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NEWS
Press Release: Tax Freedom Day falls on 31st May in 2015
For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact Head of Communications Kate Andrews: kate@adamsmith.org | 07476 915072
- Tax Freedom day falls one day later than it did in 2014; a reminder that the Government needs to make tax cuts a priority in this Parliament.
- Brits work 150 days of the year solely to pay taxes; every day from 1st January to 30th May.
- Cost of Government Day is 29th June, three days earlier than in 2014; the government is cutting total spending slowly, but the national debt—and future taxes needed to pay it off—are still ballooning.
This year’s Tax Freedom Day, the day when Britons stop working to pay their taxes and start earning for themselves, falls on 31st May, according to Adam Smith Institute calculations.
The Adam Smith Institute estimates that Britons will work 150 days this year solely to pay their taxes. This is one day later than 2014′s Tax Freedom Day, which is not statistically significant. However, the UK’s Tax Freedom Day falls more than a month later than it does in the United States, where citizens started earning for themselves on 24th April.
Tax Freedom Day is designed to reveal to the public how much they really pay out in taxes, which Britain’s lengthy tax code can often obscure. The Institute's calculations include all taxes raised by HM Revenue and Customs: direct taxes like income tax, national insurance and corporation tax, and indirect taxes like VAT and excise duties.
Cost of Government Day, which represents Total Managed Expenditure as a day of the year, falls on 29th June, three days earlier than it fell in 2014. While this suggests a slight improvement over last year, the money borrowed to cover the month-long gap between Tax Freedom Day must eventually be paid off with future taxes. This means without tax cuts or major growth Tax Freedom Day would eventually have to drift even later.
Director of the Adam Smith Institute, Dr Eamonn Butler, said:
The Treasury hates Tax Freedom Day, because they don't want us to know how much tax we really pay. They prefer to conceal the tax burden through stealth taxes and indirect taxes that we don't even realise we're paying.
Most people are shocked to learn that the government takes over two-fifths of the country's earnings – and then borrows more. Mediaeval serfs had to work about a third of their time for their feudal lord, but we are in serfdom to the government for even longer!
High taxes are very bad for economic growth, as talent and initiative drain abroad. Ask President Hollande of France.
Alan Mak, Conservative MP for Havant, added:
The ASI’s work on Tax Freedom Day reminds us that we must carry on reducing the tax burden on hardworking individuals and businesses so we have greater economic growth and individual prosperity. That’s a goal I champion as a member of the new Conservative intake; income tax cuts and frozen council tax and fuel duty have so far made millions of Britons better off, but politicians must continue to look for new ways to get money back into taxpayer pockets, not out.
Notes to editors:
For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact Kate Andrews, Head of Communications, at kate@adamsmith.org | 07476 915072.
The ASI calculates Tax Freedom Day by measuring local taxes, direct and indirect national taxes, and national insurance contributions as a proportion of the UK’s net national income (41.2% per cent in 2015), mapping that proportion onto the days of the year.
Tax Freedom Day figures are not available up-to-date for calendar years so they are proxied from government and OBR forecasts and financial year numbers. They are then revised when exact numbers become available.
Click here for more information on previous Tax Freedom Days and Cost of Government Days.
The Adam Smith Institute is a free market, libertarian think tank based in London. It advocates classically liberal public policies to create a richer, freer world.
Charlotte Bowyer argues against the UK's crackdown on legal highs on Sky News
Head of Digital Policy at the Adam Smith Institute Charlotte Bowyer debated the UK's crackdown on legal highs as proposed in the Queen's Speech on Sky News.
Charlotte Bowyer's comments on the crackdown on legal highs feature in The Independent
Head of Digital Policy Charlotte Bowyer's comments on the crackdown on legal highs feature in The Independent:
Charlotte Bowyer, head of digital policy at the Adam Smith Institute, said: "A 'blanket ban' on psychoactive substances may eliminate high street 'head shops' but will push trade underground and encourage a slew of new, even more dangerous alternatives."The fact that everyday substances like caffeine, alcohol and tobacco would be covered by such a ban (and have to be exempted) just shows how all-encompassing and heavy-handed such an approach is."
ASI comments on the Queen's Speech feature in The Telegraph and Real Business
The Adam Smith Institute's comments on the Queen's Speech have featured in The Telegraph and Real Business. From The Telegraph:
But Charlotte Bowyer, head of digital policy at the Adam Smith Institute, warned of potential negative consequences from the “heavy-handed” ban.
"Just as incredibly destructive drugs like crystal meth and crack cocaine emerged from a clampdown on less risky drugs, so legal highs fill a void for the recreational drug user.
"A 'blanket ban' on psychoactive substances may eliminate high street 'head shops', but will push trade underground and encourage a slew of new, even more dangerous alternatives,” she said.
"The fact that everyday substances like caffeine, alcohol and tobacco would be covered by such a ban (and have to be exempted) just shows how all-encompassing and heavy-handed such an approach is. To reduce harm from drug use the government should instead legalise recreational drugs like cannabis, ecstasy and cocaine so they are available with rigorous safety controls."
From Real Business:
Eamonn Butler, director of the Adam Smith Institute, said:
"Greater financial devolution to Scotland will create a healthier public debate there. Instead of 'How do we spend England's money?' attention will turn to 'How much will Scottish taxpayers be willing to stump up for our generous spending plans?' The SNP might then find themselves facing a real popular opposition.
