A new poll shows that just 25% of voters support the abolition of the 50p tax rate. Danny Alexander is on the right side of the argument.
A new poll shows that just 25 per cent of voters – including only a third of Tory voters – would support the abolition of the 50p tax rate. The findings suggest that Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, is on the right side of the debate in dismissing his Tory colleagues as living in “cloud cuckoo land“.
The YouGov poll for the Sunday Times found that just 25 per cent of voters supported a policy to scrap the 50p higher rate of income tax. Even fewer voters – just 21 per cent – thought that the policy would boost growth. As the graph below shows clear majorities of supporters for all major political parties oppose the move.
In recent weeks, senior Tory politicians have called for the policy – introduced by Alistair Darling – to be scrapped. Last week London mayor, Boris Johnson, said that abolition of the 50p rate would be “a signal that London is open for business … That’s the right direction to be going in“. Former Conservative chancellor, Lord Lamont, used an article in the Sunday Telegraph to write:
“Lower taxes are important. Our taxes are uncompetitive and too high compared with other European countries. The fifty per cent higher rate of income tax is probably one tax which could be abolished without any effect on revenue.”
Last week the Financial Times reported that Mark Field, Tory MP for the Cities of London and Westminster, had urged the Chancellor to “look at a big iconic move” such as scrapping the 50p top rate of tax, accompanied by an acceleration of the plan to take the lowest paid out of the tax system. Meanwhile a host of commentators including Spectator Editor, Fraser Nelson, have called for George Osborne to scrap the tax.
The Treasury appears to be split on the issue with George Osborne reported to be in favour of scrapping the tax by 2013 while Danny Alexander said yesterday that those who supported the right-wing policy were living in “cloud cuckoo land“.
35 Responses to “Only quarter of voters want to scrap 50p tax”
Jason Paul Grant
RT @leftfootfwd: Only quarter of voters want to scrap 50p tax http://t.co/MKnw3sb
Anon E Mouse
Since this tax is revenue neutral why have it? It’s pointless and just encourages the politics of envy.
Considering the Deputy Leader of Labour (who doubled IT) is Harriet Harman – herself a countess toff of the highest order, all I can see is typical left wing hypocrisy by continuing the tax.
As for Boris Johnson he’s going to walk it anyway but the real question for Labour is, considering how unpopular socialism is worldwide, why would you want to “squeeze people until the pips squeeked”?
Labour’s most successful leader ever, the election winning Tony Blair wouldn’t have done it but then he was interested in re-election I suppose….
Leon Wolfson
Because there’s absolutely no evidence it’s revenue neutral outside Lord Lamont’s fond wishes. All I can see is typical right-wing trickle-down and supply-side economics, which rightly get hammered time and again by serious economists.
Given your constant lies about the popularity of socialism, which depend, laughably, on the names of countries you have no standing to do more than whine about this.
Disrupting, once more, adults talking.
Anon E Mouse
Leon Wolfson – Please name a single country where people given a choice have chosen Socialism then you may have a point. You can’t and you are wrong and everyone reading this wishes it wasn’t true but they know it is.
Unlucky Wolfster. Now just man up Wolfy and apologise please….
Leon Wolfson
Yes, I’m sorry I didn’t call out your lying, BNP-supporting ass sooner.
And that’s easy – are we talking Democratic Socalism or Social Democracy?
I mean, quite apart from the fact you’re ignoring Bevan, the entire Nordic model, the socialist international, much of world history and reality as a whole, you’re quite right.
Oh, wait…