Tax this, tax that. It is all the government wants to do as it stumbles from budget to budget, from OBR forecast to OBR forecast. Tax employing people. Tax family farms. Tax small businesses. Tax motorists. Tax people who save. Tax people who buy food wrapped in hygienic plastic. Tax people who earn more. Tax people who dispose of their waste legally. Tax people for driving battery cars. Tax people more for buying diesel or petrol cars. Tax people with gas boilers. Tax companies with windfall taxes that sell us petrol and diesel. Put VAT on school fees. Tax rich foreigners more. Tax banks more. Tax landlords more. Tax people making capital gains more .
The reactions to this tax attack are predictable. Very rich people move to one of their homes in a less hostile tax jurisdiction and take their savings and businesses with them. Younger people planning to work hard and set up businesses go elsewhere to do that. Employers offer fewer jobs. People are deterred from promotion or working longer hours by the tax traps higher up the earnings scale. People stop buying so many cars. Voters become angry about a government that seems to want to stop them being better off. Consumer confidence falls leading to slower growth and less tax revenue. Landlords stop renting out homes. People with assets hold them for longer to avoid capital gains tax.
No one is happy . The government collects less tax from less activity, and from fewer better off people staying to pay. People are unwilling to take so many risks, to try new things, to build new businesses.
Lower tax rates can lead to higher tax revenues. If we halved our corporation tax rate to match Ireland’s we could grow our business base as they have done,. They collect 3 times as much business tax per head as we do with half the rate.
If we lifted the bans on new oil and gas and removed the windfall additional tax, just leaving in place double corporation tax, we would get a lot more tax revenue from the new oil and gas we would be producing for ourselves. We do not get anything like the same tax on all those imports this government prefers.
If we reduced taxes on capital more money would flow into the country, and more domestic savers would create more transactions and jobs as they rearranged their property and share holdings.
Instead of a gloomy outlook based on dividing up a shrinking or small cake, we could have policies that grew the cake giving scope for many more to be better off. More cake would bring more tax revenue. Lower tax rates would assist in faster growth and a better financed public sector.
January 19, 2026
Why ‘could the Government do with more revenue’?
It proves every day that it has far too much, so much excess that it has plenty to make an international fool of itself.
The Government should have 1/4 of the revenue it currently has and learn to ‘make do’.
January 19, 2026
Correct Lynn. 78% tax on gas and oil extraction bringing in only £9 billion against £26 billion estimates. Starmer spaffing money about like a man with no arms. Chagis springs to mind.
Digital ID which no one wants and much more.
Relentless rises in council tax so the employees can work a 4 day week and reduce services.
The whole government machine is financially out of control and us heading for sn almighty crash.
We need a bond market strike to reset this profligate government. The sooner the better.
January 19, 2026
Exactly.
January 19, 2026
Politically cloth eared, the Tories have suffered from the austerity accusation since Cameron and still are.
And what does ‘making do’ mean? It’s hollow.
January 19, 2026
I believe making do means spending what you have, not borrowing to fund more spending. As in business a limited credit line focuses the mind on spending decisions.
January 19, 2026
Agreed Lynn. More revenue is the last thing this Government needs. It will be spent adding more costs to the UK economy.
Oh to have a massive rethink on what Government needs to do (as I noted yesterday on there being just 4 key ministries in the 1800’s). From biblical times through to the medieval period a 10% tithe was the going tax rate. What chance we aim for that?
January 19, 2026
If all of these countries can and do live with a top or flat rate of 10%, why can’t we?
Andorra: Has a basic PIT rate of 10% for residents earning above €40,000 annually.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Imposes a flat 10% personal income tax rate.
Bulgaria: Offers a flat 10% personal income tax rate, one of the lowest in the European Union.
Kazakhstan: Has a flat personal income tax rate of 10%.
Kosovo: Levies a top personal income tax rate of 10%.
North Macedonia: The top personal income tax rate is 10%.
Paraguay: Both the top personal income tax rate and the top corporate income tax rate are 10%.
Romania: The personal income tax rate is 10%, with some exemptions for certain professions.
Timor-Leste: Has a top-end personal income tax rate of 10%.
Turkmenistan: The top personal income tax rate is 10%.
January 19, 2026
What do they spend on any sort of Health Service?
What % of anything comparable like GDP on military purposes?
What % ‘ditto’ on Social Benefits?
What are Population / Immigrant numbers?
January 21, 2026
Bulgaria is run by the Mafia. I’d hardly trust any figures from there.
Might watching old episodes of ‘Yes Minister’ be more use, given that most of it was taken from real life? It gives an understanding of how Whitehall really works. It helps indicate the waste in this overcentralised country. Why is only 5-10% of public expenditure at local level, in contrast to 50% in some other developed countries? Many episodes demonstrate why the civil service blocks any changes that work to the disadvantage of Sir Humphrey.
