1.6 Billion For Councils

[Bobbisox1]

Can the government sustain these vast amounts of ‘hand outs’ ? Furthermore , how will they get it back?
Councils are saying they can’t maintain their budgets when there’s no car parking / cemetery fees coming in ( probably rightly so) but where’s these vast amounts coming from?
Genuinely curious

[naomi24]

OG, //Ideally it should be higher income tax since that reflects what one got out of being part of society and thus indicates what one should contribute back to it.//

Since the wealthy take far less from society than the poor, wouldn’t that mean the wealthy paying less rather than more as they do now?

[Zacs-Master]

Almost every country will be in the same situation. It’s reckoned that The federal US government is on its way to spending $4 trillion more than it collects in revenue. I’m not sure what worldwide depression does to the value of currencies but I suspect we’ll, once again, be at the mercy of the City Boys.

[ToraToraTora]

this could precipitate a fresh look at the whole local authority regime. Why do we need 60 snout in trough councillors? They could do the job with a dozen decent middle management. All this local "democracy" is cobras. They need to go back to the community charge for funding, much fairer that the ridiculous council tax or possibly abolish the whole lot and fund it centrally, 70+% is already anyway.

[Old_Geezer]

No, because income tax isn't a straight line graph. There are basic needs requiring a certain income, and then gradually increasing excess income beyond that necessary, or indeed equitable, which correspondingly attracts higher tax rates.

[Zacs-Master]

What are ‘basic needs which require a certain income’?

[naomi24]

OG, not with you at all. Higher earners already pay a higher rate of tax.

[ToraToraTora]

direct taxation is a flawed concept from the start, originally intended as a temporary measure during the Napoleonic wars. Latterly it's been the left wing weapon of choice to punish success. Most tax is collected from indirect sources anyway.

[Old_Geezer]

Which is why the rich wouldn't pay less. But of course your statement that the rich take far less from society is in error. Clearly one doesn't get rich unless one attracts a larger portion of the wealth in society to oneself.

[Old_Geezer]

It's a right wing fantasy that it is to punish success. It's about accepting one has done well and contributing accordingly. But this has been discussed before and should be considered accepted by now.

[THECORBYLOON]

TTT, I don't think your 70% funding from central government is correct.

"In 2018/19, local authorities in England received 31% of their funding from government grants, 52% from council tax, and 17% from retained business rates – revenue from business rates that they do not send to the Treasury."

https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainers/local-government-funding-england

As far as I know, councils were retaining a greater percentage from Business Rates and the Government contrubution was due to decrease.

[naomi24]

OG, high salaries don’t come from doing nothing. Working hard and attracting a high salary isn’t taking from society - it’s contributing to society. The wealthy do take less from society.

[Togo]

//OG, high salaries don’t come from doing nothing.//

Unless you are "working" for the councils.

[ToraToraTora]

TCL 10:52, fair enough I was assuming that all business rates still went to central government for dispersal, that seems to have changed.

[Jackdaw33]

But what about all the money we are savibg through Brexit?