Have your say: Which tax cuts would make you smile?

Next Monday's Pre-Budget Report could be the most controversial and important for years, as Britain teeters on the brink of recession.

Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, has already hinted that a tax giveaway is on the cards to help give the economy a much needed boost and save the Government's bacon.

What sweeteners would you like to see emerge from the Chancellor's dispatch box? Have your say with our Pre-Budget poll.

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Comments

[Malcolm]

What would make me smile most is the demis of taxer and liar Brown

[a.p.w]

abolish all taxes,,,,only the strong
and the ruthless would remain.

[Dragon]

A single worker on £9,000 p.a. gets £1,000 added via Working Tax Credit.
A pensioner on £6,450 p.a. gets NO PENSION TAX CREDIT.
The PTC should be in line with WTC. This would mean poor OAP's would be taken out of poverty at a stroke.
As Tax Credits are means tested, only poor pensioners would benefit.
I am on a state pension plus £2,685 Widow's Benefit my late husband paid for. Total £8,060 p.a. so I had to pay £20.40 extra income tax from April to Sept. This caused me considerable hardship. Then I got the £60 rebate plus £10 a month rebate which everybody got. I am still going to be out of pocket by £125 which would have paid my gas or electric bill for 3 months. It seems that being Chancellor of the Exchequer did not teach Brown basic maths. Darling is just Brown's puppet...or is that Muppet...as he doesn't understand the harm done to Pensioners by removing the 10% Tax Band.

[Marie Lewis]

Income splitting for families with children - this would make me smile. It would bring my husband's tax band down and at last take into account the fact that we have young children to raise on a modest income by today's standards. At present my single person's allowance is lost - I can't even transfer it to my partner. And what is most unbelievable is that the couple round the corner on the same household income and no kids pay less tax than us(2 personal allowances).

[Dave]

We want a Police Investigation into the financial sector and its regulation. In the US the FBI have already made arrests

[A Johnson]

If the government wants to help get low earners in construction back to work in a frozen property market nothing would be more effective than removing VAT from home improvements. Interestingly, to date there has been no mention of rectifying this matter.

[Tom Swade]

If this government cares about equality then I'd like to see...
higher taxes for the small numbers earning over £100,000 per year (55% income tax for example), 0% tax reinstated but extended to cover everyone who earns the minimum wage, efforts to reduce VAT to 10% (EU approval would be needed but VAT is a regressive tax which affects the poor more), extra council tax should be charged to everyone with a second home or who is renting to other people (a tax on people with too much money). Nationalization of utilities and trains and proper subsidization would also be a good start

[paul]

Make VAT "Nil",hen you "May/ Quickstart" th Economy? 2.5%reduction when "People have "No Money" will be "Another Con"! Best is "Increase the "Personal Allowance" immediately, so that "Those Still with a "Job" can "Spend"!

[Carol]

Cut income tax, as that benefits the people who are working hard, instead of freeloaders. Cut tax on savings, to encourage prudence. No need to give more to pensioners, as they already control 75% of the nation's wealth. No more benefits for families either, as they are the ones running up huge debts on luxuries such as cars and holidays.

[Terry Munro]

Abolish the TV licence fee

[Alex Keown-Boyd]

Dear Sir

Instead of addressing the fundamental problems of the British economy, the Government has gone for the quick fix. The proper solution needs to be long-term. It needs to invest in future infrastructure like giant wind farms, clean and efficient transportation networks and other infrastructure projects that will reduce future imports and support a return to a more stable economic base and a stronger pound, a much better way to spend £15 billion.

The great fallacy is thinking that the current "downturn" is cyclical. It is not. It is a major permanent rearrangement of world economic power.

As much as we would like it to work, we must conclude that the current government "pre-budget" is a vaste waste of money. Yes, an enormous fiscal stimulus is needed, but it should be an investment in the future, not simply a short-term increase in cash that will mainly disappear into the hands of the overseas suppliers from whom we purchase most of our goods.
The current governmental policies are rapidly turning Britain into a third-world economy typfied by high debt, a weak currency and an employment market dominated by a huge and inefficient central government. We must borrow to invest, not borrow just to spend pointlessly. This is the lesson we can learn from successful economies like China.

