Latest 'Robin Hood' tax campaign gathers steam

Tax the banks and guess what ..... they will increase charges to us the customers.

Net result - no effect on the banks but the general public get taxed again.

"The money raised would be used for charitable projects"

Err, no. It'll go to the government(s) ... or worse, the UN.

Yes I know it's AW's summary of the issue, but it's a critical point.

A Tobin Tax is unworkable because you will never get all countries to agree to it - in fact the more who do sign up, the greater the incentive for any remaining states to stay out and reap the benefit of a boom in their financial and banking sectors.

Finally, to quote a colleague of mine "that's the last time the RSPB get any money out of us!" (looking at the organisations supporting the campaign).

How does that work then? I'm not trying to be clever or critical, I just am interested to know precisely what is behind this comment.

WD/CD - one thing that your post overlooks is that bank charges are actually subject to market forces. So if Bank A (which indulges in speculative banking transactions) raises charges to recoup the tax, they will be undercut by Bank B (which doesn't) and lose market share.

Well, that's the theory anyway. The folks at Bank A will probably still get their bonuses.

How precious and naive these campaigners are!

Anyone seriously suggesting to any Government that they should invent new taxes should have their sanity checked. Taxes are the lifeblood of Governements... they love them! They love to invent new (and preferably even more stealthy) ways to raise money so they can waste it on totally inefficient projects and pet schemes , that usually achieve precisely nothing.The amount of tax they raise is how they measure their machismo.They love to brag about how much money they have thrown at something. They never brag abouit how much good they have done (for obvious reasons) only how much they have spent. Quantity and not quality is all these idiots understand.Size does matter to politicians, or "clueless, money grabbing gits" as they should be more accurately referred to as.

They never spend the money sensibly. Look at how much they raise from Fuel Duty and VAT on petrol from motorists. They then deign to spend a tiny fraction of this amount on repairing or improving roads, which is some kind of national disgrace, very evident to foreigners coming to this country. Every tax rise is supposedly to support the NHS or some other sacred cow. All this means  (at best) is that more money is thrown at a particular problem. At worst, there is no evidence at all that the money actually ends up where the politicians tell us it is going at all.All taxes just disappear into the usual black hole.

The though of giving them even more to waste is just lunacy.

A better campaign may be to persuade Governments to stop spending the money they don't have, so they can cut taxes so that individuals may feel more able to support charities themselves. Charitable giving should have nothing to do with Governments. I would have far more faith in individuals being able to direct funds to where they want them to go than to Governements and politicians, who are more concerned with their own expenses and staying out of prison.

Stop suggesting Governements raise taxes. You will only encourage them and no good will come of it!!!

And don't get me started on the opportunities given to politicians seeking to raise taxes by the lie that is climate change!!

You may well be right, but what's the alternative? Worthless and cynical?

Lets try "realistic and practical" shall we?

But 'realistic' ceases to have any meaning as soon as there's an election on the horizon. What's realistic to one party always seems to be painted as exactly the opposite by the other parties. And 'practical' has never been part of any government's planning for the last 30 years.

So if they don't put the screws on the banks I suppose they'll go for you and me.

I suppose that's a bit er...cynical actually. Ego quoque!

Realistically, the government (of any party) in this country is going to need to raise taxes and cut spending in the next few years - else it will run out of money.

Of course there is waste in government spending - but that is true of companies and individuals too - we don't always spend all our money as wisely and effectively as we should.

I agree that governments should not be supporting charitable projects which would be more appropriately funded by private donations.

But that said - it is worth looking at the best way of raising the necessary taxes.  No-one likes being taxed.  But this idea of taxing speculative banking transactions is worthy of serious consideration.  Perhaps it is a better alternative to an increase in Income Tax, National Insurance and the like.

Tax should be fair. And the ONLY way that taxes can be fair is if they are levied as a straight percentage of every ones income.  Taxes on banks, or indeed any other company, are ultimately a tax on their customers because tax is one of the costs, just like raw materials and wages, that they take into account when reaching a selling price for whatever it is they make or supply.

WE do it too. You take into account how much tax you pay whe setting the price of doing someones accounts. At its simplest your thought process is - "if I charge him £200 thats £120 for me, and £80 to put away towards my tax".  Thats why you charge £200 instead of £120 for the job.

My first thought is, of course, that the politically correct "green" yoghurt knitting brigade should shut up and keep their non-polluting climate friendly noses out of other people's affairs. If the followers of what amounts to a strage bizzarre new religion are so worried about raising taxes - let them pay it.  Personally I think their "climate change" drivel should be made illegal, its so discredited.  We might as well introduce a tooth fairy tax and an Easter bunny tax.  They are about as real as climate change.