This week our video podcast played host to legendary entrepreneur and sports promoter Barry Hearn. His common sense approach to taxation is a joy to watch! In an engrossing interview he discussed everything from the burdens on business to the BBC.
Never afraid to speak his mind, Barry didn't pull his punches when it came to the Beeb. He described the licence fee as an "anachronism" that's "miles and miles past its sell-by date!" Rightly arguing it's inherently wrong to charge everyone a licence fee "when there's hundreds of other free stations."
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He's clearly no fan of stamp duty either, pointing out that it takes demand out of the housing market. But he praised the sensible approach taken by the government to temporarily raise the threshold to £500,000 - consequently there's been a surge in demand. He says the same attitude should be applied to other forms of tax. "Less red tape and less onerous taxation" is the best way forward.
In that vein Barry was adamant that if the government wants to escape the economic damage inflicted by coronavirus it must not "tax people to the hilt." All that will do is destroy economic opportunities and we may never escape the dire circumstances we find ourselves in. Watch the full interview here.
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TaxPayers' Alliance in the news
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Flushing out fraud
Over a packed bank holiday weekend, John also joined talkRadio's Howard Hughes (no, not that one!) to shed light on the issues with the government's covid-19 Bounce Back Loan scheme. Recalling the early response to the virus, John stressed the need for a scheme that was quick enough to help firms with access to cash, reminding viewers that at the time nearly two-thirds of companies had less than 3 months cash in reserves. And he didn't mince his words on the what should happen with those wrongly claiming the loans:
"Where I actually think government could have been stronger was to think about how they could issue a sanction for those that do abuse in the system...I think amending the Fraud Act so prison time can be issued for people that diddled the books would be entirely justifiable, and taxpayers would be right to expect that." Click here to listen to a clip.
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With more and more stories appearing of covid-19 cash being misspent, we will not hesitate to call out the culprits and remind them of the extreme sacrifices taxpayers made to keep the ship afloat.
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Cut taxes to supercharge the economy
The Express has recently launched a new comment section on its website. The TPA has a very good relationship with the paper and we were specifically approached for contributions. This is a fantastic opportunity to reach millions of taxpayers all across the nation.
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First out of the blocks, was our policy analyst Duncan Simpson who penned a brilliant piece highlighting why Boris Johnson must cut taxes to supercharge the British economy. Duncan argues that "Only tax cuts promoting wealth creation and dynamic effects on economic activity can move us along the road to recovery, both for the economy and the public finances."
If the government chooses to do the opposite they'll be inflicting "taxpayer austerity" which is the last thing the country needs. Click here to read the piece in full.
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Setting a good example
A recurring topic in the news this week was potential abuse of the furlough scheme. The Daily Mail reported that FTSE250 company James Fisher and Sons paid a £4 million dividend to its shareholders despite the taxpayer contributing £2 million to pay for furloughed staff.
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Asked for comment by Britain's most popular news paper John pointed out that "employers who are in a position to repay furlough money should do so."
It's great to see that many businesses are paying back the support offered. They should serve as an example for other firms using furlough that are now in rude health. Taxpayers will have long memories of those that helped in the national effort and those that didn’t.
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Rate expectations: helping high streets in hard times
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If you haven't done so already please contribute to the government's consultation on business rates. It's about time Britain had a new system which keeps the business rate multiplier low and allows regular revaluations, including the right to appeal during a recession. This matters more now than ever!
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We’ve created a simple tool to make it easy for you to submit a response. Tell the politicians and bureaucrats in Whitehall exactly how business rates affect your firm or your high street.
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Something we can all agree on?
The TaxPayers’ Alliance receives amazing support thanks to people like you. Despite our taxpayer-friendly policies on a range issues, the organisation does have its critics. We are lambasted by angry online activists for our supposed position on the political spectrum.
With this in mind we took full advantage of "Positive Twitter Day". A day when the usual screaming matches on social media should come to an end. Our grassroots assistant Kieran Neild wrote a great blog offering an olive branch to all our detractors.
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Kieran's blog really hit a nerve, going viral on Twitter. He flawlessly explained why the TPA believes there is nothing corporatist or partisan about eradicating wasteful government spending. In our 16 year history, we have always called out waste - at national and local levels - no matter which party is responsible. Read the full story here.
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Money for nothing?
We didn't let coronavirus stop us from exposing councils' wasteful spending. A freedom of information request by TPA policy analyst Darwin Friend lifted the lid on profligacy at Norfolk councils. Between 2017 and 2020, 62 council staff members in Norfolk were suspended on full pay - costing the taxpayer a mammoth £333,000.
Norfolk County Council was the main offender, suspending 30 employees on full salary at a cost of £188,000. Worse still, Norwich City Council paid three suspended staff (who were off work for a combined 423 days), a hefty £83,000.
Asked for his reaction by the local press Darwin stood up for local residents, saying: “the over-taxed people of Norfolk should not expect to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds for council staff to do nothing”. Hear! Hear!
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Harry Fone
Grassroots Campaign Manager
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