Given that some civil service functions have been privatised, it may be more overstaffed than it was 40-45 years ago. Or are the extra staff needed to cope with the ever-growing UK tax regulations – reportedly up 20,000->27,000 pp in a short time – and its ever more labyrynthine and unjust benefits system? In 2026, the setup *still* penalises people who have spells of fairly short-term employment alternating with spells on benefit, vs those who stay on benefit. Either way it’s crazy.
January 19, 2026
More revenue that they would just waste or worse spend doing yet further net harm.
So we get another silly & tedious speech from two tier, anti-free speech, economic doom loop Starmer. We have taken action to reduce energy bills he said – no make all your and Miliband’s actions deliberately push them up curently about 4 times those of the USA.
Starmer wants to use “British values” hopefully sensible & honourable British values not his and his government’s vile and evil values – of envy, two tier justice, lies, propaganda, anti-free speech, anti-democratic, over-regulation, anti-Semitic…
I suspect Trump will reply to Kier and Europe “you haven’t got the cards”!
January 20, 2026
When Trump is gone, countries such as China (and others) will use Trump and Greenland to march into sovereign countries of their own choosing. You’re looking at a repeat of things we’ve seen before in the 20th century and the uncertainty this will bring including the possibility of war – even large war. Europe will be weakened by Trump (adding to the existing crisis in Europe of large debt and immigration – so Trump could really help in sinking Europe – including the UK). It will no longer trust the USA. Unless a future US president returns Greenland to Denmark. If a future US president doesn’t return Greenland the US will become like a pariah nation to Europe. It will also split the right here in the UK (those who support Trump’s legacy and those who don’t – the majority of the right) giving breathing space to the socialists here in this country for decades to come. Trump is a breeder of socialism here in the UK and around the world including USA.
January 20, 2026
Oh, but obliterating 27 sovereign European countries which is the EU achievement is just fine?
Imposing tariffs across the board against the world, which is the 3U achievement, is just fine?
January 19, 2026
@Lynn. +1. Look at the prodigous waste. Literally giving away vast sums to Mauritius, Ukraine, and others. Military adventures (covert or otherwise) and posturing from central asia to, now, Greenland. Starmer will doubtless be making even more of a fool of himself, and us, at today’s special briefing.
January 19, 2026
Indeed so much is spent doing positive harm anyway – net zero, road blocking, net harm lockdowns, net harm Covid Vaccines, pushing EVs and renewables, endless misguided red tape…just stop that!
On top of the hugely high tax rated taxes are vastly complex and compliance is another tax on top of the actually taxes. We also have the fines that are really taxes. Them we have the pouring a bit of coffee down the street drain tax, the spitting tax, the tyre in a bus lane tax or hatched junction tax or doing 22 in a 20 zone tax!
January 19, 2026
What is needed is some growth and a stangers tax base. The government getting more revenue and spending it doing negative or pointless things especially Net Zero will give an even weaker tax base amd the doom loop continues!
“A historic day” says Farage according to the front page of The Star yesterday. Surely he I hope actually said “An (h)istoric day”. It was indeed, the party look like it will never gain power again and be just another Libdem joke.
A great shame Reform accepted the green crap pusher and Covid Vaccine Tzar Zahawi he seens to have learned nothing from these two total disasters!
January 19, 2026
@Lynn Atkinson – bingeing without taking responsibility
January 19, 2026
Government needs growth from more people therefore it needs more money to pay for them and even more to bribe the electorate with in order to stay in power.
Those who net contribute should have weighted voting to protect them against those who don’t contribute spending their money.
Less one man one vote more one pound one vote.
January 19, 2026
A Poll Tax? 🤭
January 19, 2026
It was windows or fireplaces once, maybe the future vote rests on EV and heat-pumps?
January 20, 2026
More a tax poll Lynn
January 19, 2026
yes and the state puts perverse incentives in the system like zero national insurance, both employers and employees, for the first 12 months in the country of a work visa holder. so big outsourcers optimise for maximum tax free, eg pair people up, one in the UK, one abroad, and they swap them every 12 months, so that 2 person unit is perpetually in the UK working without paying any national insurance. they time it so they are only in the country for 6 months of any tax year, so personal allowances are far higher pro rata. and of course people here on work visas are allowed to be paid tax free expenses that any brit working away from home is not allowed to claim. and so the state itself encourages brits to be displaced from the workforce and replaced with foreigners long term, for simple tax avoidance reasons.
when I worked abroad I always paid more tax than the locals, brought genuine unique skills the locals did not have, paid for my own health care, and fully intended to return to the UK at the end, most foreigners working in the UK are abusing the system.
January 19, 2026
You’ve been advising this site of this problem for years, the Tories ignored you, let’s hope Labour start getting desperate and sees this as an easy fix.
January 19, 2026
a-tracy
Companies like it so they can get immediate labour (no training costs) at least that is their excuse to Government.
