Are FG/Labour making Thatchers mistake?

[BoyRacer]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITDh5JpK7jY

[BoyRacer]

Mrs. Thatcher’s Poll Tax → mises.org/econsense/ch62.asp

But there are several deep flaws in the new tax. In the first place, it is still not neutral to the market, since–a crucial difference–market prices are paid voluntarily by the consumer purchasing the good or service, whereas the tax (or “charge”) is levied coercively on each person, even if the value of the “service” of government to that person is far less than the charge, or is even negative.

Not only that: but a poll tax is a charge levied on a person’s very existence, and the person must often be hunted down at great expense to be forced to pay the tax. Charging a man for his very existence seems to imply that the government owns all of its subjects, body and soul.

The second deep flaw is bound up with the problem of coercion. It is certainly heroic of Mrs. Thatcher to want to scrap the property tax in behalf of an equal tax. But she seems to have missed the major point of the equal tax, one that gives it its unique charm. For the truly great thing about an equal tax is that in order to make it payable, it has to be drastically reduced from the levels before the equality is imposed.

there is more

[mr.agent]

It may reduce the number of Sinn Fein and ULA supporters willing to register to vote.

[obese_cat]

If it was revenue neutral, collected locally, and spent locally, I’d be all in favour. The councils are a feckin’ joke since FF abolished domestic rates.

But it’s looking like another tax…

[lord_vader]

@mr.agent

It may reduce the number of Sinn Fein and ULA supporters willing to register to vote.

??? and increase the number of uber FGers on the pin to register twice?

[Tis_Meself]

Ah … the beutiful dream … a locally spent or direct service focused tax!
There has been Road Tax on vehicles for 80+ years - yet we pay tolls to private road building concerns!
One hears about the unpaid Development Levies due to councils - but what about the millions that were paid over - were they all spent locally and wisely on works for the public good ?
I could go on … tiring!

[HiFi]

The proposed Household Charge is quite different to the Poll Tax which was paid by each person over 18 at their “sole or main residence.” it was seen in theory as being fairer than Rates where a pensioner living alone in an average house paid the same as say, a working couple, with two working children or a house share with three working professionals. It was welcomed by a lot of people at the time (1990) but it was expensive to administer, was fraught with software problems. That and the level of the charge in high spending councils is what eventually scuppered it and Thatcher.

[pepperpot]

@HiFi

The proposed Household Charge is quite different to the Poll Tax which was paid by each person over 18 at their “sole or main residence.” it was seen in theory as being fairer than Rates where a pensioner living alone in an average house paid the same as say, a working couple, with two working children or a house share with three working professionals. It was welcomed by a lot of people at the time (1990) but it was expensive to administer, was fraught with software problems. That and the level of the charge in high spending councils is what eventually scuppered it and Thatcher.

HiFi you are right in that the Household Charge is entirely different, however you are quite wrong in your description of the Poll Tax and why it was abolished. It had nothing to do with the cost of administration nor software problems.

Far from being “welcomed by a lot of people” the Poll Tax was almost universally hated, and led to the riots in 1990. It favoured the rich at the expense of the poor - typical for the Tories at the time. Your pensioner living alone in a slum paid the same as a Lord living alone in a mansion. Four adult tenants in an overcrowded council flat paid 4 times the aforementioned Lord. It was a disaster and led directly to Thatcher’s fall that same year.

[pollydolly]

@pepperpot

HiFi you are right in that the Household Charge is entirely different, however you are quite wrong in your description of the Poll Tax and why it was abolished. It had nothing to do with the cost of administration nor software problems.

Far from being “welcomed by a lot of people” the Poll Tax was almost universally hated, and led to the riots in 1990. It favoured the rich at the expense of the poor - typical for the Tories at the time. Your pensioner living alone in a slum paid the same as a Lord living alone in a mansion. Four adult tenants in an overcrowded council flat paid 4 times the aforementioned Lord. It was a disaster and led directly to Thatcher’s fall that same year.

I doubt that FG will have to worry too much about people in Ireland rioting in the streets re. poll tax, given the amount of crap that people have willingly put up with so far. They’ll just roll over and take it, as usual, doffing their caps to their “betters”.

[lord_vader]

@pollydolly

@pepperpot

HiFi you are right in that the Household Charge is entirely different, however you are quite wrong in your description of the Poll Tax and why it was abolished. It had nothing to do with the cost of administration nor software problems.

Far from being “welcomed by a lot of people” the Poll Tax was almost universally hated, and led to the riots in 1990. It favoured the rich at the expense of the poor - typical for the Tories at the time. Your pensioner living alone in a slum paid the same as a Lord living alone in a mansion. Four adult tenants in an overcrowded council flat paid 4 times the aforementioned Lord. It was a disaster and led directly to Thatcher’s fall that same year.

I doubt that FG will have to worry too much about people in Ireland rioting in the streets re. poll tax, given the amount of crap that people have willingly put up with so far. They’ll just roll over and take it, as usual, doffing their caps to their “betters”.

Ireland the land of vaseline and honey