What are my tax £s supposed to pay for?

Sic

Sic

Sic

Soldato
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Obviously, my tiny mind couldn't begin to understand how much towns/cities cost to run, day-to-day, but I was thinking on the way home "I pay a crapload of tax - what the hell does it go towards?!"

I pay income tax - I don't know specifically what this is earmarked for, other than the salary of politicians (I guess)
I pay car tax - I would hope that this goes towards the roads, but considering the state of the roads I drive on day-to-day, you wouldn't know it!
I pay council tax - I have no idea what this goes towards

This is not to mention VAT and all that (I also have no idea what this goes towards, other than paying the wages of the people who administer those payments!)

This isn't a moaning thread (well, it is a bit I suppose - but only because I don't know where the money I have to pay is going!), I would actually like an answer to any of these questions
 
Sic said:
I pay council tax - I have no idea what this goes towards
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Stuff like city refuse and recycling, community centres, local parks and whatnot.

I can't speak for the rest as I really have no idea what they pay for. Whatever it is, I'm sure I could think of a hundred ways to spend the money more effectively.
 
Pensions
Politician Salary
Inflated Council Worker Salary
NHS
Police
Fire Brigade
Dole
Business Incentives
Military
Education
Refuse
Parks


sure theres a list as long as several arms, but those are the ones i can think of off the top of my head
 
Council Tax goes on local services, but it's not enough to cover the cost of these services, so councils are reliant on government hand outs too. If the government cuts the money it gives to councils, our council tax goes up.

Everything else just goes into a general pot to pay for NHS, Armed Forces, Schools, Roads, General Government, Benefits etc.
 
You council tax should have a break down on what it pays for (ours came in 3/4 days ago telling us next years payment details)
 
Apart from council tax it just goes into a central government big bucket that every non-working person in this country seems entitled to a slice of

An smallish element of vat also goes direct to the EU I believe

You forgot to mention National Insurance - again, a central gov bucket tax

As for where it's spent, the biggest elements are the NHS, Education and Social Security
 
Pipe & Slippers said:
Apart from council tax it just goes into a central government big bucket that every non-working person in this country seems entitled to a slice of
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Eughhh. I found out yesterday that a girl at work is pregrant, she's 21. A friend of hers tells me she just wanted to get pregnant, and she did about 2 weeks after being with her boyfriend. Guess what she's going to get (the answer is a slice of the bucket and a free council home!)
 
ste_bla said:
You council tax should have a break down on what it pays for (ours came in 3/4 days ago telling us next years payment details)
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yeah, it did. Something like £1000 for "council tax", then £130ish for fire and ambulance and whatnot. Hence my asking really.

Council tax is the one I really hate, just because I can't believe that £1100 p/a is such a lot of money when I spend nearly £6k a year on income tax :/
 
Pipe & Slippers said:
Apart from council tax it just goes into a central government big bucket that every non-working person in this country seems entitled to a slice of

An smallish element of vat also goes direct to the EU I believe

You forgot to mention National Insurance - again, a central gov bucket tax

As for where it's spent, the biggest elements are the NHS, Education and Social Security
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First thing I thought of...

bucket1.jpg
 
Love the way this is always in their

Inflated Council Worker Salary

The people working for me are on £16k a year rising to 22k over 6 years of employment, would hardly call that inflated with a rise of 2% offered this year.

Its weird living in an area looked after by a District Council and not a County Council I pay £125 a month for my Council tax of which around only 10% goes to the District Council the rest goes to the County and Police etc.
 
Ulfhedjinn said:
I see a typo in that graph. "Other" should read "Inflated politician 'expenses' and salaries."
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You think £60k a year is an inflated salary for an MP? As regards the expenses, it's the system thats a fault and that's why it has come under recent scrutiny and will hopefully spark change. Can't say I wouldn't claim for everything possible though, and I bet most others would do the same.
 
lucasade1 said:
You think £60k a year is an inflated salary for an MP? As regards the expenses, it's the system thats a fault and that's why it has come under recent scrutiny and will hopefully spark change. Can't say I wouldn't claim for everything possible though, and I bet most others would do the same.
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I've seen some pretty absurd news articles on BBC in my time such as the House Of Lords asking for a "pay rise" when they don't even get a wage but a stupidly huge "expenses allowance". Prime Ministers like Tony Blair swearing they'd never accept a pay rise and then snatching it.

Sure you can't blame them for taking what they get, but they get enough as it is.
 
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