January 19, 2026
if you track the US debate on the same issue you will find lots of proof they come over with fraudulent CV’s and qualifications based on cheating, etc
January 19, 2026
multinationals organise their corporate structure so that tax liabilities become liable mostly in countries with lower corporate taxes. the UK company is setup to be owned by a company in a lower taxed country. the UK company pays the company which owns it abroad large sums, eg as a fee for use of corporate intellectual property like brand names, so the UK company makes minimal profit and minimal tax is therefore due in the UK, the profit shows in the books in the lower tax base country and so the overall multinational get the profit and pays least tax possible.
indeed there are often multiple layers of such ownership structures so that multiple tax havens are used, even if one tax haven puts up taxes the profit will be moved to another haven.
there are many ways in which high taxes here just mean large corporates declare no profit here, and move the profit to lower tax countries.
so large tax rates here just result in lower tax take in the UK.
January 19, 2026
Why do multinationals get dividends tax free, whereas British people have to pay a tax?
So much for Labour taxing the rich.
January 19, 2026
its not a dividend on the books, its a fee for use of intellectual property, the dividend only gets declared in a low tax country
January 19, 2026
Yes Iain, and excellent example is the way we ‘subsidise’ the Irish economy.
Large US companies set up a “distribution” centre in Dublln or Galway etc and then ship “goods” (anything you care to name – software licenses, manuals, spare parts etc) from that centre, with very high ‘cost-of-goods’ charges that effectively move any profit from the sale in UK back to the Irish distribution centre.
The more you tax & regulate, the more incentive to do these kinds of avoidance strategies there is. It should be no great suprise that Corporate bean counters can be a lot more creative (and nimble) than the seemingly unimaginative clod hoppers at the Treasury…
January 19, 2026
even for families, there are multiple thresholds where the sensible decision is to stop working to avoid punative taxes. one is the threshold where you have to repay your family allowance to the tax man, I know plenty of people who just stop working towards the end of the tax year to avoid this. it is completely crazy from the UK top level position to be actively encouraging people to not work.
January 19, 2026
Iaia, you are correct about the disincentives in the tax system, but it is worth remembering that the HICBC was introduced by a Conservative chancellor (Osborne) resulting initially in marginal tax rates of 59.5% for a family with 2 children and 66.5% for a family with 3 children.
Add to that the cliff edge around the withdrawal of both free child care and the personal allowance which has spawned an entire mini-industry focussed on avoiding being caught by that trap (if you look at a graph of declared income levels there is an obvious and very noticeable spike just below this cliff edge).
These are reasons why the likes of doctors and dentists are choosing to go part time (3-4 days/week). If you’re struggling to get an appointment with either, these are contributing to why.
The previous Conservative government had 14 years during which time its contribution was to maintain the child care/personal allowance cliff edge and introduce the HICBC.
At budget time, the only person I heard campaigning about all of these and the problems they cause (which you highlight) was Dan Niedle (a Labour party member).
January 19, 2026
In truth nobody sane would consider Osborne a Conservative.
January 19, 2026
Took the words out of my fingers Lynn!
The personal allowance taper (withdrawal at £100k) was announced by Alistair Darling in April 2009 taking effect from April 2010, never reversed under the coalition with the Lib Dems or the following ten years of ‘Conservative’ rule! thats now a 71% tax + NI for grads repaying student loans.
Approx 324,000 families punished this year by HICBC.
Around 1.6 million adults are affected by the personal allowance taper, the number affected have increased significantly thanks to Jeremy Hunt (conservative) freezing thresholds.
January 19, 2026
Yep once it’s in the system for tax, the threshold stays the same for years (an automatic stealth tax increase) other examples, IHT @ £325,000 the £3,000 year gift allowance.
January 19, 2026
but he did cultivate useful ‘friends’.
January 19, 2026
No he got his job because of the already ‘cultivated’ Bullingdon Club friends. The ‘friends’ called him ‘oik’ because he had not attended Eton or Harrow and his people were in trade (Osborn ad Little).
January 19, 2026
lots of freelancers have just stopped working, decided to retire many years earlier than they would have otherwise just because of the punitive tax position of IR35. why work when you have to pay genuine business expenses out of taxed income, when your main competition are employees of big consultancies who get the very same expenses tax free. its a doom loop of less activity, less efficiency, all because the state thinks it has a clue who should work where under what contractual deal. killing freelancing, which still has no agreed way that the state is happy it is legally and contractually done under. the state doesn’t like personal service companies, it doesn’t like umbrella companies, it doesn’t like sole traders… the state doesn’t understand or want freelancers. yet the country needs freelancers, so there is massive amounts spent on accountants to deal with the complexity.
January 19, 2026
The government believes that it can print money and distribute it ‘fairly’.
It can. But if nobody works that money will buy nothing.
Politicians can’t comprehend that people work for financial reward. For instance they think people work for the NHS ‘because they love it’, in spite of the evidence of strikes for more pay from poor (and I mean bad) Doctors bringing home upward of £100k pa.
When the bad (overpaid) Doctors went on strike the waiting lists decreased because competent Doctors (consultants) did a bit of work and motored through it.
We are dealing with seriously stupid people in the political class.
