Ed Balls: Labour Would Impose Permanent Wealth Tax On Rich

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?app=forums&module=post&section=post&do=new_post&f=22

Mr Balls said he would be willing to consider the so-called “mansion tax” advocated by the Liberal Democrats.

“The likes of a mansion tax need to be on the table to be looked at,” Mr Balls told the Independent.

He used the interview to make overtures to the Lib Dems, and particularly Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, about a possible coalition deal between the two parties after the next general election.

His remarks come ahead of a joint appearance where he and Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, will attempt to send a new economic message based on a concept they call “predistribution”.

The term, first coined by a US philosopher, indicates an attempt to ensure people are made wealthier by their own efforts at work, reducing the need for the State to reallocate money between households through tax and spending.

..

"If we came along and said 'Look, we can just carry on like the last Labour government did' - I mean it's politically crackers to do that, because we wouldn't win the election and we wouldn't deserve to win the election,” he said.

Proof in deed that if you give a monkey a typewriter at some point they'll write something that makes sense.

While redistribution of income from the rich to the poor is "still necessary and will remain a key aim", Mr Miliband said Labour would put more focus on making work pay in the first place.

He added: "We need to care more about predistribution. Centre-left governments of the past tried to make work pay better by spending more on transfer payments. Centre-left governments of the future will have to make work pay better by doing more to make work itself pay. That is how we are going to build growth based not just on credit, but on real demand."

So does this mean Labour is wanting to abolish FTC and WTC which clearly ensures work doesn't pay?

It's great being in opposition you can talk 5h1t, propose loads and have to deliver nothing. Once in power you hit the problem...

So having been in power for over 10 years and ensuring work didn't really pay for many on low pay they've now decided to it might be an idea to make work pay to get elected? Is this also an admission that Labour growth was in fact an illusion based on credit rather than "real" demand?

[TheCountOfNowhere]

It seems to me this might not be true...they were in power for 10+ years and did the opposite.

[mikthe20]

http://www.housepric...o=new_post&f=22

Proof in deed that if you give a monkey a typewriter at some point they'll write something that makes sense.

So does this mean Labour is wanting to abolish FTC and WTC which clearly ensures work doesn't pay?

It's great being in opposition you can talk 5h1t, propose loads and have to deliver nothing. Once in power you hit the problem...

So having been in power for over 10 years and ensuring work didn't really pay for many on low pay they've now decided to it might be an idea to make work pay to get elected? Is this also an admission that Labour growth was in fact an illusion based on credit rather than "real" demand?

IRR, I think you're unwell. You seem to be suffering from something the rest of the British populace does not. You ought to see a doctor. You seem to have an awful case of PMS (no, not that one - Persistence of Memory Syndrome). You seem to be able to remember things that happened more than a year ago. This is a very unusual condition and you ought to seek immediate help. It makes life much tougher for you. Why don't you join the Labour party and the rest of the British population and forget everything that happened over the last 10 years? Only 0.1% of the people have your condition - most of whom coincidentally seem to be members of this web site.

[deflation]

Caught a bit by Jack Dromey droning on about lack of housing for young people in his constituency. He's only been an MP since 2010 but being Mr Harriet Harman since 1982, he must ask himself, "what did Labour do for them?" F*** all.

[Bradbury Robinson]

"We need to care more about predistribution. Centre-left governments of the past tried to make work pay better by spending more on transfer payments. Centre-left governments of the future will have to make work pay better by doing more to make work itself pay. That is how we are going to build growth based not just on credit, but on real demand."

It's like they had a big bag of words and randomly picked them out to form a sentence.

Edited September 6, 2012 by Bradbury Robinson

[Rupert The]

hmmm.

A statement like this from the party that, when in government, accused the consertatives of opportunism on an almost daily basis.

[thecrashingisles]

We need to see attacks on the rich.

Can't they prosecute him for saying that?

[Executive Sadman]

Is his definition of rich the same as browns, ie anyone earning over £13k a year?

[StainlessSteelCat]

It seems to me this might not be true...they were in power for 10+ years and did the opposite.

+1000

[long time lurking]

Can't they prosecute him for saying that?

Nah it`s not on twitter

[danlee74]

It is this bit from IRRO's post that is most stark, I think:

I mean it's politically crackers to do that, because we wouldn't win the election

Proof if ever it was needed that politicians (from all sides) will say ANYTHING to get elected. What happened to doing what is best for the country and its' citizens?!

[Democorruptcy]

Caught a bit by Jack Dromey droning on about lack of housing for young people in his constituency. He's only been an MP since 2010 but being Mr Harriet Harman since 1982, he must ask himself, "what did Labour do for them?" F*** all.

Jack Dromey... another Labour Housing top dog with Stefanou donations

http://www.theyworkforyou.com/regmem/?p=24825

[JustAnotherProle]

It is this bit from IRRO's post that is most stark, I think:

Proof if ever it was needed that politicians (from all sides) will say ANYTHING to get elected. What happened to doing what is best for the country and its' citizens?!

It's all lies, complete and utter lies, no promise by a politician or manifesto promise is legally binding, as the case against Gordon Brown by Stuart Bower demonstrated in 2008. So Balls can say what he likes and promise the moon on a stick and have no impetus to ever back it up, except of course to further his own slimy career in the professional, short-termist political circus that UK MP's all work in since politics became a way of self enrichment rather then sacrifice for the good of the country and its people.

