Ok - 5 Policies To Fix The Economy

[Trampa501]

Here's my five:

1. Enable LAs to build major new social housing - but only for registered council tax payers ie local people
   
2. Cut corporation tax by 50% outside of the south-east
   
3. Raise tax threshold to 20k for all self-employed
   
4. Reduce petrol tax, but enable road-pricing on major motorways by private contractors
   
5. Strict regulation on mortgage lending
   

[LuckyOne]

1. Ease planning restrictions

2. Impose sensible mortgage lending criteria

3. Mandate government spending to be (40% - real GDP growth) * GDP within a 30% to 50% range (ie 30% if the economy is growing by 10%, 40% if the economy is flat and 50% if the economy is shrinking by 10%)

4. Institute a NIT and flat tax system with no loopholes

5. Leave the EU and sign a free trade agreement (much like the Swiss have done)

[abaxas]

1) enforce building regs on all planning complaints from properties owners. Those that complain need to honour current regs.

2) link tax K codes to unfunded pensions. So the amount taken out each year is the same as what goes in.

3) Allow strikes, but all contractual advantages (eg more holiday, years service etc) was not honoured for the year when you were on strike.

4) Allow any business to lay off 5% (or min 1) of their staff each financial year without redudancy. Ie basic notice.

5) Scrap min wage and make all benefits subsistence only.

I dont think this would fix the economy, it would act as a base to rebuild from. I'm sick of living in the 'now', lets actually think about the future too.

[Wahoo]

1. Increase taxation

2. Increase Government spending on infrastructure

3. Cut immigration

4. Cut benefits to maximum allowance of 3 years in working lifetime

5. I don't flucking know.......nothings gonna work; it's too late.

[interestrateripoff]

Hit the reset switch via default.

[interestrateripoff]

1) enforce building regs on all planning complaints from properties owners. Those that complain need to honour current regs.

2) link tax K codes to unfunded pensions. So the amount taken out each year is the same as what goes in.

3) Allow strikes, but all contractual advantages (eg more holiday, years service etc) was not honoured for the year when you were on strike.

4) Allow any business to lay off 5% (or min 1) of their staff each financial year without redudancy. Ie basic notice.

5) Scrap min wage and make all benefits subsistence only.

I dont think this would fix the economy, it would act as a base to rebuild from. I'm sick of living in the 'now', lets actually think about the future too.

Why would that work? Didn't one US company have that sort of policy where they just got rid of staff each year just for the sake of it?

[RichB]

1) Commercial and Residential property pays 3x rates if unnoccupied for more than 3 months

2) Commercial rates sliding scale dependant on taxable revenues. Exception for empty property which pays local median, with (1) to take into consideration.

3) Cap rents

4) Cap mortgage lending

5) Improve business startup and other commercially relevant education at local adult ed facilities, with mandatory and relevant business studies in school.

[abaxas]

Why would that work? Didn't one US company have that sort of policy where they just got rid of staff each year just for the sake of it?

Money sweetens labour, if you dont do your job there is a good chance you wont have one.

[Trampa501]

1. Increase taxation

2. Increase Government spending on infrastructure

3. Cut immigration

4. Cut benefits to maximum allowance of 3 years in working lifetime

5. I don't flucking know.......nothings gonna work; it's too late.

Re number 4, but I fear it discriminates against folk unlucky enough to live in mining areas or Merseyside etc. Or even those > 40 or 50. I'd change the system so that if you have more than 8 years working history in the last 15 years, you'd get the current benefits. But those benefits to be cut by 30% (with obvious exceptions for genuinely disabled etc) for anyone who hasn't worked.

[Bosh]

1. Kill everyone over the age of 55 (one off stock clearance)

2. Legalise all drugs and sell them in superstores. (Old Woolworths sites)

3. Kill all prisoners who are sex offenders and chuck all other prisoners onto the Isle of wight (Escape from New York style)

4. Kill all illegal immigrants, Tramps and drunks who shout at people in the parks.

5. Make the game of cricket illegal.

Hope that helps.