January 19, 2026
it is hard to argue NHS doctors are overpaid. If you take into account the fees they pay for training for six years and student debt interest, the exams they pay for and equipment they buy they are usually paid nothing more after tax than enough to repay this until about age 30/32! So zero pay after tax, NI, commuting, student debt, training costs… actually zero left nothing for council tax, gas, elec, water, rent, insurance, lunches…
Do the sums zero net pay! There are manu good and some bad consultants and many good and some bad resident/junior doctors too! My son in London shared a flat with two others both were paid more than double he got from the NHS (and after just 3 years at university with far less student debt). One in banking and one for a law firm.
January 19, 2026
They have the highest pay in the world.
The British taxpayer funds their 7 years at University.
I’m not interested in their pay-per-hour, I’m interested in take-home-pay divided by hours worked.
Drs. from around the world come to work a few months in the NHS because they earn more in those few months than they earn the rest of the year.
The NHS needs to demand more from Consultants so junior Drs are not doing long hours – badly – to the detriment of patients. Everywhere else in the world junior Drs work under and are supervised by Consultants aka senior Drs, because their training is incomplete when they get their certificate.
January 19, 2026
I should have a word with a grandson presently at Leeds. Not only has he/parents had to find a year’s Halls cost up front (many £thousands), ongoing living costs, and the very doubtful tuition £9.5k which he can load the Student Loan with – – annually of course.
The British taxpayer does not fund his 4 years at University, nor Turing/Erasmus should he manage to get a place abroad for a year.
January 20, 2026
As I say, after the costs of qualifying that the students do pay they get no pay (zero) until they are about 32. Literally zero net pay. Pay is far higher in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and in law/banking etc.
January 21, 2026
I apologise. I was wrong, I had a senior moment and a time wobble, and forgot that taxpayers no longer fund university education.
January 19, 2026
government can never distribute money fairly, it is a complete failure at trying to do so.
January 19, 2026
its not just taxes, the state imposes allsorts of costs onto the country which make it less competitive on world markets. I could list hundreds. banning all but heat exchanger clothes dryers is one such. pushes up purchase price, repair costs, results in more moisture leaking into house and damaging the fabric of the building. the supposed energy efficiency more than offset by the extra repairs, and associated van miles etc.
social engineering like this helps nobody, ruins the countries competitive position, and does not produce the results they think they are aiming for, if accounted for properly.
January 19, 2026
Not only the political class, look at today’s front pages of newspapers.
The TIMES, INDEPENDENT, DAILY EXPRESS, all feature Raducanu ( a very average disappointing female tennis player who WON a 1st round match.
Really? Is that deserving of a major news story? Nothing else in the world worthy?
January 19, 2026
Got to keep the collapse of Ukraine out of the newspapers somehow….
January 19, 2026
When and if? then it might make it …time matches on and no defeat but Russia losing more assets than the invaded.
January 19, 2026
The problem is not stupidity Lynn – it is far worse than that.
It is a combination of inexperience combined with a religious like zeal. They know that their ‘Truth’ is the only truth and their frustration is that that others cannot see this and that they are unable to (quickly) demonstrate it. If only they had enough time then everything would come right and everyone would believe the way that they do…
You can see this in Milliband. He knows that he’s right – no matter what the ‘short term’ costs (or damage) of Net Zero, it will all justified in the end. I’m certain he believes this, no matter what evidence there is to the contary.
Same with Starmer & Reeves. They are certain that (given enough time) we will see that they have been right all along – and that they have guided us to a new ‘progressive’ utopia, where everyone is equal (under DEI) and safe (under Internatonal Law). I’m less certain that these two believe this and they may indeed just be really stupid people (Dumb & Dumber)
January 19, 2026
Yep. Stupid.
January 19, 2026
There is nothing worse than stupid.
January 19, 2026
taxes also distort the country. the whole second hand shop business and network was destroyed when the state decided to let charities run similar businesses but do it with far lower taxes, they get to do it with zero council tax, and other massive perks. charities do not run such businesses anywhere near as efficiently as private people were and can. so massive recycling is being done far less efficiently than it would be done by the non charity sector, far less tax take for the UK, and almost certainly even the charities are worse off. it is state manipulation gone mad.
January 19, 2026
Ian
Agree with all of your comments, but then those who have managed to save and provide for their future in some way are also taxed with punitive IHT, so people spend it abroad on expensive holidays, or purchase foreign built cars that they really do not want or need, but do it anyway to stop Government getting their hands on it.
People are discouraged from helping their own children/families due to the 7 year rule on gifting, which is utter madness that people can be penalised for financially helping their own kids.
We are now taxed to death during life, and taxed after we die, your executors are even forced to pay tax by HMRC before your affairs are even settled under the 6 month rule.
Meanwhile reported in the media HMRC are taking up to a year and beyond to repay/refund any tax which has been overpaid, and the fact that they have failed to answer 10,000,000 telephone calls in a year goes unpunished.
No incentive for people to work, save, invest and be self sufficient any more.
January 19, 2026
yes I know a chap in his 80’s who spends 2 weeks out of every month on a cruise. he is driven by wanting to spend as much as he can before the tax man gets his hands on it when he dies.
