The Great British TaxPayer Rip-off

Rising taxes, soaring charges, service cuts. It’s…

THE GREAT BRITISH TAXPAYER RIP-OFF

Download the full report (PDF)

In a new report, the TaxPayers’ Alliance outlines the way that over the last decade British taxpayers have faced a huge increase in their tax bills, but at the same time, they’ve been made to pay additional fees and charges for what used to be “free” public services. To cap it all, service levels have suffered widespread cuts. Faced by a rising cost of living, these taxes and charges are adding a sizeable burden to ordinary households.

It all adds up to the Great British Taxpayer Rip-Off.

Key Findings:

Rising taxes

• The tax bill has soared, increasing over 50% in ten years even taking inflation into account. Through vast increases in a range of up-front taxes, stealth taxes and cunning measures such as fiscal drag, the average household tax bill has grown to £20,700.
• The total Stamp Duty collected has increased a staggering 314% in the last ten years. Together, the nine fastest growing taxes, which are detailed in the report, make up three quarters of tax revenue.
• Fiscal drag, by which the Government catches millions of people in higher tax bands by raising thresholds slower than inflation, has raised £80 billion in the last ten years, including £14 billion in the last year alone.

Higher Charges

• The total cost of NHS, local authority and quango charges is now over £17 billion per annum, nearly £700 per household.
• Full details of the range of charges are given in the report, but some examples include: school dinners charges have risen 50% in ten years to £1 billion per annum; parking charges and fines have risen to over £1 billion; Hospital car parks raise over £100m in England alone.

The full report provides the most comprehensive analysis of the rise in taxes, stealth taxes and charges that has ever been compiled, illustrating the burden borne by ordinary families across the country. A PDF of the report is attached to this email.

Mike Denham, the former Treasury Economist who authored the report, said:

“The Government has used every trick in the book to drive up the tax burden, and ordinary families are paying a heavy price. People are increasingly beset by record levels of taxation and growing service charges, but there has been no improvement in services in return. We find ourselves paying more and more for less and less. With rocky economic times ahead, this rate of taxation simply cannot be sustained.”

Matthew Elliott, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said:

“The British public are being ripped off in the most shameful way. The cloak and dagger methods the Government is using the squeeze money out of hard working people are deplorable. We are sick and tired of being exploited and let down. With fewer police stations, limited GPs’ hours, libraries closing, rarer bin collections and a host of other cuts we are getting less for our money than ever before. People are facing higher fuel bills, more expensive food and much bigger mortgage bills – and on top of all that they are being stealth  taxed and charged more than ever before. This con has got to stop.”

Comments

[a-tracy]

don't forget plus private dental insurance or charges as ? (half I'd guess)of us had dentists that privatised in the last couple of years.

[Paula]

Here's another rip off - my Mother is trying to sell her bungalow. Because of her age and health worries we moved her closer to us so that I can get to her quicker should the need arise. We are paying the mortgage on her new property until the old one sells. We did all of this before it came to light that the government had achieved it's objective of totally destroying the economy and the banks stopped lending for mortgages. The old bungalow has been on the market for seven months now and the council are demanding FULL council tax. My Mother is 72 years old, on a state pension. She is paying for the council services from her new address - the services that she can only use once - such as they are.

The government have stated that "The Government wishes to encourage re-occupation of long-term empty properties" - at a time like this! My MP managed to get a compromise whereby they would delay payment until the property sells but the obnoxious creeps say she has to get a solicitor to write a letter stating that she will. They're basically saying that her word isn't good enough! So now it's legal for the councils to steal from 72 year old widows so that they can rake in more money to waste on crap! If I charged someone for a service that they were not receiving I'd be breaking the law - how does it not work that way with the thieving councils!? £1200 to pay for nothing and they expect a 72 year old widow to pay it. It's just disgusting the lengths they will go to to extract more and more money, they will stop at nothing.

[Dr Andrew Johnston]

This is a selective presentation of the data - and you know it. Let's look at income tax - this has gone up by 96% in the decade 1997/98-2007/08 but you neglect to highlight how far incomes have risen. Yes, income tax receipts may have risen but so have incomes - and remember the tax system is based on PAYE. So as our incomes increase so will our tax bill - but you need to highlight the proportion of income paid in tax to say anything meaningful.

Stamp duty receipts are higher as the price of houses have rocketed, making the average house purchase now involve a payment of stamp duty. How is that the fault of the Government? It's the same effect as if we all suddenly started buying any product - VAT receipts would go through the roof.

There are 2 questions that need answering: What are the opportunity costs of the present tax system? How can we tackle the democratic deficit that sees a huge chasm between the tax payer and those who decide how to spend tax receipts?

[Jim]

"Stamp duty receipts are higher as the price of houses have rocketed, making the average house purchase now involve a payment of stamp duty. How is that the fault of the Government?"

Because, Dr Johnston, the Government have failed to increase the thresholds to keep pace with house price increases. It's called fiscal drag, and is a stealthy way of increasing taxes. In fact, it says that in the report - have you read it?