Think tank recommends Stormont tax-varying powers…
ANY government that doesn’t have any real responsibility for taxes is always going to be regarded as a bit of a Mickey Mouse parliament. The Institute for Public Policy Research has a new report out on the Barnett formula (used to calculate the bloc grants to each part of the UK), and suggests that the devolved administrations should be given powers to alter their own tax levels. It adds the provisor that in Northern Ireland “the new assembly may need time to bed down before financial powers are devolved”. Whether the Executive parties have any desire to ever be given responsibility for something as important as tax-varying powers is another question. That, after all, would involve making tough decisions, something the current Executive is clearly incapable of. (Report in full here.)
I agree with the report, the devolved administrations should have their own tax varying powers, but it would endanger the union even more and most importantly of all, the prime minister isn’t listening…..! His head is full of other stuff. Yet something has to be done because of the unfairness being felt by the English. Then of course as you rightly point out there is the laughable incompetency of the folks on the hill.
Nothing will be done for the remainder of this government at least. I think the conservatives would possibly be up for some form of administration for England to try to deal with the unfairness they feel.
It would be like removing the CAP.
It would be amazing. And if it didn’t work out… well… it’s worth trying. Otherwise, whats the point.
“Yet something has to be done because of the unfairness being felt by the English.”
Give me private enterprise wealth any day over public sector handouts like, for example, redistibution of London’s private financial sector coming to Belfast would be bliss. But sure running Child Support for half the UK out of Belfast on fixed spine scales will do!
Of course our little grubby war didn’t help either. The IRA owe DuPont an apology and the rest of us in NI we should be grateful for the Yanks. If it wasn’t for the Americans we would be, given our poor EU relations, in a deeper economic discomfort.
However, I wouldn’t wish to close without sincere appreciation to the British who have proven to be factually financing the bloated desires of sectarian politics. An outcome, given such figures on public expenditure, which will likely make British politicians wish they did combine in favour of a unitary Ireland as the political settlement.
Anyway, in contrast, in terms of the Republic and FF getting cold feet over the North, we may also be seeing the old adage of financial facts winning out over saucy sentiment.
So, ultimately, where’s Chris Donnelly now for some financial ideas on economic rejuvenation of a torn Belfast and besieged Derry in the face of a global downturn? And of those recent recreational ‘Rent’ a riots, we need to ask again about who pays the clean up and policing fees? Soon the fees should be levied inside the areas in which the rioting occurs and to the organisers of mass gatherings, one wonders how long the recreational aspect of it could be maintained in areas already fighting food inflation, why fight ourselves?
In general agreement here. I’d significantly like to see NI civil service pay decoupled from the rest of the UK and slashed in light of the reality of NI- ie lower wages. Only then can the private sector compete for people and wages eventually rise- as well as tax revenue in the statelet.
‘regarded as a bit of a Mickey Mouse parliament’
I like Mickey Mouse, is he available from the Stormont souvenir shop?
The Welsh Assembly Government announced a finance commission this week that will look at tax-raising powers.
Is anyone at Stormont going to be plugged into these discussions?
Once again the idiots are out
You are either in or out of a fiscal union –how exactly do these tubes expect differing taxes within one fiscal union to work?
1 Company tax –er no can`t do that all uk Companies would transfer registration to NI
2 Excise duties -er no can`t do that Oil, Alcohol and Beer would flood (the rest of) UK Market
etc etc
Apart from that –giving those arseholes in Stormont more power is madness -look at the mess they are making with what they have got
“You are either in or out of a fiscal union”
Fine- out!