January 19, 2026
I bet UK doesn’t get much out of his holidays.,
January 19, 2026
MT
Most cruise lines owned by Carnival Corporation registered in America, includes many who think they are British, Cunard, P&O, to name but two of the nearly 20 they own.
Become a shareholder (100 shares minimum) and you get at least $250 on board spending on a 14 night cruise) as a shareholder perk.
January 19, 2026
My Lord,
It seems to me that this and the previous government will regulate it, tax it but, if they cannot get a piece of the action, they ban it.
The state is increasingly becoming the enemy of the people and I find it rather depressing.
The levels of taxation we have currently is like a pair of new shoes with the laces tied together, we will never be able to run.
It seems the Gangster State sees all money and assets as theirs and just wants to give us a small amount of pocket money for which we must be eternally grateful and worship the state.
Problem is, whilst our deluded government thinks it is rich and wants to get involved in every costly thing that is happening around the world and throw money at everybody every where, things will never improve and they will have to tax us more and more.
January 19, 2026
Taxing us more and more will produce less and less as JR points out.
The Government is in its own doom loop.
We must let it die!
January 19, 2026
You have defined socialism UK style almost perfectly. Add to it almost total incompetence in foreign affaires and you score 180!!!
January 19, 2026
It isn’t lack of money or the need for more in order to provide better quality services.
It is the misuse of the bounty they are already in receipt of.
The never ending saga of ‘funding cuts’ from many Labour run councils that forever seem to be down at heel places to live.
Funding cuts indeed! Perhaps it’s how and where and on whom they spend the money that is the issue.
Just a shame so many Labour voters in the run down Labour areas never asked that question, but just repeated verbatim, ‘it’s funding cuts’ ‘it’s the rich’ etc.
A Labour run government was never going to be any different to a Labour run council, why would anyone assume such???
January 19, 2026
“A Labour run government was never going to be any different to a Labour run council“ not a Con-Socialist run one – just even worse!
January 19, 2026
But as you know (don’t you?) Labour is the party for the downtrodden poor workers!
They will cane the rich, but you too ….N.Ins, Income Tax, failed NHS, business only able to pay Minimum wage, welcome immigrants who might work and take your job or enjoy their benefits.
Wave that Red flag brothers!
January 19, 2026
You were an influential member of the Tory PLP and I am certain would have made the same argument. Yet they bent the knee to the EU on VAT and Corporation Tax despite the example of Ireland and proven effective of Laffer. Sunak went further and sighed a world agreement to prevent Corp Tax used as an economic weapon.
So the problem is that it is endemic across the political class and I guess the Treasury. Even if they claim it is Keynesian a part of what he said is missing.
You make a statement of fact but as ever the ‘why’ is missing and without that, a solution cannot be found.
January 19, 2026
+ 1
January 19, 2026
Very rich people move to one of their homes in a less hostile tax jurisdiction and take their savings and businesses with them. Younger people planning to work hard and set up businesses go elsewhere to do that. Employers offer fewer jobs.
I emigrated to Australia some years ago. My nephew has just followed suit.
I know Albanese, the PM, is as idiotically left as Starmer but the majority of Australians won’t wear it in the way Brits do. Albanese won’t last. As far as UK law is concerned I can’t see that there is anything in UK law stronger than convention to compel Starmer’s Gang to face the electorate. Australian law is much stronger and forces a general election on Albanese whether he wants one or not.
January 19, 2026
Australians were FORCED to take the killer CV19 jabs.
The British Government was NOT powerful in relation to the British People to follow suit. 1/3 refused all shots in spite of massive coercion.
The British Government has again tested its strength (digital ID) and been forced to back down.
The British people, in spite of overwhelming bullying, threats and intimidation, voted for Brexit. We will have it – the Government can choose whether it’s the easy way or the hard way.
Come home and save your homeland. Australia like the rest of the Dominions, is lost.
January 19, 2026
When governments confiscate wealth they are signalling to the residents that wealth is something controlled by the state and not by the individual.
That mindset is straight out of Das Capital Karl Marx’s textbook for change, paragraph one.
It is the fundamental difference between communism and free market wealth creation or capitalism as we tend to call it.
In Western (mostly British influenced) societies the right to own stuff is written into our basic laws, accepted as part of social rights. That which you have worked towards acquiring/owning is yours and can not simply be taken from you.
In the socialist mindset that sanctity of possession is dismissed. It is replaced by collective ownership and state authority to distribute resources as it sees fit. Personal rights are inferior to state authority inferior to state agents.
Think about that for a moment and ask yourself.
Which social system is operating in the UK at this time?
Is it the traditional right of the individual to hold and utilise their own acquired store of wealth? Or, is the control of individual wealth now in the hands of the state? A state that can pass rules (and always could) to simply remove those acquired resources, accumulated over many generations in the case of family farms.
The traditional right of an individual to own and retain their belongings was an unwritten feature of British culture a stand of society woven permanently into our culture….or so we thought, until Labour came into office.
Cancel elections, cancel trial by jury, cancel family acquired wealth wherever it is found, particularly rural wealth such as farms.
Labour have a very clear policy now they are in office. Such a shame they didn’t present those policies prior to the election on 2024.