"The devolution plans will hit major opposition from English MPs unless there is a credible 'English votes for English laws' initiative. It is well beyond time that the West Lothian question was resolved.
ASI report "The Green Noose" features in The Times
ASI report The Green Noose: An analysis of Green Belts and proposals for reform has featured in in The Times:
The Adam Smith Institute calculated in January that a million homes could be built on the outskirts of London, within walking distance of a railway station, by sacrificing 3.7 per cent of the capital’s green belt.
The ASI report, The Green Noose: An analysis of Green Belts and proposals for reform, looks at the Green Belt’s impact on England’s housing shortage. After a comprehensive review of the causes of the housing crisis, it concludes that the planning structure is out of date and in need of radical reform.
Sam Bowman's comments on the black cab protest feature in The Guardian
Deputy Director Sam Bowman's comments on the black cab protest (26 May 2015) feature in The Guardian:
Others complained as they were unable to hail black-cab drivers, with Sam Bowman writing: "Row of black cab drivers parked across the road from me. Tried to hail one, but they're all busy protesting. So I got an Uber instead."
Press Release: Fear and Lothian in Westminster - reaction to Queen's Speech
For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact Head of Communications Kate Andrews: kate@adamsmith.org | 07476 915072 ASI reaction to Queen's Speech:
Commenting on devolution, Director of the Adam Smith Institute Dr Eamonn Butler said:
Greater financial devolution to Scotland will create a healthier public debate there. Instead of 'How do we spend England's money?' attention will turn to 'How much will Scottish taxpayers be willing to stump up for our generous spending plans?' The SNP might then find themselves facing a real popular Opposition.
The devolution plans will hit major opposition from English MPs unless there is a credible 'English Votes for English Laws' initiative. It is well beyond time that the West Lothian Question was resolved.
Most other countries give cities far more say over local affairs, and that is reflected in the local pride you see when you visit them. There is a chicken and egg problem, because you have to attract able people into local government – which at present, they see as a waste of time since Whitehall calls the shots. And Conservative MPs will have to grit their teeth when Opposition mayors and councils raise taxes and do things they disapprove of. In the long run, though, it will produce much greater focus on value for money in the provision of local services.
Commenting on childcare subsidies, Head of Communications at the Adam Smith Institute Kate Andrews said:
Childcare costs continue to burden British families, but the government’s pledge to provide more childcare benefits will only exacerbate prices and further distort the market.
Stringent qualification requirements and low mandatory child-to-staff ratios cause prices to skyrocket, making UK childcare costs 27 per cent of average family incomes – the second highest in the OECD. Furthermore, low child-to-staff ratios keep profit margins tight for childcare providers and can prevent them from investing in high quality staff.
It’s high time for the government to break this costly bubble and adopt policies more similar to countries like Denmark and Sweden, which have embraced deregulation to keep costs down.
Commenting on a further crackdown on legal highs, Head of Digital Policy at the Adam Smith Institute Charlotte Bowyer said:
Just as incredibly destructive drugs like crystal meth and crack cocaine emerged from a clampdown on less risky drugs, so legal highs fill a void for the recreational drug user.
A 'blanket ban' on psychoactive substances may eliminate high street 'head shops', but will push trade underground and encourage a slew of new, even more dangerous alternatives.
The fact that everyday substances like caffeine, alcohol and tobacco would be covered by such a ban (and have to be exempted) just shows how all-encompassing and heavy-handed such an approach is. To reduce harm from drug use the government should instead legalise recreational drugs like cannabis, ecstasy and cocaine so they are available with rigorous safety controls.
Notes to Editors:
For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact Kate Andrews, Head of Communications, at kate@adamsmith.org | 07476 915072.
The Adam Smith Institute is a free market, libertarian think tank based in London. It advocates classically liberal public policies to create a richer, freer world.
IMF fuel subsidies are not what they seem - Sam Bowman writes for the Daily Telegraph
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), which usually restricts itself to bailing out indebted eurozone countries, has released a paper claiming that more than five trillion – yes, trillion – dollars is spent annually in subsidies for the fossil fuel industry.
At least, that’s how it was reported by most of the media. When you read the report, it becomes clear pretty quickly that the IMF’s definition of a subsidy is a little different from everyone else’s.
Sam Bowman's comments on UK housing prices feature in The IBTimes
Sam Bowman's comments on UK house prices featured in The International Business Times:
One person who does not believe it is a bubble is Sam Bowman, deputy director of the Adam Smith Institute. He said: "It's not a bubble. Values are so high because of restrictions on construction. Prices are higher than they would be if there was more building taking place, so it's not the market that has got it wrong, it's an issue of policy."
ASI comments on UK net migration figures feature in The Telegraph
Deputy Director Sam Bowman's comments on EU immigration to the UK features in The Telegraph:
Adam Smith Institute welcomes the findings. Sam Bowman says:Today's immigration figures - the highest on record for immigrants from the EU - are good news for Britons. The vast majority of these immigrants are here for work or study, and the bulk of the evidence suggests that EU immigrants pay more in taxes than they cost the state in spending. The fact that these immigrants are voting with their feet to come to the UK is a big vote of confidence in the British economy.
Media contact:
emily@adamsmith.org
Media phone: 07584778207
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