Adam Smith Institute

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A Queen's Speech we'd like to see

While there might well be some good things in the Queen's Speech laid before Parliament, there are some things which could be added to it.

"I have decided to tackle youth unemployment by scrapping the Minimum Wage for those under 25 years of age."

"Firms with fewer than 100 employees will be allowed to register their employees as self-employed.  Such firms create two-thirds of new jobs in the United Kingdom, and this will dramatically increase the number of them, taking hundreds of thousands of those currently employed into work and off benefits."

"My government has decided to reduce the burden of regulation by imposing a five-year moratorium on new regulations while existing ones are scrutinized for possible abolition.  This will include regulations and directives that emanate from the European Union, and the only exceptions will be for any that relate to national security."

"My government will abolish mandatory retirement laws."

"Towns and cities across my kingdom will be invited to apply to become Charter Cities, and six will be selected on a four-year trial basis.  These cities will be administered by private management teams with private equity involved, and will operate under a much lighter tax, planning and regulatory climate in order to boost business and growth."

"My ministers have decided to bring forward the raising of the income tax threshold, and will be increasing it to £12,500 by the end of the current Parliament."

"In view of recent discoveries of low cost reserves of relatively non-polluting natural gas, my government has decided to phase out subsidies to wind energy sources, and to reverse the increase to energy bills which this entails."

"To encourage the setting up of new businesses, my ministers commit themselves to lower the rate of Capital Gains Tax to 15% within 2 years, confident that this will raise more revenue than is yielded by the current rate."

"To accelerate the building of many new homes affordable to first time buyers, my ministers will introduce legislation to allow farmland in the UK to be converted to other uses in the ratio of 80% woodland, 10% housing and 10% infrastructure."

"My government will abolish Inheritance Tax by the end of the current Parliament."

"My government is confident that these measures will boost growth and employment by such amounts as will more than compensate for any temporary diminution in revenues they might entail."