January 19, 2026
“Whoever claims the right to redistribute the wealth produced by others is claiming the right to treat human beings as chattel.” Ayn Rand
January 20, 2026
Slavery surely, but then all taxation is partial slavery especially when so little of any positive value is delivered in return,
January 19, 2026
The Government doesn’t need more revenue; it needs to spend less.
It refuses to even consider spending less and constantly spends more, wasting it on insane policies like Net Zero; HS2; giving away Sovereign Territory and then leasing it back; importing foreign welfare claimants and “undesirables” across the channel; the ever-expanding Quangocracy (why on earth do we need a Football Regulator!) and all the other Command and Control/Surveillance policies it is obsessed with.
If you are starting from the point that “the Government needs more revenue” you are part of the problem.
Reply See yesterday’s blog!
January 19, 2026
Afraid what all governments seem to lack is an understanding of Human Nature, and their subsequent reactions when tax and policies go too far, or are deemed to be unjust.
That boundary was crossed a long time ago, and it will take a huge change in thinking by politicians to now get people back on side.
January 19, 2026
Taxman. from Beatles Revolver 1966.
Let me tell you how it will be
There’s one for you, nineteen for me (ie when 95% was to be introduced)
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman
Should five percent appear too small
Be thankful I don’t take it all
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman
I’ll tax the street
(If you try to sit, sit) I’ll tax your seat
(If you get too cold, cold) I’ll tax the heat
(If you take a walk, walk) I’ll tax your feet
(Taxman)
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman
Don’t ask me what I want it for
(Ah, ah, Mr. Wilson)
If you don’t want to pay some more
(Ah, ah, Mr. Heath)
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman
Now my advice for those who die (taxman)
Declare the pennies on your eyes (taxman)
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman
And you’re working for no one but me (taxman)
January 20, 2026
93% and 98% with the investment income surcharge. Good old Denis Healey (double first in Greats) yet so daft he thought these rates were sensible! Ending up with the countries IMF rescue! Some ideas are so damn stupid that only “intellectuals” can believe them!
January 20, 2026
When we saw a problem 30 or 40 years ago in the NHS , immigration, taxing, throwing home qualified staff out of the NHS and pushing them into agencies to avoid a good NHS pension and make money for business,we rebelled and no one took a bit of notice , even laughing at the growing problems.The same people who arrogantly ignored us are now shouting about the same problems.
January 19, 2026
Good Morning Sir J,
Here’s a topic in your bailiwick worth looking into; why is Bailey getting worried about hedge funds loading up on Gilts? Are they buying short or long dates? What is the BoE worried about, a sudden increase, or decrease(?) in yields? A master class in analysis would be fun!
January 19, 2026
‘More revenue?’ – that suggestion doesn’t make sense, until we have a Parliament prepared to take the responsibility for all ‘it’s expenditure’ ( no one else is doing the spending, no one else owns what is spent), we have a rabble like kids in the sweaty shop, bingeing until they become sick – then wonder why. Its just everyone else gets their hangover.
January 19, 2026
Excellent advice Sir John but it will not be heeded by this or the next Government. The reasons are quite simple. Any dramatic change will be resisted by the establishment as being too disruptive (as well as undermining their authority). Any gradual change will take time to make itself felt and voters will lose patience.
Many of Liz Trusses ideas were perfectly sound but poorly timed. She was an easy (naive?) target for those who opposed her and is now held up as the “Prime Minister who wrecked the UK economy”. She wasn’t there long enough for this to be true (unlike Starmer & Reeves) but no one challenges this oft stated orthodoxy. Meanwhile Andrew Bailey is still governor of the BoE and no Regulator or Trustee was sacked because of the LDI scandel.
January 19, 2026
and we shouldn’t forget she was voted in, but ejected by a city conspiracy organised by whom?
January 19, 2026
“Lower tax rates would assist in faster growth and a better financed public sector.”
Correct, Lord John. But for socialists the purpose of taxation is to remove wealth from the population because socialism depends upon making and keeping people poor. So projects must be found to waste vast sums of money to justify high taxation. EU membership was ideal. We were taxed for our large positive contribution to the EU budget which was used to build other countries’ infrastructure, such as Spain, and we even paid to subsidise a UK factory to move from the UK to Turkey which wasn’t even an EU member! HS2 was another old EU project designed to waste tax-payer money which is still continuing even today. The main purpose of the treacherous give-away of the Chagos Islands is of course to give us a bill for £35bn as well as reducing our national security. Now socialists have found the perfect vehicle for destroying the wealth of a nation, Net Zero. Net Zero not only requires high taxation and/or high consumer bills for subsidies it also has the advantage of sabotaging our energy, competitiveness, economy and national security. It’s a brilliant ploy as it claims this wealth destruction is necessary to save the planet.
January 19, 2026
The cancellation of the right to vote is just amazing.
I never thought that one day a UK government would just remove our right to vote.
The decision to remove this democratic right to four million people will rebound on them.
In my area, one where an election has been cancelled, local people are very angry.
