Every would-be chancellor of the exchequer seems to be promising tax cuts.
Naturally they’re not giving details of which types of taxes might change and, equally naturally, the average voter is only concerned with PAYE. Who listens to or reads the whole of a chancellor’s budget statement and studies the myriad of changes to a range of different taxes?
While the media rants on about under-funded troops with inadequate protection and firepower, police forces struggle to pay for anti-terrorism operations and hospitals close wards and make staff redundant, does the average voter (TAV) realise that taxes pay for these things.
TAV might vote for higher company tax in exchange for lower PAYE, not realising that companies exist to make profits and that their higher taxes will, eventually, result in increased costs to the consumer (i.e. TAV).
A century ago women did not have the vote. That was wrong. I suggest a form of government IQ test which must be passed before anyone can vote. The standards need not be high but anyone demonstrating a total lack of understanding of how government is run and how taxes are raised and spent does not deserve the right to vote on these matters.
My local MP once made the mistake of dorstepping me at home. I asked him how he stood on raising taxes to pay for better health and education provision. His reply was along the lines of “there wouldn’t be many votes in that, would there?”.
