My pleasure

CT represents about 7.5% of the whole tax take increasing by 5% is going to make a tiny impact. Taxing profits on international businesses needs international collaboration and serious transfer pricing rules.



The highest paid already contribute the vast majority of the IT take - but I agree it could increased.



IHT - so small <1% it isn't worth a discussion.

Jeez you really are a hard core Tory. Making up bare faced lies, pretending that people who have policy differences are in fact threats to our ways of life.



So we're "against freedom" now are we? It's not even worth asking about that since you just made it up.



Increasing the wages paid to certain sectors who have been fundamental to the country getting through the last 15 months is not a threat to our way of life. Sticking 2 or 3% to take corporation tax back up to where it was in the Major years or tinkering with income tax bandings is not a threat to our way of life. Suggesting we might like to fund our healthcare system to the same levels as other western countries - who have commensurately better health outcomes - is not a threat to our way of life.



What [iis [/idestabilsing to any civilised country is when one group of politicians and their supporters decide that what is politically advantageous for them is to smear people who suggest different policies to them. To pretend that the opposition aren't patriots, that they don't love our country or don't believe in the freedoms or ways of life that our country is built upon.

That's exactly what your recent post suggested and it's as loathsome when people it on here do it as it is when it's in The Sun or the Daily Mail.

WUM WUM

Quote Zoo Zoo Boom="Zoo Zoo Boom"What has what I said mentioned tax increases - the point was about increasing minimum wage and how the cost is either absorbed or passed on - please keep up'" I was replying to this: "I guarantee that if either of them were impacted they would be up in arms - Ghost trots out the Socialist spew but does from his lofty seat the same will said of Wrencat - hypocrites both" If you mean corporation tax, then yes, I and my company are impacted and if you are referring to personal taxation then, yes, once again I would be impacted. Sorry, Tory boy but, paying ones share isn't just the prerogative of the Troy supporting people like yourself. Mind you, the blue side of the nation tend to prefer off shore hideaways, like the a certain Mr Cameron - he's one of yours isn't he. Maybe you could have a look at the gentleman in this article too: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/p ... 33231.html Of course, there's nothing illegal going on here but, it's certainly not a great example for the masses As for hypocrite, not me, perhaps you should look in the mirror old boy

Quote Zoo Zoo Boom="Zoo Zoo Boom"What has what I said mentioned tax increases - the point was about increasing minimum wage and how the cost is either absorbed or passed on - please keep up'" I was replying to this: "I guarantee that if either of them were impacted they would be up in arms - Ghost trots out the Socialist spew but does from his lofty seat the same will said of Wrencat - hypocrites both" If you mean corporation tax, then yes, I and my company are impacted and if you are referring to personal taxation then, yes, once again I would be impacted. Sorry, Tory boy but, paying ones share isn't just the prerogative of the Troy supporting people like yourself. Mind you, the blue side of the nation tend to prefer off shore hideaways, like the a certain Mr Cameron - he's one of yours isn't he. Maybe you could have a look at the gentleman in this article too: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/p ... 33231.html Of course, there's nothing illegal going on here but, it's certainly not a great example for the masses As for hypocrite, not me, perhaps you should look in the mirror old boy

Well as a longstanding LD, I'm surprised and pleased that they overturned a huge majority of 16,000 in yesterday's Chesham and Amersham by-election. The polarised political debate sometimes forgets that it isn't a straight shoot-out between "Wizened Socialists" and Tories in lots of the country, and that if the blue walls start to crumble, you might be looking for LD victories as the first signs. For many people in the South-East and South West even if they are beginning to lose faith with the Conservatives, it would be completely unpalatable to vote Labour as proven by the staggering 600 votes they got in the by-election.

Quite, enjoyed watching that one come in, the noises from inside the Lib Dems had been positive but I have to admit I didn't really believe it.



Obviously it's only a by election but it should be a strong reminder to the Tories that going all in on culture war stuff and trashing the economy through Brexit is not going to go down well in very Blue, prosperous areas of the country which often voted Remain.



Whether many of these seats are too Blue to be at serious risk in a General Election with divided opposition we'll see but we've already seen the Tories lose ground in some better-off, better-educated areas as well as some suburban seats. The demographic time bomb facing the Tories long term is also quite horrendous.

I know Labour appear to have a written constitution that means they have to always field a candidate, but I suspect that given that the labour vote dropped from over 7k to just 600, that there was a nod and a wink going on here from pragmatic local Labour, to ensure that every vote went to a progressive party capable of beating the Tories. That approach has to be nationwide and reciprocal. It really dismayed me to see us being called "Yellow Tories" at the last election by people that should know better, and just zero appetite to work together for the greater good.

Whilst I have always advocated electoral pacts between progressives to keep out the Tories and stop the move to the right we see in Britain today . Nick cleggs pact with the devil and agreeing to student loans and years of austerity undermined most arguments I could put forward.

I sympathise with that view. I voted LD all my adult life then abandoned them in disgust for going into Coalition. I could have just about coped with a confidence and supply sort of arrangement, but not formally getting into bed with them. When the referendum came along and I was politically homeless, I had to ask myself how long am I supposed to punish the party that best fits my personal politics, and I returned to the fold. You don't have to forgive Clegg or the party machine to know pragmatically pacts have to be made with the LDs.

I would hope that all parties now know that any pact with the tories will only benefit them and when they don’t need the LD or DUP they become an handy source to blame for all the problems. They know that supporters like you will be so disgusted in the pact that you will hold your party responsible and withhold your vote. The Cons will then use this apathy to boost their seats in any LD/Con marginal.

You're right.

Coalitions are part of the UK Democracy, although, nobody ever votes for them.

The Lib dems needed to get something through during their time in cahoots with the Tories, that they could claim was their own policy. Their policy on Tuition Fees would have been something that they could have claimed was "theirs" but, instead, they appeared to roll over and had their collective tummies tickled and lost all credibility because of it.

Mind you, Clegg will be earning substantially more now, than he was a Deputy Prime Minister..

Equally, The DUP missed their chance to come away with something more tangible from their time as "king maker" and they need their backsides kicking for not getting something better for their own supporters when they had the chance.