As the dust settles after the unnecessary, unwanted and disastrous election there is now a real danger that a Labour government could win the next election and follow a programme of nationalisation, high taxes, enhanced public sector pensions, and waste leading to inefficiency, lower productivity and reduced tax revenues.
Brexit is
no longer the wolf at the door of free enterprise. It's socialism.
A socialist government would stifle free markets and entrepreneurship, increase regulations and raise taxes. The Times, in a hard-hitting editorial on Saturday, described how "a generation that has not experienced the hopelessness of
socialist economics" fell for Labour's economically illiterate policies that would erode incentives, jobs and tax.
Let's take a look at some socialist policies and the facts.
Labour believes in the young: well perhaps in their gullibility. Labour's policies (defined benefit pension scenes for public sector workers and the state pension triple lock) are both transfers of wealth from young to old. Young people will have fewer opportunities, pay more tax and fund more
pensions under Labour.
The scrapping of University tuition fees: this direct bribe to students would cost £11.5bn. I've already written about how too many University courses fail to provide students with the real skills needed in our fast changing world. Of course three years under the influence of left-leaning academics, most of whom have little experience of business and entrepreneurship, would suit the socialist agenda.
Big businesses and the wealthy will pay: almost 30% of tax is already paid by just 1% of taxpayers. That is already too high. Unlike
the last time a hard left socialist government was in power businesses and wealthy individuals are now far more mobile. It is easy for them to set up offices overseas and recruit highly qualified team members. Many already have bolt holes abroad. The Laffer Curve, which charts the relationship between tax rates
and revenues collected, shows that higher rates of tax produce less revenue and reduce investment.
Introduce a financial transactions tax: the financial services sector pays a huge amount of tax in the U.K. Technology now means that they can, and will, move to lower tax jurisdictions.
85% of jobs are in the private sector. There are £4.8m self-employed business owners in the U.K. for whom free markets, low taxes and less regulation are the three most important
contributions government can make to their success, wealth and job creation and in turn the wealth and prosperity on the nation.
I'll give the last word to Luke Johnson writing in The Sunday Times "Business leaders need to actively help win the hearts and minds, especially amongst the young; educational campaigns should be conducted to explain free enterprise and the profit motive...... Without a thriving private sector that creates jobs, generates taxes and innovates, then
everything falls apart."
At least the sun is shining.
To your success.
Noel Guilford