Regular readers will be very familiar with the 70 year high tax burden. Since the TPA first revealed the shocking stat, it’s now regularly cited in news reports and political discussions - even Keir Starmer quoted it!
Regrettably, this week we’re once again the bearer of bad news. Using data from the OBR, the TPA wonks have worked out that we’re now on course for the highest tax burden in 80 years.
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Despite a minor fall last year, the tax burden is due to hit an eye-watering 37.1 per cent of GDP by 2028-29. Adding insult to injury, the current parliament is set to have increased the tax burden by more than any other single parliament since 1950 as a percentage of GDP, raising it by a forecasted 3.3 percentage points. Check out the full briefing here.
The importance of this issue can’t be understated. As our chief executive, John O’Connell, explained in comments picked up by the Sun, Independent, Express, and Daily Mail: “An 80-year high tax burden will mean more misery for hard-pressed taxpayers and businesses, suffocating the economy for many years to come if action is not taken.”
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With the UK emerging from recession, easing the burden on households and businesses must be the number one priority for ministers. The government’s addiction to spending urgently needs to be brought under control. Now is the time for ministers to act and deliver the low tax, high growth economy we deserve.
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Our head of campaigns, Elliot Keck, jumped on a hobby horse of his this week with the release of a new report by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) calling for ministers to cut the costs of marriage for those on the lowest incomes. The research laid bare the huge marriage gap between those on high incomes and those on low incomes and the impact this has on loneliness, given married people report far lower levels of loneliness than unmarried people.
But Elliot couldn’t help but agree with Talk’s Petrie Hosken argument that policies like these risk sounding preachy, making the point that we have a government that “is treating its population like children, and a lot of people think ‘I just want them to leave me alone’”.
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Writing in The Critic the next day, Elliot fleshed out his views in more detail, arguing that rather than handouts, ministers should ensure that the tax system doesn’t punish married couples, and those with children, arguing for greater rights for couples to transfer their personal allowances, and for new personal allowances based on the number of children in a household. As he puts it: “at all ends of the income scale, marriage is not as financially worthwhile as it should be, and having children is far too expensive. One of the prime culprits is the tax system.”
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TaxPayers' Alliance in the news
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Board games and bureaucrats
With the borders in crisis, supposedly-tight budgets, and calls for the Home Office to be broken up, you might think civil servants in the department would be focusing on doing their jobs rather than arranging away days and jollies. Unfortunately, Home Office mandarins managed to spend £756 on a day out playing board games laid on by a vegan cafe.
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Our media campaign manager, William Yarwood, didn’t take too kindly to the news raging to the Sun: “As the Home Office lurches from crisis to crisis, bureaucrats are bunking off. Instead of focusing on border control, civil servants took the day off for board games.”
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Diversity in parliament
It’s well known that we’re no fans of the growing numbers of equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) roles - see our petition here. So it’s fair to say we weren’t too impressed when we learned that parliament is hiring EDI staff on almost £70k a year.
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Appearing on Talk Radio, our investigations manager, Joanna Marchong, blasted: “EDI roles are eye-wateringly expensive… We don’t even know what they do all day.” Check out Joanna’s interview here.
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Hospital helipad
Air ambulances undoubtedly play a hugely important role in saving lives but a helipad at Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton is still unusable despite £14 million being spent and it being 4 years late.
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Speaking to the Telegraph, John summed up the situation perfectly: “While air ambulances have a vital role to play, this looks like a vanity project which hasn’t been thought through. Health bosses must prioritise practical solutions, to ensure funding is spent where it’s truly needed – saving lives in emergencies.”
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What would the TPA have thought of the empire?
Following the release of his paper examining the costs and benefits of the British empire, Dr Kristian Niemietz of the Institute of Economic Affairs guest wrote our blog this week, asking what the TPA might have had to say had we been around at the time.
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In his amusing but fascinating blog, Kristian observes: “The idea that it was the Empire which made Britain rich is almost certainly false… if the TaxPayers’ Alliance had been around at the time, they would probably have railed against “Empire Fat Cats”, and how outrageous it is that hard-working taxpayers are forced to foot the bill for dubious colonial enterprises.” He’s probably right.
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MPs may be happy talking the talk when it comes to cracking down on waste, but when it comes to their own comfort, it looks like no expense should be spared.
Parliament is currently offering £150,000 to re-cover the green benches. As John told the Sun: “Taxpayers will be green around the gills at the cost of this regal refurbishment.”
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Benjamin Elks
Grassroots Development Manager
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