Best regards

Alex Keown-Boyd

[Jim Dye]

Reduce the amounts of public money handed out to organisations like the BBC, National Parks and other QUANGOS so that they have to live within constrained finances like everybody else.
Halve the number of MPs and make the processes of government learn how to work more efficiently with fewer staff like most businesses have had to do.

[Graham]

"If you're sensible, responsible, prudent, solvent and saving with no debts, then leave, you don't belong in the UK.

Posted by: Np | 21 Nov 2008 00:58:14 "

Great idea except I tried it but my money is still in sterling which has now of course fallen in value by about 40%!! Thanks Gordon Brown et al, there's just no getting away from theri incompetence!

[Rich]

Tax relief on savings is not going to get people spending and the economy going.

[Mark Wadsworth]

VAT is The Worst Tax and Employer's National Insurance Contributions is the second worst, so these ought to be cut first. We can't scrap VAT completely until we leave the EU, unfortunately.

Next worst is the income tax paid by lower earners, the personal allowance ought to be increased to at least £10,000 (easily affordable if they abandon Working Tax Credits and narrow the band for higher rate tax).

[anthony rosenfelder]

Has the GOvernment considered the benefits of re-introducing tax releief on mortgage interest payments. Targeted at certain borrowers, its cash flow effects are immediate, the cost of morgages is reduced and could help stabilise the housing market earlier.

[Steve]

I am about to be made redundant after 20 years service with no prospect or re-entering my old industry. Lets not forget that you still pay tax on a redundancy payment over 30K - how crazy is that?

[Andy Davies]

Raise the tax free allowance so we all pay less income tax or cut the VAT rate

Abolishing CGT only benefits those who have assets to sell.

[Ian Kemmish]

Why no button for raising the personal allowance?

This ought to be easy to implement quickly through PAYE, and ought to be easy to undo later on, gradually, by raising it by less than inflation for a few years.

[Richard, Alicante, Spain]

There is no doubt that the current tax system is grossly overcomplicated with means tested benefits, tax-credits, heating allowance, minimum pension etc.,etc. all directed at distinct sections of the community. A major simplification is required. Personal allowance, child allowances, marriage allowances and a two tier system of say 15% and 50% with a suitable break of income. Can't put figures to it of course but this would reduce the enormous number of civil servants needed to administrate the present taxation and benefits system with their over-inflated salaries and ridiculous gold plated, inflation-linked, tax-payer funded, final salary pension scheme. Of course, this would put a lot of C.S. in the dole queue but at least, if they are qualified, they could do a productive job instead of being totally non-productive and a burden on the tax-payer. The "elimination" of the 10% tier was a total disaster for many of the lower paid and pensioners and it is just incredible that Gordon Brown has the temerity to say that he "didn't anticipate the consequences of his action" in raising the rate from 10% to 20%.

[huw williams]

End welfare hand-outs/working tax credits. Raise tax allowances by meaningful amounts, taking with one hand and giving with the other is an expensive nonsense.

[John]

Bring back the 10p tax band.
Abolish VED.
Replace council tax with local income tax.
Reduce corporation tax for small businesses.
Abolish inheritance tax.
Abolish tax on pensions.
Abolish VAT on gas and electricity (I know it's an EU wide thing but we should fight these [b]eurocrats).
Abolish tax on savings interest.
Introduce a data loss fine - anyone who finds some government owned data or laptops, can fine the government £1000 plus interest each time.

Abolish the current cabinet as it is getting creaky and not very safe. I've seen some great new ones in IKEA. Just have to be careful on assembly. Instructions as per most government publish forms can be a bit confusing and over-complicated.

[billie]

I'd go for tax cuts on savings, to offset the rate cuts that their getting. The rate cuts hit the elderly who have saved all their lives disproportionately and isn't an incentive for anyone to be prudent. It's all very well saying we have to spend, but not much help if you lose your job with nothing saved for a rainy day

[Harry]

How about the end of double taxation on fuel i.e. no VAT on fuel duty.