[crash2006]

1) Build more council homes to reduce price of rents.

2) Introduce owner land tax and get rid of council tax, no tax deduction for a void or building in progress.

3) Strict immigration controls, with high points, don’t allow any non brit to use our NHS service, or only those that are from euro with a passport.

4) Increase some tax but decrease other such as decrease the tax paid by a company in regards to wages of a worker, increase capital gains tax, eliminate tax credits.

5) No state funding for private companies, ask Europe for help( cash) towards our infrastructure, introduce free or lower fees for the most needed university subjects. Introduce foreign off shoring tax.

Edited June 21, 2011 by crash2006

[snowflux]

1) Introduce citizens' income to replace most benefits.

2) Shift taxation from employment to consumption and pollution.

3) Integrate more closely with EU and other international organisations.

4) Strengthen tenant's rights.

5) Build proper network of cycle paths.

Edited June 21, 2011 by snowflux

[Nationalist]

1) Leave EU, stay in free trade area

2) Join NAFTA

3) End immigration, deport most existing immigrants

4) End all benefits while there are unskilled vacancies available (without the immigrants there will be loads!)

5) Decimate the public sector, only useful functions to remain

[Caveat Mortgagor]

Supply side policies and removal of (taxpayer-funded) demand management.

1. Rent caps

2. Strict mortgage criteria

3. Increase income tax threshold / abolish tax credits

4. Cap nursery charges

5. Complete overhaul of benefits and pensions - policies designed to be self-sustaining ie not designed to pass on an even bigger debt to the future.

6. The invisible hand must be allowed to work. As such, legislation to break up any company too big to fail.

7. Uni fees - Govt to pay for a set number of students (but only pay Unis £3k p.a.) - number of places set at say 20% of all current student numbers. Students qualify based on results / ability. Admissions tutors must give Govt funded students priority over self funded students. No limit on fees for the less bright who perhaps shouldnt be at Uni.

8. Govt to subsidise manufacturing apprenticeships - Number of places to be at leat 2x the number of govt funded uni places. (will be restrictions to prevent employers simply exploiting cheap labour). Also tax incentives to invest in targetted skills / training.

9. Investment in public transport

10. At least 50% of London based national public sector jobs to move out of London (exceptions being those supplying local service etc) over a 5 year period.

[porca misèria]

1. Simplify
   
2. Simplify
   
3. Simplify
   
4. Simplify
   
5. Simplify
   

Or something like that. Kill off perverse incentives like the poverty/benefits traps.

Citizens income set at a low level to replace all benefits (including the state pension) for the able-bodied (higher rate for oldies to reflect historic committments). Flat rate income tax on every £ earned, but no loss of benefits (so you get to keep the majority of that £ earned).

Get rid of all cases of cascading benefits ("people on X qualify for Y") and catastrophic thresholds. Like the loss-of-child-benefit one, though most catastrophic thresholds affect the lower-paid as £1 more hard-earned income loses cascading benefits worth £lots. Yes, that's a consequence of the citizens income and flat-rate tax.

Merge "national insurance" into income and corporation taxes, then reduce it gradually to nil. Make up the lost revenue with new taxes on monopolisation of scarce resources (land value tax) and destructive activities (pollution - particularly fossil fuels).

Reduce barriers to geographic mobility by removing systematic discrimination against renters. Like means-testing that excludes a house but penalises other assets like savings and investments. Again, a consequence of the citizens income and flat-rate tax.

Here's someone who's done the sums on a citizens income. His suggested £120/week (all-inclusive, no extras on top) at a 25% flat tax rate leaves someone on £480 a week with a net 0% tax to pay, and anyone below that with a net tax credit. And someone on low income - like national minimum wage - a whole lot better off than someone not working at all.

Edited June 21, 2011 by porca misèria

[Guest_FaFa!_*]

1. Abolish Income Tax

2. Abolish VAT

3. Land Value Tax

4. Graduated Capital Gains Tax - the longer you hold the investment, the less tax you pay. So we reward investment and discourage speculation.