January 19, 2026
The British Government has diluted our vote deliberately and consistently, by flinging votes around like confetti.
Why are you surprised that they attack disobedient voters by any means possible?
January 20, 2026
I’m reminded of the cynical old trope “if voting changed anything, they wouldn’t let you do it.”
They’re terrified that this time, allowing people to vote WILL change things. That’s why they’re cancelling it …. both Labour and Tory Councils.
January 19, 2026
This was all too evident with Thatcher – It actually worked, but we shouldn’t expect commie ideologists to to even consider this – they work only on one aspect of Wilson’s famous quote about the carrot and punishment(tax), and it isn’t the carrot they concentrate on.
The more they hurt us with taxes the more we will swear to bury this hopeless government at the first opportunity, yet they continue with their damage in all aspects of our lives – how much more are we expected to take of insane net-0 and ever more irrational laws and society destroying dogma!
January 19, 2026
In an effort to reassure the public, Prime Minister Harold Wilson famously claimed that this did not mean the “pound here in Britain, in your pocket” had been devalued, despite the fact that this raised import prices.
Politicians eh! – bare faced lies….
January 19, 2026
Yet another one… but still perhaps mild by today’s standard
January 19, 2026
TwoTierKier – has just had a live press conference about ‘Greenland’ – the gist of it is sovereign integrity being maintained. He is concerned for the rights of the Greenlanders and the Danish people.
Then at the same time he is going to not just give away UK sovereign territory, the Chagos Islands, but he is going to force the UK taxpayer to pay others for the privileged. He doesn’t give a monkeys about the rights of the Islanders and UK Citizens, they are his fodder, his minions.
January 19, 2026
Guido – Starmer says :
“There is a principle here that cannot be set aside… any decision about the future status of Greenland belongs to the people of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark alone. That right is fundamental and we support it.”
His lips were moving…. Yet UK Sovereign Territory, UK territory needed for the safety and security of the Country and its people. The lands that belong to UK Citizens the Chagos Islanders – all trashed. The status of UK Territory is 2TK’s right and no one else’s – the principle, the plan
January 19, 2026
If Greenland is for the Greenlanders why is Britain not for the British. See 1950 film to identify who the British are.
Denmark administered, without consent and secretly, medication to the Greenland Eskimos making half sterile. (It’s admitted by Denmark).
If Britain had done anything similar in our empire the headlines would be reporting it daily. We would give our all and never be forgiven.
Starmer sent 1 soldier to Greenland to stand against Russia and China. Why do we need NATO? With soldiers of such awesome power we are invincible! Surely?
January 19, 2026
Oh, it was. Danish Intelligence Report 2025 that identified Russia and China as gearing up to take Greenland.
They would NEVER have mad up such rubbish – surely?
I think it’s called being hoist by your own petard.
January 19, 2026
“Completely wrong” Starmer sums up himself and everything he does!
January 19, 2026
Good article, you are spot on. But why are the Labour Government and their MPs too thick to see it? Sadly, the previous conservative Government was as bad. It was a Conservative Chancellor who raised Corporation tax to 25%.
But until we have a Government that will cut spending by at least 25%, get back to a balanced budget, with enough surplus to start repaying our debt, shut all Quangos, reduce welfare and put money into defence spending, the UK is going nowhere but down.
You see it, your commentators see it, so why don’t our Government and opposition see it? It will take a big financial crisis to make the Establishment see it and take action. But it will happen!
January 19, 2026
“Lower tax rates would assist in faster growth and a better financed public sector”.
Why would we want a better financed public sector ? More civil servants on higher salaries ? Even if we did the best way to achieve it would be to make cuts to the public sector to make it smaller.
January 19, 2026
Hard to know what this blog is about there are things happening out there in the wider world, important things, that might affect us all in a far more serious way than Tax This Tax That and OBR forecasts. Labour and the Starmer Government was elected by the people for the duration – you should let them be
January 19, 2026
S: There is plenty of discussion outside of the Tax question on here that will and does affect us all, no shortage of that and a lot of common sense if you care to tune in regularly. Yes the UKG was elected, albeit on a small percentage of the vote and for many in frustration only. You can’t deny that this present government is unloved by many ! So we should let them be, to get on with what they are trying to do I suppose, all very well but they need to be held to account and challenged where appropriate and offered both negative & positive criticism. It is an informal voice that is I think valued by all who read and contribute here. As to Tax, the government will make no progress at all without sensible & effective use of largely our, not their, money. Maybe one of your mentioned important things is Defence…. a recently identified shortfall of around £28 billion ! So, many are very keen to discuss and be informed as to what is planned and what is happening to our taxes.
January 19, 2026
138 ‘illegal immigrants’ invaded the UK yesterday 18th Jan 2026 ….
January 19, 2026
Under this labour government 65,874 illegals crossed by small boat to date……thats 10,000 more than the entire population of Greenland
January 19, 2026
Easily explained glen…the boat trip would be rather longer.
