The case for austerity among the rich
Article
Seen from Westminster, this scenario might appear fanciful, but viewed from the Midlands, from the north of England, from Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, it is much more palatable. For the majority of the population of the UK who are or will be badly affected by the current austerity programme, and in areas where very few of the top 1 per cent of income earners live, austerity for the rich could prove popular.
In Britain today, income and wealth gaps have become greater than at any point in living memory, and are greater than in almost all other similar wealthy countries, trailing only Portugal among major European nations.
How much money could be saved by austerity among the UK's rich? What if 90 per cent of taxpayers were to become better-off but income differentials were also to return to 1970s levels? The country would save 27 per cent of its total salary bill, or approximately £194 billion every year.
Related items
Facing the future: Progressives in a changing world
Progressive parties need a new set of defining and guiding ideas to challenge the populist radical right.Singapore on the Clyde?
Sir Tom Hunter is not happy.Scotland, he laments, is in “managed decline”. The UK and Scottish governments are “punishing the entrepreneurial community with more tax” and, inevitably, “no country has ever taxed its way to growth”. Change…Fixing the foundations: The case for investing in children's health
For decades, governments of all stripes have promised to give children a better, healthier start to life. But despite this – and some notable policy successes – the UK continues to fall short on childhood health outcomes.