5. Abolish all benefits, establish a universal income (I'd look into additional assistance for the disabled)

Dunno how feasible that is, but would be my starter for ten. The transition would probably be quite painful.

Edit: the idea is to discourage rent seeking and encourage work and long term investment. It'll never happen though

Edited June 21, 2011 by FaFa!

[Wait & See]

Increase base rate to control inflation!!

Why should the economy be held to ransom in order to keep clowns in properties that they can't afford??

I don't have a mortgage, so I don't want to pay £10 for a fecking loaf of bread so we can all feel good about helping hard pressed families who thought "property prices only ever go up".

[bigsmelly]

1) tax BTL so it's uncompetetive with OO

2) Build lots of social housing to such a high standard that working people would want to be tennants

3) Make it compulsory for ALL firms (even white collar- Law/ Medical ) to have an apprenticeship path and enforce X apprentices per 100 workers

4) Introduce grants for university based on exam results.

5) Bring back grammar schools

[bigsmelly]

1) tax BTL so it's uncompetetive with OO

2) Build lots of social housing to such a high standard that working people would want to be tennants

3) Make it compulsory for ALL firms (even white collar- Law/ Medical ) to have an apprenticeship path and enforce X apprentices per 100 workers

4) Introduce grants for university based on exam results.

5) Bring back grammar schools

[interestrateripoff]

Money sweetens labour, if you dont do your job there is a good chance you wont have one.

But it doesn't work out like that, the favourites get kept causing resentment amongst those that work. Fear creeps in and productivity starts to suffer.

Not sure if it wasn't Worldcom which had the policy of sacking 5% of it's workforce each year, as a motivational tool.

[stormymonday_2011]

Hit the reset switch via default.

+ 1000000

Everything else is window dressing.

It would also ensure that risks (ie interest rates) are priced correctly going forward.

Edited June 21, 2011 by stormymonday_2011

[exiges]

1. Impose sensible mortgage lending criteria. Maximum of 3.5% joint income. or 3x single income.

2. Leave the EU and sign a free trade agreement (much like the Swiss have done)

3. No benefits can be claimed by immigrants until they've paid taxes for 10yrs.

4. Immigrant workers can only be employed after the employer has demonstrated workers cannot be found locally

5. Scrap the minimum wage

[leicestersq]

I am amazed that so many want more council housing and or social housing, as opposed to privately built housing.

The restricted housing goes to the likes of illegal immigrants, the feckless and Frank Dobson, but we need homes for working people.

[the_dork]

1. Re-tender all public sector jobs of above £35k pa and appoint most cheapest suitably qualified applicant.

2. Tax breaks for 'building up', higher density developments and penalise 'building out' and under-occupation

3. Make tax optional for treating fat people, drunks, druggies etc. If you want to pay tax for this feel free.

4. State investment (whether contracted out or not) in electric car batteries and vehicle developments.

5. Make people work for the equivalent of their benefits, at say £6/7 hour, either in state sector or suitable local businesses/trades. So youngster claiming £70 odd a week has to do 10 hours with any of available employers.

This is fantasy island though, we may as well all be listing our utopias as none of these are going to happen

[Tired of Waiting]

Here's my five:

1. Enable LAs to build major new social housing - but only for registered council tax payers ie local people

2. Cut corporation tax by 50% outside of the south-east

3. Raise tax threshold to 20k for all self-employed

4. Reduce petrol tax, but enable road-pricing on major motorways by private contractors

5. Strict regulation on mortgage lending

1. Housing, demand side: Mortgages, max: 90% LTV, 3x household income, end of Liar Loans and IO.

2. Housing, supply side: Remove NIMBY's veto power and allow local authorities to take 90% of the planning gain.

3. Flat 1%/year property tax, doubled that if empty for over 1 year, treble if over 2 years, 10x/year if over 3 years.

4. Independence for Scotland and Wales.

5. Forbid increasing government debt above 70% of GDP.