RAPID RESPONSES March 18, 2012 Clean lines [Re: Tax reform is long overdue: The coalition must act to boost long-term growth, yesterday] Do you remember Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 tax plan? How about a UK version – 20-20-20? 20 per cent personal tax rate, 20 per cent corporate tax, 20 per cent VAT on everything? Alongside 20-20-20 most tax concessions should [...]
Tax reform is long overdue: The coalition must act soon to boost long-term growth March 15, 2012 THE CONTENT of next week’s budget has been the subject of intense speculation. What will the magic budget briefcase contain? A tycoon tax or a cut in the 50p rate? Help for small businesses or low earners? Relief from rising fuel duty or restrictions on pension tax relief? Most of this discussion is around short-term [...]
Deeper cuts will restore Britain’s fiscal credibility March 15, 2012 THIS week Fitch joined Moody’s in placing the UK’s AAA rating on negative outlook. This should send the clearest possible message to those calling for looser fiscal policy in next week’s budget. In truth, the chancellor should tighten policy, because his reputation for fiscal credibility is already at stake. Confronted by poor economic growth last [...]
We mustn’t mourn the end of encyclopaedias March 15, 2012 AS A boy, I remember being taken to the local library and taught to use the dark, weighty volumes of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. As of now, that dates me. A “digital native”, someone to whom the modern information revolution comes naturally, is often defined as a person who has never owned a camera that needs [...]
RAPID RESPONSES March 15, 2012 Buy British [Re: Outsourced jobs will return if we improve training, yesterday] Absolutely agree. When you look at some of the outsourcing costs charged for offshore financial services in Bangalore, an onshore company or shared service centre could recruit local graduates and offer significant cost savings. Perhaps the government should be offering tax incentives to [...]
It is in Britain’s interest to encourage America to deal with its soaring debt levels March 14, 2012 DAVID Cameron and Barack Obama have reaffirmed the special relationship between Britain and America this week. But let us be clear that one of the issues on which our countries must be united is the strategic importance of US debt – and the need across the Western world to live within our means. What happens [...]
Outsourced jobs will return if we improve training March 14, 2012 YOUTH unemployment is at crisis levels, yet we continue to outsource hundreds of thousands of jobs. These jobs could return to the UK and be carried out by a workforce already competent in technology. But, to do this successfully, we must change how we prepare young people for work. The UK IT outsourcing market is [...]
Romney still favourite to win the nomination March 14, 2012 When David Cameron returns home from his state visit and wants another dose of March Madness, he need only glance across the pond at the Republican primary. The contest is drawing to a close, but in a manner that’s painfully slow for the frontrunner, Mitt Romney. Rick Santorum yet again proved the naysayers wrong with [...]
RAPID RESPONSES March 14, 2012 A knowing state [Re: Vince Cable’s vision for UK plc neglects liberty, yesterday] Jamie Whyte is right to sound alarm bells at the threat of government interference in business. He’s wrong to imply ministers have no role in creating wealth. Business leaders control many levers, but most are in the hands of Whitehall. We lack [...]
The three frontrunners for France’s presidency will all lead down the wrong track March 14, 2012 THERE will be no winners in the French presidential election this April. One leading candidate is the unrepentant socialist Francois Hollande, who thinks 75 per cent is an optimal tax rate. The other is Nicolas Sarkozy, who has just managed to nudge himself into the lead with a desperate speech calling for two of the [...]