Brown Has Destroyed Britain's Wealth

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Brown Has Destroyed Britain's Wealth

Trade Unions are poised to be back in power in Britain as they haven't been since Margaret Thatcher confronted them in the Miner's Strike in 1984. The largest Union, Unite has given the Labour Party £11 million to keep it from bankruptcy as its private donations have dried up. But the terms of the donation are that Brown must implement a Trade Union friendly legislative programme and policy regime, or be pushed out of office.

The top rate of Income Tax would be pushed up to 50% in such an arrangement of desperation by Gordon Brown. With Employers' and Employee's National Insurance already being 24% of pay, effectively Income Tax by another name, it will now cost a company £100,000 to put £28,000 into the pocket of senior staff, or nearer £22,000 if holiday pay, pension contributions and other necessities are taken into account.

In such circumstances, it will become almost impossible for co-called 'wealthy' people to survive. Wealth, it might be remembered is defined by having a taxable income of £34,000 a year. What family with children living a middle class life style can survive with fuel and food inflation at over 10%? 

The Unions will be making it illegal for people to raise a middle class family by working for a living. 

The genuinely rich will not bother earning income in Britain, in any case. Capital Gains are taxed at 18%, not an effective 70% as Income would be. They will move their efforts yet further into making Capital Gains, for example selling businesses rather than running them longterm. The Unions hate the Private Equity operators, criticising their unwillingness to invest in their businesses, and yet the Unions' own policies will make everyone with any sense into a short term quick buck, low tax operator. 

Two million people left Britain between 1997 and 2007, mostly those with higher income and wealth. The numbers between 2008 and 2018 will no doubt be double that, once Gordon Brown surrenders to the unions to save his own skin. Capital too is already fleeing, with financial companies finding now that Switzerland and Dubai are cheaper than London.

Gordon Brown received a golden inheritance from the Conservatives in 1997. It has been well and truly squandered. See Union story in the Telegraph HERE