January 19, 2026
Another example of wasteful government spending. Since Labour came to power in July 2024, they have spent £215.9 million on advertising, amounting to £381,705 a day!! The figures come from the Guido Fawkes website today. I believe across government, they also have about 6000 plus media or PR employees. What do they do all day except dream up ways of spending more money!
When is the Government and MPs going to wake up to the fact that the UK is deep in debt, and it is getting worse by the day?
January 20, 2026
the Government spending on advertising a bit more than LibnoDems…
January 19, 2026
You publish endless often unjustified comment not facts from Lynn, plus all sorts of random and off at tangent jibes.
Anything from me with political observations with an anti-labour tone is fine, but criticism re- Tories binned.
Seems like the blog is now a rallying call for Conservatives, but as yet unproven to be the real thing, you criticised previously, is there now a volte-face?.
Reply I published reams of criticisms of the Conservative government before the election and extensive post defeat analysis. I then said we were not re litigating the election, just as I had done re Labour after their defeat in 2010.This blog is mainly about government policy, words and actions. I occasionally allow a discussion of an Opposition party.Arguably I should do more on Greens, Lib Dems and Reform. There is relatively much more on Conservatives given what bloggers try to post. If your main preoccupation is Conservative party policy you should open a dialogue with an official Conservative site.
January 19, 2026
reply to reply…Sir John,
Thank you for posting and allowing readers to see a variety of opinion – after all it informs you and other political persons wondering what other than yes-men views are! My point is rather that there is regular pro-Conservative comment but little against. You argue that it was present when in office, but I believe a balanced content needs comparison of pro/con on all evident Party policies and the fact that a number of rapid PM and leader exits demonstrate the difficulty in trusting in any set of presented policies.
January 19, 2026
There should be a high tax box for all politicians/government who tell lies by informing the electorate what they are going to do to get elected.
It’s legal theft!
January 19, 2026
I’ve managed to get through the HMRC system to pay my self assessment today for most of my money to be wasted. Next year I would have had to waste 2 days submitting tax returns 6 times every year. At the same time the Renters Rights law plus increased CGT and income tax plus draconian fines for problems caused by tenants and complicated form filling or certificates means that my inverstement for my pension can no longer be let. Next year the income will be greatly reduced and HMRC will not force me to pay enormously CGT because I will move in myself or with family. They never learn.
January 19, 2026
We don’t need Starmer telling us that the world has become increasingly turbulant in recent weeks… we know we know now what’s Britain going to do about it.. we have already passed the point of no return on this it’s back to 1939 again
January 19, 2026
wow just seen the JD Vance speech on globalisation, importing cheap workforces, and innovation. how spectacularly correct he is. he knocked the ball out the park. why are no UK politicians saying this?
January 20, 2026
Got a link for it?
January 20, 2026
Dear Sir John, Given the level of forecast government spending , taxation is actually too low but, as you suggest, collected in the most distorting and damaging ways.
GDP is growing at its (abysmal) trend rate. So none of this year’s current spending should be financed by borrowing.
If the debt burden on taxpayers is ever to return to pre-Covid levels, new borrowing should not even be used to pay for desirable capital spending. The only exception should be where likely cash returns on public investment will be large enough to cover interest and repay the capital – and there is precious little of that.
Sir Mel Stride suggested last autumn that the Chancellor should put up income tax rates (perhaps as a temporary surcharge) as the fairest and most efficient way to raise income – not politic but right.
Instead, the two Budgets have imposed measures that threaten the existence of many businesses, axe part-time jobs and boost the level of pay needed to make it worthwhile to work rather than live on benefits.
In effect, we are creating a big rise in tax-induced unemployment and artificially boosting welfare spending to levels we might expect in a recession.
January 20, 2026
How Trump over Greenland could lead to the UK returning to the EU and even more integrated than before.
Trump has crossed a line with Greenland. As China grows and Europe is surrounded by what seems like more aggressive super powers either side of it, Europe is more likely to opt now for closer integration in trade and security in order to protect its interests against the USA and China (and others). This means the UK would have to choose between Europe and the USA. No way would most people in this country support a Trump-style USA. Probably at max 20%. So you would be looking at more people wanting to return to Europe than who wanted to remain.
What we really want is a strong Europe (in trade and security) and a strong (completely) SOVEREIGN UK that has excellent relations with both Europe and the USA in terms of both trade and security. Trump is scuppering all that.
Reply The UK would be worse off if it rejoined slow growth low defence spending EU
January 20, 2026
‘The UK would be worse off if it rejoined slow growth low defence spending EU’
– But how do you explain that to millions of voters?
January 20, 2026
The voters know Ed, it’s you who doesn’t!
January 20, 2026
So Trump is making a return of the UK to EU more likely. Of course we don’t want that. But he’s breeding pro European and EU sentiment by his aggressive stance over Greenland.
So Trump gains Greenland means UK much more likely to return to EU. So we must oppose Trump over Greenland or pay the consequences.
January 20, 2026
Putin has played him once again. Probably hinted he had eyes on Greenland. Now Trump might feel he can walk away from UN/NATO and leave mainland Europe to defend against a revitalised Russia.
January 20, 2026
No he’s not.