But we should still be mightily p***d off, and dare to say so..
Yes, 'ordinary' people should complain about the use of various legal loopholes, which effectively mean that government debt increases, government investment has to be less and 'normal' people have to pay more tax.
Where does this leak go from here, what will be done with the information ?
Realistically, there'll be a week of finger pointing, comments about pigs in the trough etc, and by next week it will pass. There is zero appetite in governments around the world for global tax laws that would close loopholes, so nothing will change. Out of self-interest, those with the power to stop this kind of chicanery, won't.
An example is given of Tony and Cherie Blair, who avoided shelling out on £312,000 in stamp duty, because they bought a property’s holding company rather than the building directly. Whilst there is no evidence that the Blairs did anything illegal, in his first speech as Labour leader, Blair criticised '
millionaires with the right accountants who pay nothing' in tax and promised to '
create a tax system that is fair, which is related to ability to pay'.
Even if whаt the Blаirs did wаs perfectly legаl аnd legitimаte in the business world, it feels inherently unfаir, becаuse they hаve аccess to аn аdvаntаge – а potentiаl аdvаntаge – thаt the rest of us don't, as most people аre incаpаble of doing the sаme thing.
It appears to serve the purposes of our government (and previous ones) to ignore this sort of thing. Perhaps, so they can be like Tony Blair (and David Cameron) and take advantage of it themselves later on.
But then, how long before someone comes along to tell you you're doing 'politics of envy'???
As Prime Minister, Blair called the British tax system - '
a haven of scams, perks, City deals, and profits', but the Blairs have done very well from it themselves - their wealth runs into the tens of millions - when will they have 'enough' ?
The Blairs avoided paying £312,000 in Stamp Duty . . . which is significantly more than I paid for my house. But for me, it isn't about 'politics of envy', but rather, railing against massive wealth, much of it hidden away (unused & untaxed) and the sheer hypocrisy of those who cling onto such vast fortunes.
