With the fracking ban lifted and the biggest budget in decades, with the biggest tax cuts in 50 years, it’s pretty clear that we not only have a new Prime Minister and Chancellor, we have a brand new government. It’s almost as if there had been a general election where the public voted for change.
It’s now a race against time for Truss and Kwarteng, the boldest dual role since the Wright brothers, the inventors of flight, to bring this daring plan to fruition.
Let’s hope their plane doesn’t crash and burn. Not only is this the first conservative government in years that looks and feels conservative, it’s the first government of any stripe in as long as I can remember that actually believes in something. And that something is capitalism. It’s always encouraging to have a policy that doesn’t need much explanation. A clear and unambiguous policy. The three words “Get Brexit Done” swept the Tories to a landslide victory in 2019. Striving for growth could do a similar job for Liz Truss in 2024 or sooner.
Why should we always rely on international bond markets and money printing to pay for our schools, police and hospitals? Why not pay for it out of national income, and that’s what this growth spurt is all about. This budget has been mislabeled as trickle-down economics, an idea dating back to the 80’s and US President Ronald Reagan where you give huge sums of money to the richest and hope they spend it. We didn’t see that yesterday. This is a boost for supply-side growth, in other words, to sow the seeds for the economy to grow and get bigger and stronger and bear more fruit.
This mini-budget will put Britain on the path to recovery and capitalize on the opportunities Brexit presents, says Mark Dolan
To boost investment, hire staff, raise wages for workers and put more money in every Brit’s pocket to go shopping. Why is that important? Love it or hate it 60% of our economy is based on consumption – buying things.
Labor condemned this budget but I am so confused because they were so critical of Rishi Sunak, then Chancellor, when he announced the increase in social security. They said it was a tax on jobs and attacks on hard-working Britons would disproportionately hurt the poorest. Well, they were right then and it was reversed.
So what has changed? Crikey, I hope there’s no politics involved. And, as is all too often the case these days, this government’s no-holds-barred capitalist plan has been mischaracterized by those who want to see Britain perpetuate its tax-spending crack cocaine addiction. They’re upset about the bonus for bankers, although it didn’t make a blind difference as high-flyers only received more income from paychecks instead. And Alistair Heath, writing in the Telegraph today, rightly points out that the steep 45% tax rate was more performative, more political than anything, given how pitifully much money it actually brings in. 40% is a much better headline number because it encourages wealthy people to come to this country, stay in this country, invest and spend their money here and pay their taxes here. Thanks to yesterday’s budget, the UK now stands as a global beacon of enterprise and aspiration. And I believe that in time the UK will be a model for the economy of the 21st century. Low taxes, simplified, innovative and dynamic and an economy that works to pay for itself. Don’t sit around all day watching Loose Women and Countdown.
Margaret Thatcher transformed our economy in the 1980s with low taxes and union reform, something the French and Germans took decades to catch up on.
Well, this is another big step forward, and let me tell you that post-Brexit EU nations will never be able to compete with the attractive, low-tax, investable Britain. The EU nations are rooted in social-democratic ideology, which includes high taxes and a large state. Critics of yesterday’s budget have also chosen to exaggerate the magnitude of the changes. Even with yesterday’s welcome tax cuts putting money back in ordinary people’s wallets, tax levels are still surprisingly high. As pointed out yesterday by former Brexit chief negotiator Lord Frost, referring to a chart by economist Matthew Lesh.
Rachel Reeves calls Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng “desperate players chasing the loser” as the mini-budget was unveiled
Or how about this explainer that makes the rounds and puts the amount of taxes paid into perspective?
“A person with £20,000 please 2856. A person with £200,000 pays 85178 30 times more tax on just 10 times more income. A person with £1million pays 435,000, that’s 152 times more tax on 50 times more salary”.
But this is my favorite tweet. It’s from a young person making her way in the world.
“Unpopular opinion – £100,000 salary is not what you think it is. After tax, your monthly income is £5,457. If you’re a man with a family of four – with a wife who isn’t back to work yet, with a £2000 mortgage… no one can tell me the family is rich on that alone”.
Who wrote this this week?
One of the panellists on my show tonight, political commentator Lin Mei.
You will be hearing from her, Peter Edwards and Edwina Currie shortly. So this should only be the first step in Britain’s transformation. There’s also a deliberate misconception about how taxes work and how much people of different incomes actually pay. Let me clear that up. How about this guy’s corker
“Once the taxis come down, we’re not exactly Dubai.” Too bad.
IIt’s time to focus on growth and work towards a prosperous Britain. Something that happened during the capitalist revolution under Margaret Thatcher in the 80’s and to be fair we continued it in the late 90’s and early 00’s up to then Prime Minister Tony Blair. Don’t forget, old Gordon Brown was the toast of the City of London, the hero of the bankers. But his successor, Keir Starmer, will undo all that.
His deputy Angela Rayner has previously tweeted that Labor is likely to reverse these tax cuts.
But what would she and Sir Keir say to this voter who speaks for many?
Yesterday’s budget puts an extra £1300 a year in my pocket, according to online calculators… I’m just an ordinary worker… so why would the party claiming to represent ‘the worker’ object?
So there you have it. Vote for work and vote for higher taxes. There is a sweet spot in taxation where it is high enough to meet the country’s public service needs, but not too high to discourage people from taking their businesses and money elsewhere. As of yesterday, we were well north of that sweet spot, with the highest tax burden since the ’40s. Wealthy people who pay less taxes don’t look good, I’ll admit that. It’s a gift to Labor but Truss and Kwarteng see the bigger picture. They want to grow the economy at all costs, no matter how unpopular and unphotogenic the politics used to achieve this. We should focus on the outcome – a bigger, more productive economy – not the means to get there.
Because when the economy grows, we all win. And yesterday’s budget unlocks the potential of Brexit, because what was announced yesterday is rooted in the principle of economic and political freedom, something that would be impossible if we were still in the bloc. The money is too tight to mention, but if you keep increasing taxes, the graph just stays red. For too long sluggish, unproductive Britain has ‘held back the years’, but now a ‘new flame’ has been kindled. Carry on, in a spiral of high taxes and low growth, the mick takes. I couldn’t give a hiccup to those who badmouth Britain and criticize this ambitious budget that will bring results for everyone. If we focus on growth, we will be at the forefront.