[Sam]

Don't all those proposing a reduction in VAT know that the only way to save the planet is cut consumption? We should raise VAT and prevent mass unemployment by having everyone work 3 days a week. Great for work/life balance. But in the meantime, I'd cut income tax and CGT, and raise IHT to 100% - what you make you keep, what your parents make and can't spend goes to everyone.

[Bob]

First - Capital Gains Tax
Second - Air Passenger Tax
Third - Fuel Tax

Let's have some honest and transparent documentation of how our money is spent. When I write a budget for my small business, I have to allocate funds and source them. If there is no surplus, there are no Christmas parties.

I am available to recalculate the UK's National Insurance, Local Rates, Income and Sales Taxes with a responsible attitude.

[dave]

it dont matter what tax they cut, labour will make up a new stealth tax to recover the money.
the wages you take home is money already taxed, everything you buy with you wages is taxed again, then when you die, you pay tax on what you leave for your loved ones. its always a win win situation for the government.

[johnboy]

It would of course be easy to pick something which would be of benefit to me personally but surely the correct answer here is to reduce VAT.

VAT is a tax on consumption and at this time we need to increase consumption.

It is also the perfect solution as it will benefit everybody and the more you buy the more you benefit.

[HKL]

All state pensions should not be included in calculations as income for income tax, and the state pension should be increased to a liveable standard without having to fill in forms for any extra. MP,s get everything paid for in expenses yet pensioners and low income families have to struggle.

[Contax]

Increased Heating Allowance to all those with income of under £20K. Stop paying it to those earning over £49K & those not resident in UK living in Spain & other countries. Pay a decent old age pension to end tax credits, stop means testing. Give help in way of loans to small business.
Charge CGT on all proffits made on all properties after an allowance for inflation and major improvements with receipts filed.
Lower VAT to 5% on energy efficient household white goods if Class A/A+/A++ that will reduce energy waste. NO special term for those with Pre Payment Meters unless they allow use all the right to switch onto them for free to make it equal.

[Jeff]

How about Council Tax? at least £140 pcm for what? As if other countries with lower or no council tax, don't have schools or social services...

[Mike Armstrong]

Well, income tax is a relatively 'new' innovation - that can go for a start. As can the Lisbon Tax, followed by the Treaty.

[Np]

If you're sensible, responsible, prudent, solvent and saving with no debts, then leave, you don't belong in the UK.

[Np]

As usual, this bunch of Muppets won't have thought it through. Any tax giveaway will probably be to a minority, and a lot of peeps who think they should get a slice of the pie will not vote ZanuLabour.
Why not use the Americam method and just send a cheque to everyone?
This recession will be massive. These Muppets will not have enough funds to alleviate the problems. They're just meddling trying to save their own bacon.
Why should we believe that the politicians and policies that got us here are going to be the one's that will rescue us?

[Brian Mccracken]

There is only one tax cut that will help ALL which starts with consumer spending which in turn will help everybody (manufacturers inc builders,retail,secure jobs,banks,G Brown & the treasury)LOWER THE VAT RATE.This will also sort the potential issue of deflation.

[Liz]

I'd like to see the minimum weekly State Pension payment to all pensions raised to £120 per week. There should then be no need to pay Pension Credits to those pensioners who only receive the absolute minimum.

[SL]

I'm sick of hearing about people with more than one property struggling to stay afloat or pay CGT. These people were happy to live off the misery of others who couldn't get a mortgage and had to rent due to the property shortage so shut and put up!!!!

[Father Ignatius Brown]

If some tax cuts can be un-funded then all tax-cuts can be - and since Gordon thinks un-funded tax cuts are prudent why not go the whole hog, be super prudent and abolish all taxes and borrow everything we need on the never-never (seems to work for my neighbours)?

[Deepsea diver]

abolish VAT. whats it for anyway?

[ian josephs]

The sum allotted to bail out the banks could be used instead to abolish income tax for those earning less than £100,000 per year ! What better way to kick start the economy than that?

[henry d]

I would like to have capital gains tax abolished. I have two small rental houses and now reach retirement age and if I take the big economic hit on the price and still pay capital gains I haven't made anything

[JC]

What would make me smile is Brown and Darling's resignation...