Filed under: sustainability
each year the EU spends â¬31bn on the common agricultural policy. it is the largest single area of EU spending and is ripe for reform. but this seemingly huge amount of money is but a drop in the ocean compared to what rich people in the uk avoid paying in tax…
the UK government estimates that the very rich in the UK avoid paying â¬51.5bn (£41bn) in tax each year. (via monbiot.com)
i find this absolutely sickening. there is so much we need do to alleviate poverty and suffering in the world and start to build resilient post oil societies but typically the people doing such work are using minuscule budgets compared to these vast sums. the rich have become so powerful and so good at protecting their wealth that i’ve given up hoping that it might ever be redistributed more equitably.
and don’t get me started on military spending… (for context with the above figures, european countries spends â¬289bn per year on the military.)
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Don’t forget that rich people also contribute to the economy. Obviously, like everyone rich or poor, they pay as little tax as legally possible and I agree that they can afford to employ accountants to find the loopholes, but they do still pay taxes. Please note I am not talking about people who avoid tax ILLEGALLY.
Also, I would say that 31bn is not a “drop in the ocean” compared to 51.5bn (see above for context). It’s over half.
I also think that you will find that many “rich” people contribute huge amounts to charities - this is of course tax deductible but they are contributing to something which, in their eyes at least, is worthwhile. I worked for a charitable organisation once and nearly all our money came from so-called rich people.
But I do think, perhaps, you should write about the London Olympics. Now THERE’s a subject about misuse of money!
Comment by Jean 06.29.08 @ 5:43 pm