Ian Duncan Smith thinks he can live on £53 a week. Lets make him

[beorhthelm]

Make multinational companies pay their fair share of the running costs of this unfair system, ie pay corporation tax in any country where profits are made, not redirect them to a tax haven.

you mean their fair share after all the business rates, NI and tens of thousands of employees? i suppose you'd rather BAT, Shell, Rolls Royce, Standard Charterd, Glaxo, Rio Tinto and the other miners would pay all their tax overseas rather than here? or are you just having a cob on about a stupid coffee company shifting a few £10m to Luxemburg?

 

[Chicken Runner61]

So who would that be in your opinion?

There isn't anyone currently, there may never be anyone, politics is such a mess now its difficult to gain enough concentrated support for one party to be able to create a manifesto bold enough but creative enough to make a majority of voters understand that in order for the country to maintain its world position it needs to completely reinvent itself politically, financially, educationally and globally.

 

[e77]

you mean their fair share after all the business rates, NI and tens of thousands of employees? i suppose you'd rather BAT, Shell, Rolls Royce, Standard Charterd, Glaxo, Rio Tinto and the other miners would pay all their tax overseas rather than here? or are you just having a cob on about a stupid coffee company shifting a few £10m to Luxemburg?

Would need to be done at international level to stop predatory tax rates but until it happens we (i.e. tax payers) are picking up the slack for them.

Also Starbuck's not paying their fair whack gives them a competitive advantage over smaller domestic coffee shops (for example).

 

[Dick Head]

You're all right, of course, but especially [MENTION=10856]1066familyman[/MENTION]

Exactly!

Tax payers subsidising share holders dividends & excessive executives pay/bonuses when corporations pay below a living wage so low paid workers have to be topped up with tax credits etc. Also, tax payers subsidising the profits of buy to let landlords/ladies in the shape of the huge housing benefit bill because there isn't enough social housing to meet the need and successive Governments can't manage the housing market properly. They are far more pressing concerns that this Government has no intention of dealing with.

But no, let's target benefit recipients as the enemy of the tax payer As for living on £53 a week? Surely your energy bills have to come out of that too?, because as far as I'm aware there's no benefit that pays for that, bar a slightly reduced bill on a 'social tariff'. Also, running a car is out then that's for sure and with public transport in this country being both expensive and shite then good luck job hunting unless it's within walking distance. Amongst numerous other points, you can also forget equal sports opportunities for kids from unemployed households too because currently I spend on average £10 a week (during the season) in subs and travel expenses to keep just one of my kids playing for a local football club. Meanwhile, there's obscene amounts of money concentrated at the top of our NATIONAL game, and they talk about investment in the grassroots? Do me a favour! It's a haves v have nots society and the gap is growing, and that can only spell trouble.

But carry on IDS, I'm sure you mean well

 

[1066familyman]

No need to apologise at all, but I did base my reply purely on the one post of yours I quoted

Not quite sure whether that's a dig or an acknowledgement that you agreed with my other posts anyway. It's getting late and I'm not good at cryptic crosswords at any time of the day

However, I'll apologise again as I can see now I didn't answer your direct questions about who's fault it is that benefits go unclaimed.

It's the fault of those not claiming what they're entitled to at the end of the day. However, this can be for a number of reasons I suppose - pride, laziness, fear and inability to fill out the myriad of forms or just pure ignorance that they're entitled to claim for anything in the first place. Given the amount Government invests in benefit fraud investigation it wouldn't go a miss to make it easier for those in genuine need to claim what they're entitled to I'd say.

 

[hitony]

There isn't anyone currently, there may never be anyone, politics is such a mess now its difficult to gain enough concentrated support for one party to be able to create a manifesto bold enough but creative enough to make a majority of voters understand that in order for the country to maintain its world position it needs to completely reinvent itself politically, financially, educationally and globally.

Ok.

 

[Deleted member 18477]

So, after working all week to pay my own housing costs , fuel bills, council tax, income tax, national insurance and food and clothing requirements, you seem to think that I should not only pay for someone else's housing costs, fuel bills, council tax, food and clothing requirements, but that I should also pay for them to 'live'? If you mean have a beer, go to the cinema or have a holiday, tell you what, come and ask me personally and see what response you get!

Something for nothing generation by any chance?

Nope. I pay for everything you do and have never claimed a benefit in my life. Fortunately I've never had too however some people do need benefits and deserve to live off them instead of just surviving. You cannot lump everyone on benefits into the same sack.

 

[hitony]

Not quite sure whether that's a dig or an acknowledgement that you agreed with my other posts anyway. It's getting late and I'm not good at cryptic crosswords at any time of the day

However, I'll apologise again as I can see now I didn't answer your direct questions about who's fault it is that benefits go unclaimed.

It's the fault of those not claiming what they're entitled to at the end of the day. However, this can be for a number of reasons I suppose - pride, laziness, fear and inability to fill out the myriad of forms or just pure ignorance that they're entitled to claim for anything in the first place. Given the amount Government invests in benefit fraud investigation it wouldn't go a miss to make it easier for those in genuine need to claim what they're entitled to I'd say.

