Hi

In an insightful article in last Thursday’s Times, Emma Duncan got straight to the heart of what’s wrong with Britain and how to fix it. The real issue, she noted, isn’t with our political parties – it’s with the voters themselves.

Take the current government’s view. The Prime Minister says the country is in a dreadful state, and the Conservatives are to blame. Labour, meanwhile, promises that, although the road ahead may be tough, they’ll cut away the decay and lay strong foundations. And once that’s done, Britain will supposedly transform into the fastest-growing economy in the G7, able to deliver the top-notch services we all deserve. 

It sounds convincing – but it’s wrong.

The trouble is that we want to have our cake and eat it. We aspire to enjoy low tax levels like those in the Anglosphere countries – places like the US, Australia, and Canada – while expecting high-quality public services like those seen in Northern Europe. But we can’t have both.

Look at the numbers. Britain’s tax revenue stands at 33.5% of GDP – more aligned with countries like Canada (33.2%) than with Northern European nations. Compare this with Germany at 39.5%, Scandinavia averaging 43.7%, and France at a hefty 45.1%. Even within the Anglosphere, the UK is higher than the US (26.6%) and Australia (28.5%).

Despite this, British expectations for public services are incredibly high, sometimes even higher than those in Europe. But unlike the French, who are expected to contribute directly to their healthcare, we don’t seem to have grasped that quality comes at a cost.

We spread our limited resources thinly, trying to offer a wide range of services on a tight budget – and we don’t do it well. Take cancer care, for example, arguably one of the most vital aspects of healthcare: the UK lags behind similar countries in survival rates. This is largely down to late diagnoses, which is often due to outdated equipment or simply not enough of it.

The situation is getting worse. An ageing population is piling more pressure on the system, particularly on social care, which is already in dire straits.

Why? Because we’re not investing enough. We focus so much on covering salaries for doctors, teachers, and other public servants that there’s little left for the necessary investment. This leads to inadequate infrastructure, both physical and digital, and a slowdown in economic growth. It’s no wonder Labour’s claim that we’ll be the fastest-growing G7 economy seems far-fetched when you consider our current investment levels.

If the government doesn’t pull off a miraculous economic turnaround, which it won't, how do we bridge the gap between what we expect from public services and what we pay for them? The simple answer is to increase revenue – which means higher taxes, and not just for the rich.

There’s a misconception that taxing the wealthy more heavily will solve everything. But UK taxes on high earners are already among the highest in Europe. The real solution lies in increasing taxes on middle earners, who are the backbone of tax revenue in countries like Germany and France.

According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the average tax on full-time median earnings in the UK is currently 28%, compared to 46.6% in Germany and 47.8% in France. The uncomfortable truth is that if we want well-funded public services, we must be willing to pay for them. Until we face that reality, no amount of political spin will make a difference.

So, is there a better way? Perhaps. But it starts with recognising that there’s no magic fix, just hard choices about what we value and what we’re prepared to pay for.

Noel Guilford