Gary's views

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

TAX & SPEND

My 21 year old son received his first proper pay packet last month, and he was gob-smacked by the amount of tax and national insurance that was deducted. Welcome to the real world.

But he is not alone. My postbag now contains an ever-increasing number of genuine concerns about this year’s increases in national insurance, council tax and water rates. It is becoming particularly hard for people on fixed incomes, especially pensioners, to cope with these spiralling demands. And all this is at a time when the political focus is on delivering better quality public services.

So can we have better public services without breaking the back of the camel that has to pay for them?

There are those who want us to spend even more on public services and pay more in tax. Some of them were rumbling around the platform at the TUC conference this week, reminding us all that dinosaurs did not die out completely. But I think we are fast approaching saturation point. I simply do not think that many hard working families or fixed income pensioners, especially those just above the benefit line, can afford to pay any more. It does not matter whether it is dressed up as income tax, council tax, value added tax or any other backdoor tax. Tax is tax and it all erodes our ability to spend our own money as we see fit. And please remember, though it may not feel like it, these are the good times. The next recession will ask many questions of us all.

If my postbag is anything to go by, we are only a short distance from the tipping point when tax and spend becomes a big political issue again. But I would not like to see the pendulum swing too far towards a slash and burn backlash.

It is possible to strike a reasonable balance between quality services and affordability. But only if we constantly make sure that the provision is delivered in the most efficient way, by the organisation best placed to do it – whether private or public sector - maximising technology and not pandering to vested interests. This means embracing reforms that may not always be popular.

It would also be refreshing if governments of all colours occasionally asked themselves if they should be providing a particular service in the first place. “Do less and do it better” might turn out to be a winning formula.

posted by Nigel on Tuesday, September 16, 2003