It most certainly was not a dig, and i have not seen your other posts so i can't respond to them either way, as I say no need to apologise.

 

[hitony]

Not quite sure whether that's a dig or an acknowledgement that you agreed with my other posts anyway. It's getting late and I'm not good at cryptic crosswords at any time of the day

However, I'll apologise again as I can see now I didn't answer your direct questions about who's fault it is that benefits go unclaimed.

It's the fault of those not claiming what they're entitled to at the end of the day. However, this can be for a number of reasons I suppose - pride, laziness, fear and inability to fill out the myriad of forms or just pure ignorance that they're entitled to claim for anything in the first place. Given the amount Government invests in benefit fraud investigation it wouldn't go a miss to make it easier for those in genuine need to claim what they're entitled to I'd say.

I totally agree about the amount of form filling etc, but if the system to claim money / benefits etc etc were made to be a lot easier, would that just not make it easier for the scammers as well as the genuine ones

 

[beorhthelm]

Would need to be done at international level to stop predatory tax rates but until it happens we (i.e. tax payers) are picking up the slack for them.

is that "we" the tax payers of the world or just here in the UK? either way economic theory suggests we pay taxes through prices anyway. and Starbucks dont seem to have any competitive advantage on price that i've seen, ones i know of always have cheaper rivals nearby, branded and local indies. people go there for brand image and habit (its not for the coffee.)

 

[1066familyman]

It most certainly was not a dig, and i have not seen your other posts so i can't respond to them either way, as I say no need to apologise.

I'm so used to reading binfests on here I get a tad defensive on the rare occasions I do join in debates. Nice to see this thread sticking with just healthy debate up to now. And on that note I'm off to bed. Night all.

 

[hitony]

I'm so used to reading binfests on here I get a tad defensive on the rare occasions I do join in debates. Nice to see this thread sticking with just healthy debate up to now. And on that note I'm off to bed. Night all.

I agree, good night

 

[Chicken Runner61]

Ok.

its a big gig, I'm not sure the existing powers will let anyone radical enough survive long enough to start anything new - they have too much to lose

 

[Barrel of Fun]

you mean their fair share after all the business rates, NI and tens of thousands of employees? i suppose you'd rather BAT, Shell, Rolls Royce, Standard Charterd, Glaxo, Rio Tinto and the other miners would pay all their tax overseas rather than here? or are you just having a cob on about a stupid coffee company shifting a few £10m to Luxemburg?

A profit is a surplus. Making a profit in this country should mean they are liable to tax.

Does your income tax take in to account personal expenditure?

 

[beorhthelm]

A profit is a surplus. Making a profit in this country should mean they are liable to tax.

thats fine, but do you want the likes of Diageo, Rio Tinto or Standard Charterd to pay their taxes aboard, where their profits are made, rather than bring them to the UK where they pay tax? its all very nice for us to expect that profits made here are taxed here, but thats not the world we live in with multinationals and international trade, and we gain plenty from money coming here by the same mechanisms. its not a one way deal, win some lose some.

 

[e77]

is that "we" the tax payers of the world or just here in the UK? either way economic theory suggests we pay taxes through prices anyway. and Starbucks dont seem to have any competitive advantage on price that i've seen, ones i know of always have cheaper rivals nearby, branded and local indies. people go there for brand image and habit (its not for the coffee.)

Depends which view you take but, like it's coffee, routing profits through low taxation countries does leave a bad taste in the mouth.

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

anyone can "live" off job seekers.......it's not a particularly nice life but you can certainly do it

one point though, when i've claimed benefits, i've found the whole thing to be (quite rightly) VERY complicated....i have no idea how people get away with living off them for their whole lives. I volunteer at Safehaven (meals for (mostly) homeless people at St Peters Church), some of the guests that go there are fairly proud of the fact that they earn a pretty sizable amount of money from the government

 

[Barrel of Fun]

thats fine, but do you want the likes of Diageo, Rio Tinto or Standard Charterd to pay their taxes aboard, where their profits are made, rather than bring them to the UK where they pay tax? its all very nice for us to expect that profits made here are taxed here, but thats not the world we live in with multinationals and international trade, and we gain plenty from money coming here by the same mechanisms. its not a one way deal, win some lose some.

How much did Diageo make and pay profit on? I know the company made £2bn profit for six months.

 

[oldboy]

So, after working all week to pay my own housing costs , fuel bills, council tax, income tax, national insurance and food and clothing requirements, you seem to think that I should not only pay for someone else's housing costs, fuel bills, council tax, food and clothing requirements, but that I should also pay for them to 'live'? If you mean have a beer, go to the cinema or have a holiday, tell you what, come and ask me
Something for nothing generation by any chance?

Your missing the point if you think its that easy go and have a look in the job centre your what the tories love working class v working class youve been brainwashed sonny.

 

[clippedgull]

at the moment id love to have £53 a week to live on, after all my bills have been paid, and the ex wife sucking me dry i have a total of less than £10 a week to fed me and my kids when i have them

How do you manage to afford to watch the Albion? Starve the kids? Genuine question.