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Rich Germans demand higher taxes

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  • 23-10-2009 12:47pm
    #1
    ei.sdraob
    Closed Accounts Posts: 9,376 ✭✭✭


    A group of rich Germans has launched a petition calling for the government to make wealthy people pay higher taxes.


    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8321967.stm

    :eek:

    wow anything like this in Ireland? no?? i taught so


    who here would agree to pay higher taxes provided some of the waste in public sector and welfare is cut, and whole NAMA scam is killed?


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    #2
    Tim Robbins
    Registered Users Posts: 8,999 ✭✭✭Tim Robbins


    ei.sdraob wrote: »
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8321967.stm

    :eek:

    wow anything like this in Ireland? no?? i taught so


    who here would agree to pay higher taxes provided some of the waste in public sector and welfare is cut, and whole NAMA scam is killed?

    I'd have no problem paying higher taxes if the money was properly used. A more cohesive society and economies of scale.

    However, at the moment, I can't afford medication that people on med cards get for free. It's my taxes paying for their medication when I can't afford my own.

    We're struggling paying our mortgage when my taxes our paying for people to live in similar and bigger apartments for cheaper prices.

    I give many more examples. Parents half to take half days for work to attend a parent teacher meeting because teachers won't work late a few times in a year even though they got more annual leave than anyone else.

    The cost public sector are dragging this country down more than Nama ever will.

    Nama is 60 billion in total max, our debt is 20 billion extra per year!


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    #3
    Tim Robbins
    Registered Users Posts: 8,999 ✭✭✭Tim Robbins


    And another one, my taxes are paying for people to have much higher pensions than I'll ever have.

    The current situation is a complete farce. We are being taken to the cleaners...


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    #4
    P. Breathnach
    Registered Users Posts: 12,089 ✭✭✭✭P. Breathnach


    Tim Robbins wrote: »
    I'd have no problem paying higher taxes if the money was properly used...

    That's a stock response, and is usually a preliminary to making a case for not paying higher taxes.

    I would not object to paying higher taxes on the basis that the great bulk of the money is indeed properly used.

    I would also be in favour of working towards ensuring that all of the money is properly used. But I would not make it a precondition.


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    #5
    Diarmuid
    Registered Users Posts: 3,981 ✭✭✭Diarmuid


    P. Breathnach wrote: »
    That's a stock response, and is usually a preliminary to making a case for not paying higher taxes.

    Ok let's invert the statement

    "I don't mind paying more taxes even if the money is wasted"

    How does the saying go? A fool and their money....
    P. Breathnach wrote: »
    I would not object to paying higher taxes on the basis that the great bulk of the money is indeed properly used..
    Want to put a figure on the "great bulk"?


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    #6
    Diarmuid
    Registered Users Posts: 3,981 ✭✭✭Diarmuid


    To the OP. As for the idea of wealth taxes. They have been tried and failed
    "Some European countries have abandoned this kind of tax in the recent years: Austria, Denmark, Germany (1997), Sweden (2007), and Spain (2008). On January 2006, wealth tax was abolished in Finland, Iceland and Luxembourg. In other countries, like Belgium or Great Britain, no tax of this type has ever existed, although the Window Tax of 1696 was based on a similar concept."


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    #7
    eoinbn
    Registered Users Posts: 799 ✭✭✭eoinbn


    44 people... that's the equivalent to about 2.5 rich Irish people asking for higher taxes. I am pretty sure I have heard some wealthy people on RTE asking for higher taxes on people over ~€100k. Vincent Browne says it during every show on TV3. So that's at least 2!

    They are talking about a 2 year tax on wealth to help pay for services during the recession. When the recession ends german revenues will start getting back to pre-recession levels quickly- ours won't. At best it will take 10 years, realistically it will take 15-20.


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    #8
    Permabear
    Closed Accounts Posts: 39,022 ✭✭✭✭Permabear


    This post has been deleted.


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    #9
    gurramok
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,992 ✭✭✭✭gurramok


    It might work if all countries had equal wealth taxes so there would be no safe havens for the welathy to flee to.


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    #10
    ei.sdraob
    Closed Accounts Posts: 9,376 ✭✭✭ei.sdraob


    donegalfella wrote: »
    This post has been deleted.

    didnt they have 98% rate band at some stage in UK?


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    #11
    Permabear
    Closed Accounts Posts: 39,022 ✭✭✭✭Permabear


    This post has been deleted.


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    #12
    P. Breathnach
    Registered Users Posts: 12,089 ✭✭✭✭P. Breathnach


    Diarmuid wrote: »
    Ok let's invert the statement

    "I don't mind paying more taxes even if the money is wasted"

    How does the saying go? A fool and their money....

    That's cheap shot stuff.
    Want to put a figure on the "great bulk"?

    There is plenty of solid information out there. Dig into http://www.audgen.gov.ie/ViewDoc.asp?DocId=-1&CatID=3


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    #13
    asdasd
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,185 ✭✭✭asdasd


    I presume these guys want a tax on the rich, which at the minimum definition is the top 10% of taxpayers, a higher marginal tax there would offset higher marginal taxes on medium incomes.

    A wealth tax is a good idea. Income is not the same as wealth. At higher levels of net worth income can be meaningless - it is possible to earn below the poverty line, or be in negative income and be net worth rich.

    However it isnt really possible to do it practically since weatlh can be moved so easily.

    The French have one though.


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    #14
    Dannyboy83
    Registered Users Posts: 4,236 ✭✭✭Dannyboy83


    P. Breathnach wrote: »
    That's a stock response, and is usually a preliminary to making a case for not paying higher taxes.

    I would not object to paying higher taxes on the basis that the great bulk of the money is indeed properly used.

    I would also be in favour of working towards ensuring that all of the money is properly used. But I would not make it a precondition.

    I disagree, FAS are a prime example.

    An annual budget of €1 billion.
    All money was to be used in order to secure €1 billion for the following year, regardless of 'how' it was used.


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    #15
    Diarmuid
    Registered Users Posts: 3,981 ✭✭✭Diarmuid


    eoinbn wrote: »
    44 people... that's the equivalent to about 2.5 rich Irish people asking for higher taxes. I am pretty sure I have heard some wealthy people on RTE asking for higher taxes on people over ~€100k. Vincent Browne says it during every show on TV3. So that's at least 2!.
    I know a few more
    Peter McLoone - €170k
    John Carr - €170k
    Jack O'Connor - €124k
    David Begg - €137k

    EDIT: not that I have a problem with it. If that's what their members want to pay them, more power to them
    It's just a bit rich to hear some of them saying that no-one needs to earn more than €100k


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    #16
    MrMicra
    Closed Accounts Posts: 457 ✭✭MrMicra


    A tax on property including the primary residence with the introduction of a very short bankruptcy period would be both a revenue generator and equitable.

    People like me would pay the tax and those who are in negative equity could lose the house without it taking 20 years to resolve. As regards bankruptcy this is the de facto situation at the moment anyway. Property should be taxed especially as we are addicted to it as a store of wealth (I don't exclude myself).

    Unfortunately neither looks likely to happen as the government are commited to dear land- the policy that has served us so well in the past.


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