I saw this short news clip (via TaxProf from a link posted on Instapundit) discussing a fall in tax money inflow* to the UK government after implementing an additional tax on “the rich”:
The Treasury received £10.35 billion in income tax payments from those paying by self-assessment last month, a drop of £509 million compared with January 2011. Most other taxes produced higher revenues over the same period.
Senior sources said that the first official figures indicated that there had been “manoeuvring” by well-off Britons to avoid the new higher rate. The figures will add to pressure on the Coalition to drop the levy amid fears it is forcing entrepreneurs to relocate abroad.
You can almost hear Art Laffer saying “I told you so… Again.”
*Note: Washington does not need to collect more money. Our federal government has a huge spending problem, not an income problem. More money flowing to Washington is not going to cure their spending addiction. The idea is to illustrate that tax cuts coupled with spending cuts, will help bring Washington back into fiscal balance, while at the same time improve the overall health of the private sector economy. To maximize personal freedom and long-term economic health, we should follow the advice of another great economist, Milton Friedman, who said “I am favor of cutting taxes under any circumstances and for any excuse, for any reason, whenever it’s possible.“
“Washington does not need to collect more money…”
But we could let Warren Buffet cut an extra check if he wanted to, right?
Remember, lib’s are only generous with other peoples money. So I don’t think Warren Buffet is intending to write the check. He is really looking to have the rest of us to write the check.