Quote:
Originally Posted by Sauron the White
The tax liability incurred by JRRT is no different than the tax liability incurred by any other British citizen: the law is applied and he pays his determined share under the law. It is said that he needed money to pay his tax bill. We all need money to pay all of our bills - taxes are merely one of them.
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I don't think you appreciate the fiscal situation in UK the late sixties early seventies. This is from the HM Revenue & Customs website:
Special rates have been introduced twice within the post-war years, causing income tax in certain circumstances to exceed 100%.
In 1967-68, the special charge was imposed. ...over
£8,000, the rate was 45% which - with income tax at 41.25% and surtax at 50% - meant a total rate of 136.25%.
Even now the basic rule of taxation here is that if you become suddenly wealthy you will get clobbered because what we like to call "tax planning" and lay people call loopholes usaully require time to be efficient. Therefore those who have always have had money can plan to hand it on to the next generation as intact as possible through trusts, limited companies and offshore arrangements.
People who become unexpectedly wealthy in later life are liable to get squeezed until the pips squeak. When I was in private practice our wealthiest private client was worth over £6million. Our genius of a Tax manager managed to get that down to an "official" lsiting of £2million. There is one accountancy joke - "Q, What is 2+2? - A. What do you want it to be?"
Decisions may be different and less free when the determined share is one and a third.