Labour particularly seem to think they have this special amnesia inducing powers of suggestion that enables them to make everyone forget the utter shower of clowns they are and how they orchestrated, via the stomach turning antics of Mr Brown and chums, the mismanagement leading to the mess we are in now!

[crash2006]

willing to consider the so-called “mansion tax”

the bold part is what you need to focus on, so he'll not carry itout.

[@contradevian]

Purely to woo the Lib/Dems into a coalition. Of course once they are in power they will do whatever they are told to do by the real bosses.

[tinker]

Is his definition of rich the same as browns, ie anyone earning over £13k a year?

And under £60k

[alexw]

The term, first coined by a US philosopher, indicates an attempt to ensure people are made wealthier by their own efforts at work, reducing the need for the State to reallocate money between households through tax and spending.

10000% this.

But the obvious question is does he mean it? Given than 99% of what politicians of all stripes say is pure bull****, i'd say sadly not.

[RufflesTheGuineaPig]

If Labour push this, and make an effort to side with the lib-dems, they could force a split and form a new coalition government with lib-dems instead.

The assumption that if the lib-dems pull out of the coalition it means a general election is wrong I believe.

If there was a pre-planned split and new coalition immediately the queen could ask the new coalition to form a government. I can't see the Tories objecting as we all know an election now would be devastating for them.

[thecrashingisles]

If Labour push this, and make an effort to side with the lib-dems, they could force a split and form a new coalition government with lib-dems instead.

The assumption that if the lib-dems pull out of the coalition it means a general election is wrong I believe.

If there was a pre-planned split and new coalition immediately the queen could ask the new coalition to form a government. I can't see the Tories objecting as we all know an election now would be devastating for them.

Labour + Lib Dems would not be enough for a Commons majority. That's why Brown's attempt to stay in Downing Street after the election was so shameless.

[wonderpup]

Purely to woo the Lib/Dems into a coalition.

There won't be any lib dems in the future- not once they are exposed to the electorate. I am amazed how utterly they have destroyed themselves for the sake of a brief experience of power.

[chris25]

It seems the left-wing brigade keeps bleating about "the 1%" and how everything is their fault. I am going to say no it is not their fault, they have merely benefited from the crisis. Like maggots eating away at a dead carcass.

Everything Zanu did was to blame for the crisis. The globalization, mass influx of people, regulation, laws, taxation, lack of protectionist control, selling off the gold, selling off the family silver, the benefits culture, the breakdown of family etc etc are to blame, not the 1%

Zanu will get back into power, and they will start taxing the rich, but by that time the economy will be ruined, and every measure they implement will aid the collapse. God knows who Brits will elect in 2020 after 5 more years of Zanu politics.

[interestrateripoff]

There won't be any lib dems in the future- not once they are exposed to the electorate. I am amazed how utterly they have destroyed themselves for the sake of a brief experience of power.

But power is so alluring.

[campervanman]

It seems the left-wing brigade keeps bleating about "the 1%" and how everything is their fault. I am going to say no it is not their fault, they have merely benefited from the crisis. Like maggots eating away at a dead carcass.

That is where we disagree. None of this is accidental. The post war years saw the proles daring to challenge the natural order of things and that could not be allowed to continue.

[Liquid Goldfish]

That is where we disagree. None of this is accidental. The post war years saw the proles daring to challenge the natural order of things and that could not be allowed to continue.

exactly

the natural order of things was restored as soon as the memory of the sacricfies of the proles in WWII started to dim

[alexw]

It seems the left-wing brigade keeps bleating about "the 1%" and how everything is their fault. I am going to say no it is not their fault, they have merely benefited from the crisis. Like maggots eating away at a dead carcass.

Everything Zanu did was to blame for the crisis. The globalization, mass influx of people, regulation, laws, taxation, lack of protectionist control, selling off the gold, selling off the family silver, the benefits culture, the breakdown of family etc etc are to blame, not the 1%

Zanu will get back into power, and they will start taxing the rich, but by that time the economy will be ruined, and every measure they implement will aid the collapse. God knows who Brits will elect in 2020 after 5 more years of Zanu politics.

Ahh right so the 1% and their cronies didn't lobby for and campaign for the globalization process, have not flooded our newspapers on how mass immigration boosts our economy, and how without access to that labour they'd have to move abroad. Nor did the banking 1% spend years-nigh-on-decades lobbying for weaker bank regulation and funneling cash to political parties to make it happen. Nor did they spend decades dodging taxes, and campaigning for lower taxes on themselves, which means that if the tax take was to remain constant taxes on the working masses would have to go up. Nor did they trumpet free trade and that protectionist control of our economy is bad - for example they didn't state (so many many times) that blocking the foreign takeover over of most large uk businesses, would harm our economy and deter foreign companies from investing in the UK, and i'm sure they didn't champion this as capitalistic creative destruction in action. Nor did they oversee outsourcing, upwards wealth redistribution, and the destruction of the incomes of the lower working classes, that has played a big part in the rise of the benefits culture and family breakdown.

I'm sure they did not do any of those things.

........Honestly what planet are you living on because it certainly is not earth.

Edited September 6, 2012 by alexw