Tax on vices would boost the economy

Published on 25/06/2012 00:00

As honest labour is a virtue, why discourage it by taxing it?

Surely it’s fairer to tax vices such as selfishness, public nuisance, waste and idleness?

How about land value taxes and taxes on unearned incomes, coupled with taxes on conspicuous consumption such as large cars, luxury goods and services, and expensive holidays. Consider also taxes on anti-social issues such as junk food and non-returnable packaging

All are unavoidable, cheap and easy to collect and relieve the average honest worker of unjust and complex penalties.

By no longer taxing incomes, rich entrepreneurs would be attracted from abroad. Also, our gross wage would lower to our net wage thus making our labour costs more internationally competitive, but without detriment to our standard of living.

Danny Alexander should consider taxing spoilers rather than toilers.

TGP FLINN

Garvald East Lothian

It WOULD be a very principled individual who refused an accountant’s offer to reduce their tax bill.

The same might apply to a landowner who rebuffs the advances of a windfarm company.

However, vilifying Mr Carr for his actions is nothing short of hypocracy.

The tax which he has avoided is a drop in the ocean compared to that being avoided by large corporations.

Corporate tax avoidance in the UK allegedly amounts to a staggering £85bn every year but I have yet to hear an outcry regarding this state of affairs.

Surely it would be more rewarding in terms of manpower to pursue these organisations rather than one individual who is doing what most of us would do given the half the chance.

ALAN CAWTHORNE

Twynholm Kirkcudbright

I HAVE read recently the stories about Jimmy Carr. I have also read the British government were negotiating with the Isle of Man authorities over the share out of tax revenues on VAT.

Does this mean the tax privileges of the offshore British Isles tax havens of Isle of Man and the Channel Islands are in some way renegotiable?

Should we perhaps have more tax havens to encourage development in some of our more depressed areas of the UK? Should Shetland, Orkney, the Hebrides, Anglesey, the Isle of Wight and the Scilly Isles enjoy tax concessions too?

Hong Kong was always said to be a big help to the local economy of mainland China in colonial days. The existence of Gibraltar is supposed to help the economy of the area of Spain that immediately surrounds it. Nice in France benefits from the existence of Monaco.

If tax concessions are supposed to be such a help to the economy then why don’t we have more and allow all our island communities to benefit?

If not, then why don’t we abolish them for the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands and gather in tax revenues from these places, the rest of us pay in mainland Britain?

NIGEL BODDY

14 Fife Road Darlington