cuts in essential local services (Aberdeen writ large).

What we should be fighting for is that anyone, pensioner or low paid alike should be exempt from income tax altogether if earning less than say £15,000 p.a. That would be a real boost to the economy, encouraging low paid or part time and vocational work.
8

Pilrig.,

Livingston 06/09/2008 09:45:24
5 - and Labour are socialist I suppose ?

"Old People should work as long as possible"

Comrade D. Blunkett, member of the Labour Party.
9

Toom,

06/09/2008 11:20:28
I doubt there are many millionaires living purely on share dividends and inheritances, but those with such money pay tax on share deals, pay tax on dividends, pay capital gains tax, and can afford to buy more goods and services on which they pay tax.

My own 'unearned income' comes from investments I made with earned income on which I'd paid tax. My private pension is taxed as unearned income. The interest on my cash savings is taxed, and even the dividends on my supposed 'tax-free' equity ISAs are taxed. People living on their own capital resources are less likely to need state support in their old age, and are disqualified from means-tested benefits.
In short, they tend to be high net tax contributors and to make little demand on state resources.

It should not be of too great concern if there are a few such people who might also get some benefit from removal of council tax. The pay adequately in other ways.

The point is that no tax is perfect fair; there will always be anomolies, but LIT is fairer for the vast majority of people.

10

Mr. Lachie Todd,

Edinburgh 06/09/2008 11:39:43
Despite being imposed one year earlier in Scotland, on the eve of its introduction in England and Wales, the Community Charge(Poll Tax)was hurriedly abandoned by a panicky Tory Government after after some of the largest demonstrations and worst riots ever seen in London, and other English cities!

Without proper consultation, the Tories rushed the Council Tax through the Commons, and made sure the banding was skewed in favour of its wealthy supporters, to the disadvantage of the mass of home owners.

The Council Tax will continue to rise far beyond the ability of more and more homeowners to pay it, and future governments will have hell to pay, unless it is reformed, or replaced with a fairer system!
11

Martinh,

06/09/2008 17:49:05
Still no answers to the questions raised earlier. I could further suggest that the SNP Government deliberately chose the 3p tax rate to make it sound acceptable and populist, knowing full well that they actually need the rate to be set at 4.5p to 'break even' in a single tax year. Would the measure be as popular if this was the case? Or are the SNP just playing a game to attract more support, knowing full well that the current proposals to raise much less revenue for local Government expenditure is unsustainable and likely to be rejected by the Scottish Parliament. This will allow Salmond to continue his self righteous rant at Unionist Politicians enslaved to Westminster. If we are to have a LIT, it has to be set at a realistic rate, and depending on local priorities may even have to be higher than 4.5p without redundancies for local Government workers, and/or cuts in essential services. Those of us who remain sceptical about the current proposals but not against the principle deserve answers, not pompous grandstanding.
12

Zander G,

EDINBURGH 06/09/2008 19:15:46
#7 Martinh is correct in thinking that we should be fighting for is that anyone, pensioner or low paid alike should be exempt from income tax altogether if earning less than say £15,000 p.a. That would be a real boost to the economy, encouraging low paid or part time and vocational work. I would actually say £12,000.

Council Tax is a payment for council services and should be paid subject to (a) benefits for those considered unable to pay and (b) central support to compensate for the non personal element of the services (e.g. school costs for childless people).
13

Zander G,

EDINBURGH 06/09/2008 19:21:24
#1 Alex Salmond might be correct in saying that the council tax is a regressive tax, but so is VAT, car tax and road tax.

LIT as currently proposed is also going to be a regresive tax since it is not the same rate for all income. Income tax is (somewhat) progressive.

Of course regressive and progressive is related to income and not to wealth.

 

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