The Socialist 23 April 2008 The rich get richer... and we foot the bill! The rich get richer... and we foot the bill! Editorial: Brown's government lurching from pillar to post Shelter workers escalate action Oil workers to strike back at pensions threat Gloucester says... 'save our post offices' Why drug firms should be nationalised Jersey - Growing anger against elite of secrets How can we defeat the far right? Campaign to unionise migrant workers 'The Conscience of a Liberal' by Paul Krugman Zimbabwe: Workers' strength stops arms shipment Italy: Left leaders opened way for Berlusconi victory France 1968: month of revolution. Speaking tour France 1968: Book by Clare Doyle |
|
|||||||||||||||
|
Home | The Socialist 23 April 2008 | Join the Socialist Party The rich get richer... and we foot the bill!Tax cuts for the richBig business has received a corporation tax cut from 30p to 28p this month (down from 33p when New Labour was elected in 1997). They already help themselves. A National Audit Office study revealed that almost one-third of the UK's 700 biggest businesses pay no corporation tax whatsoever. Revenue & Customs estimates that over £41 billion is lost every year in unpaid taxes. £50 billion bail-out for the banks!£50 billion, and probably more, is to be made available to the banks to protect them from the credit crunch. The public purse is coming to the rescue after the banks messed up. As economist Martin Wolf put it: "in the good times the profits are privatised and in the bad times the losses are socialised". Where is the money for the 123 families per day who are seeing their houses repossessed? What about average household debt of £56,234? Why are banks not using the bail-out to significantly cut mortgage interest rates? Profits Bonanza!Over the last two decades the earnings of the bosses in the biggest companies have gone from 17 to 75 times the average employee's pay. The last year has seen a 40% increase in dollar billionaires, from 35 to 49 in the UK. Shell Oil's profits, at £13.9 billion, were correctly described as 'obscene' while it costs us more and more to keep cars going. UK drug giant GlaxoSmithKline reported an 8% profit rise to £7.9 billion for the year 2007. We foot the billBillsSince 2003, the average gas bill for British Gas customers has risen by 76.7% to £653 per year, according to consumer group Energywatch. Electricity bills have risen by 74.3%, to £413. Last year British Gas reported profits of £571 million, up from £95 million in 2006. In some areas water bills have gone up by 7.8%. Last November Thames Water's profits saw a six-monthly rise of 49.8% to £199.7 million. Public sector workers' payPublic sector workers have been offered wage increases that lag well behind the increased cost of living. Meanwhile big business is making enormous profits out of privatising our public services. The strike on 24 April is an excellent start but more is needed to win. The Socialist Party calls for a 24-hour strike throughout the entire public sector against low pay. Food pricesFood prices are accelerating at their fastest rate since records began, fuelling a rise in the average family's shopping bill of £750 a year. 17 million tonnes of food goes into landfill every year. Supermarkets and agribusiness prefer to dump it than to sell it cheaper. Tesco announced record profits of £2.8 billion this year. Ending the 10p tax band5.3 million people have lost out from the end of the 10p tax band. Combined with the poverty minimum wage you can see why support for New Labour is in a downward spiral. But the problem is the other main parties offer no alternative. Workers need their own party that will stand up for their interests. Help build the Campaign for a New Workers' Party and build the fightback! In this issue
Socialist Party workplace news
Socialist Party election campaign Socialist Party news and analysis
The Socialist Interview
Socialist Party feature
Socialist Party review
International socialist news and analysis
Home | The Socialist 23 April 2008 | Join the Socialist Party |
Related links:
| |||||||||||||||
Google search the site
Printable version
email to friend
