An Election Message....

[ProDave]

Can someone please explain what poll tax is to the uneducated foreigner?

Local councils get part of their funding from the people.

Years ago it used to be "rates" which was a fixed annual charge or tax paid by every home owner. The larger the house the more you paid according to it's "rateable value"

That was replaced with the community charge. Instead of just the house owner paying, everybody of working age would pay a fixed ammount per person.  In theory that would be fairer as it spreads the payment over more people. BUT as I found out my community charge was more than my rates were. It also meant a lot of people who had never paid rates before paying and they felt it was "unfair".  It became known as the poll tax, because a lot of people found out if you didn't register to vote, then you became invisible and could avoid paying it.

that was replaced with the council tax, another property based again on the value of the house and paid by the house owner or tenant. and guess what, when it was introduced my council tax was more than my poll tax had been which was more than the rates before it had been,

 

[Murdoch]

Can someone please explain what poll tax is to the uneducated foreigner?

The Poll tax was levied locally by councils, per adult, and was a change in funding for local services.

This was scrapped and we went to Council tax.

The biggest problem with funding local services is that with the population growing much faster than the number of homes, is that the funding for local services is getting more and more stretched - and making cuts more likely. Couple this with the fact that local people have to pay the pensions of former local council workes, and they are all living longer, the money isn't going as far as it used to.

 

[binky]

 2 arguments here,1/ taxing houses is easier than taxing people who have a habit of moving about  a lot, especially in the rented sector. Hence the poll tax eventually failed with many local councils still owed millions?

2/ The more people live in the same house, the less it costs to provide services, ie they don't need a streetlight each, so if people can stand living is close quarters with friends and family it's probably agood thing, they save money, services cost less to provide and it takes pressure of housing stock.

PD the reason your poll tax was higher than your rates, apart from being a single bloke, is that the poll tax system cost 3% more to run than the old rates system - £miilions wasted on beaurocracy. This is why I keep arguing that all taxation should be at source ie wages, and not scattered around back door taxation systems, like insurance tax, fuel duties, etc etc. Thatcher was master of this, though both sides have followed the same process ever since. Its no good getting more in your pay packet if everything costs more than whatever piddly rise politicians give out.

 

[ProDave]

Re the cost of collecting the poll tax.

That should have meant when it was replaced by the council tax, my bill went down again to something more like the old rates I used to pay, but instead it went UP.

Which is why I keep my mouth shut and don't ask for the council tax to be replaced because I know which way the bill would go.

People bang on about fuel poverty where you spend 10% of your income on fuel. Well how about Council tax poverty?  We spend 10% of our income on council tax, MORE than we spend on fuel. You don't hear that complaint very often.  It's our largest bill apart from food.

 

[binky]

lately increases have been down to central government not handing over tax money to councils, hence councils have had to increase council tax.

 

[misssweden]

Local councils get part of their funding from the people.

Years ago it used to be "rates" which was a fixed annual charge or tax paid by every home owner. The larger the house the more you paid according to it's "rateable value"

That was replaced with the community charge. Instead of just the house owner paying, everybody of working age would pay a fixed ammount per person.  In theory that would be fairer as it spreads the payment over more people. BUT as I found out my community charge was more than my rates were. It also meant a lot of people who had never paid rates before paying and they felt it was "unfair".  It became known as the poll tax, because a lot of people found out if you didn't register to vote, then you became invisible and could avoid paying it.

that was replaced with the council tax, another property based again on the value of the house and paid by the house owner or tenant. and guess what, when it was introduced my council tax was more than my poll tax had been which was more than the rates before it had been,

  

The Poll tax was levied locally by councils, per adult, and was a change in funding for local services.

This was scrapped and we went to Council tax.

The biggest problem with funding local services is that with the population growing much faster than the number of homes, is that the funding for local services is getting more and more stretched - and making cuts more likely. Couple this with the fact that local people have to pay the pensions of former local council workes, and they are all living longer, the money isn't going as far as it used to.

Thank you guys I finally understand what you're talking about now.