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| Britain |
| UK Proposes All Paychecks Go to the State First |
| 2010-09-20 |
| The UK's tax collection agency is putting forth a proposal that all employers send employee paychecks to the government, after which the government would deduct what it deems as the appropriate tax and pay the employees by bank transfer. The proposal by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) stresses the need for employers to provide real-time information to the government so that it can monitor all payments and make a better assessment of whether the correct tax is being paid. Currently employers withhold tax and pay the government, providing information at the end of the year, a system know as Pay as You Earn (PAYE). There is no option for those employees to refuse withholding and individually file a tax return at the end of the year. If the real-time information plan works, it further proposes that employers hand over employee salaries to the government first. "The next step could be to use (real-time) information as the basis for centralizing the calculation and deduction of tax," HMRC said in a July discussion paper. HMRC described the plan as "radical" as it would be a huge change from the current system that has been largely unchanged for 66 years. The chance of widespread mistakes could be high. HMRC does not have a good track record of handling large computer systems and has suffered high-profile errors with data. The system would be massive in terms of data management, larger than a recent attempt to centralize the National Health Service's data, which was later scrapped. "Paging Mr. Fawkes...Paging Mr. Fawkes. Please pick up the white courtesy phone." |
| Posted by: Anonymoose |
| #9 There is November. And if that fails, and the US/CA politicos get ideas, I am already drilling for defenestration. I need pitchfork guys down under the windows. Everyone does their thing. :-) |
| Posted by: twobyfour 2010-09-20 23:37 |
| #8 Not only should we pay our taxes in one lump sum, it should be due on the FIRST MONDAY of every November. |
| Posted by: whitecollar redneck 2010-09-20 20:19 |
| #7 And what if the HMRC runs a bit short and cannot pay? What then.....Victory gardens? Will they be authorized to once again have Victory gardens? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2010-09-20 19:37 |
| #6 I thought it was Scrappleface. Poor Brits. Poor looney Brits if they put up with it. |
| Posted by: Infidel 2010-09-20 19:33 |
| #5 Droit de seigneur or 'right of first night'. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2010-09-20 18:42 |
| #4 File under - Lord of the Manor gets first harvest from the serfs |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2010-09-20 17:42 |
| #3 This is about the worst idea I have ever heard of. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2010-09-20 15:54 |
| #2 Good idea if you're curious about what a real mob with pitchforks, torches and ropes looks like. But how about we try it the other way around: everyone keeps what they earn until the end of the year; then we all contribute our fair share to those government programs we consider to have done us some good, sort of like a national telethon. "Next item: we need five million dollars to refurnish Nancy Pelosi's office. Who's first? Come on, folks, plenty of tax collectors are waiting to take your call!" |
| Posted by: Matt 2010-09-20 14:31 |
| #1 Should anyone in Washington have such ideas I should remind you of the Whiskey Rebellion. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2010-09-20 14:23 |