UK taxes

[-thetruth_]

Salam

This is report from a tax specialist. it gives us an idea of what is going on. have a look at it.
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The average UK citizen works from New Year's Day to May 24th solely to pay their taxes. Effectively, for a third of a year everyone in this country is a civil servant. Income tax, national insurance, VAT, corporation tax, capital gains tax ... tax, tax, tax, the list is endless.

And that's not just in one year, that's every year. This happens all the way through your life. And after tax has been deducted, the little that remains is taxed again! If you spend it you're taxed. If you save it you're taxed.

How Little Of £100 You Get To Keep ...

Of £100 earned, 10% is paid in National Insurance contributions (nothing but a euphemism for an additional tax on income) and 22% is paid in Income Tax (40% for higher rate taxpayers). Of the remaining £68 of take-home pay let's say that over a week you spend it thus:

£15 for a meal out
£8 on cinema tickets
£16 in petrol
£3 put by for electricity
£7 on some cigarettes
£9 on a few drinks down the pub
£4 paid out in insurance premiums
£3 put aside for Council Tax
£2 put by for Road Tax
Sound reasonable? Obviously 100% of the last two items are wholly tax. Five per cent of your electric bill goes to the taxman and 4% of any money you pay to protect yourself with insurance. Of the £23 you spend at the flicks and eating out, 17.5% goes to the government in VAT. While you're enjoying yourself, so is the Treasury; they take £4.03 from you for the evening.

35% of a well-deserved drink goes direct to our masters, and a recent AA campaign followed by the picketing of oil refineries serves to remind us that a staggering 85% of the money spent on petrol is snatched by the taxman. Eighty five per cent! But even that is not the worst. The state loves a smoker, of course, and from the money spent on cigarettes an astonishing 88.9% enters its coffers.

It brings tears to the eyes. Altogether, a full £32.31 of that week's expenses goes straight to the taxman.

Of the £100 earned, £64.31 will have been paid to the government in tax. At the end of the day, all you will have to show for it is £35.69 in goods and services. A higher-rate taxpayer will retain a miserly £21.69.

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[Ghazala]

The more you earn, the less you have. Can't believe the monthly deductions

[-thetruth_]

Exactly. I refused to do over time for 4 years simply because it makes no extra difference. in fact you would need to work over 20 extra hours in order to see any little benefits. all goes in taxes. Nothing beats the cash system hence why the governement hate it when you deal with cash and they try to make us all scared in order to use plastic.

[Ghazala]

I think its the jump between standard & higher tax which surprises you. I find the amount deducted every month is a salary in itself

I am not sure what the 'magic figure' is but a friend of mine told me that the difference between two salaries, £5000 apart, is neglible when its on the threshold. It's just completely eaten up.

[voltaires_priest]

Sorry folks, progressive taxation means that if you earn more, you can afford to pay more. The other alternative is to flat tax (which shifts the burden towards the poor), or to slap it all on other taxes like VAT (which penalise the poor even more). Or cut services, which would mean that only the rich get healthcare and schools.

Furthermore, the UK has one of the lowest income tax rates (both for lower and higher rate payers) when compared with the rest of Europe.

So... stop whingeing and pay up, ye tight boogers



V

[-thetruth_]

It is true that Uk has the lowest tax in the world(sort of) but look at what you get for your money in other countries.

[voltaires_priest]

I said "in western europe" not "in the world", and actually you do pretty well here considering that VAT has to rise to compensate for low income taxes.



V