Making the news today....

[trigger_andy]

Just now, Big J said:

You're confusing communism and socialism my good man. There is a capitalist argument for first class infrastructure, health care and education, in that it improves productivity and profit on a population-wide basis.

I dont see a fundamental difference really. 

 

Those who can afford a £600k mortgage are already paying a huge amount in income tax. Not to mention the significant Stamp Duty owed on the purchase then the higher bands of council tax. Why on earth should they be tapped for even more? 

 

Yet when you get hit with a wee bit of tax on your Forwarder you go nuts.  

[Mick Dempsey]

1 minute ago, devon TWiG said:

Property prices in France are still very high near the better places , nice parts of the Coast , the Alps or near big cities ....the English tend to buy in quiet out of the way areas where demand is low and prices follow ...same in Italy , Spain etc ...

Very true.

[trigger_andy]

21 minutes ago, Big J said:

I would hardly say that £20k plus on an asset that was tax free until 8 months ago constitutes a wee bit of tax 😄

You might not think it’s wee bit of tax yet that seems to be exactly what you expect someone who owns a £600k house to fork out. They’d say the exact same thing as you. £20k on an asset (their house) that did not previously have such a tax on it. Surely you see the irony here? 

[Commando]

 
It's a rather philosophical question, I fear.
 
If we only do things that we see as being financially lucrative, we're fundamentally doomed 🤣 
 
We should be investing in our homes to make them better places to live, not because it makes us wealthier. I'd rather be in a house that is worth a lot less, but pay some of that excess money into the tax system so that the infrastructure, health care and schooling is better. 
 
You do notice the difference acutely between the UK and many European countries, in that we (as a nation) have a lot of amassed personal wealth. I say that insofar that individual properties can be sold for a lot of money, but all the infrastructure and services around them are terrible. 
 
I recall working down the bottom of a valley a few miles from Tiverton 2 years back. God awful little lane, pot holed to hell, both wingmirrors in the hedges are you drove it. No school, no pub, no services whatsoever. A 3-4 mile drive (at about 20mph max) to get to Tiverton, but forget it if it's icy. And then once you're into Tiverton, you're in a market town with some notable social issues. The high school has a permanent police officer there, for instance.
 
But despite this, the average house price on that postcode 2 years ago was about £658k. It feel that if the owners of these homes spent less on their mortgages and more in local taxes, the whole area would function better.

I think most of us that live in Devon and Cornwall like it just the way it is J, and that not just the “blow-ins, Grocks” etc. I got mates that manage to move big excavators etc around the counties just fine.
Have you thought about Cuba? I’ve heard that’s a nice socially balanced place to live?[emoji1]

[devon TWiG]

narrow roads aren't  too much of a problem as bloody low branches are !!😱   not me by the way !!!!

[Khriss]

Pine martens return to the south of England

WWW.FORESTRYENGLAND.UK

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Conservationists have confirmed that pine martens, a species previously only thought to have survived largely in the North of England, have established a population in the New Forest in...

 

Good ☺️ K

[trigger_andy]

41 minutes ago, Big J said:

I don't think that the comparison is valid. I'm not suggesting taxing people's houses. Regarding my machine, the British government (who have perpetually claimed, contrary to the best evidence, that Brexit is a good thing) has imposed an export tariff on a machine that isn't even manufactured here. A 22% export tariff. 

You might not be suggesting that the houses are taxed directly, but you might as well be considering you're suggesting that if they own such a home that they should pay even more tax than they already are. Id go as far to suggest its not beyond the realms of improbability that someone who is not of retirement age and owns such a house is paying more in tax a year (be it income tax, NI and council tax) than you contribute in 5. You're suggesting that they pay even more so that you can have an easier day driving around in your road blocking machinery.  Perhaps its the likes of yourself that should be forced into funding the betterment of the local infrastructure and not those who are already heavily burdened with tax? 

 

A 22% export tariff would go someway to help.  

[trigger_andy]

8 minutes ago, Big J said:

You're just being intentionally difficult now. You know as well as I do that a 22% export tariff with zero import tariff puts every single second hand machine owner in the unenviable position of having a machine which can only really be sold in one country. Previously, it would have cost nothing to export it, other than the logistical costs. 

Its not fair I know, but in my opinion suggesting someone who owns a £600k house should pay even more tax, when they are already taxed to the hilt is not fair either. 

 

8 minutes ago, Big J said:

I pay rather more tax than I'd like, and collect a crap load of VAT for the government (in particular). I say that I pay more tax than I'd like, because I don't feel that I get much in return for it. 

I pay over £40k in tax to Norway a year, I can assure you I receive far less in return for it.  

 

8 minutes ago, Big J said:

A tax on accrued wealth isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Yes it is.

 

Coming from someone bitching about paying 22% to export a machine that you've already paid for is a bit rich. 

 

Lets just rebrand the export tax to something you feel others (but clearly not yourself) should pay and we'll all be happy campers. 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 3, 2021 by trigger_andy

[spuddog0507]

24 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

I pay over £40k in tax to Norway a year,

Your not earning enough,😂 i would be asking for a pay rise if i was you 😂🤣😂

[trigger_andy]

Just now, spuddog0507 said:

Your not earning enough,😂 i would be asking for a pay rise if i was you 😂🤣😂

Ive not had a payrise in 5 years. So I wholeheartedly agree!