A system rooted in the past
A system rooted in the past
There are only two things that are certain in life and one of them is taxes. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to question the Treasury Minister, the Comptroller of Revenue, and other top civil servants, who work within the Taxes Office, on the hot topic of the move to independent taxation.
This live stream online event, in front of a well-attended audience produced some really searching questions from participants via the SLIDO app. This way of government interacting with the public is proving increasingly successful and is a terrific way for people to get direct answers to direct questions.
What came across for me, is that our tax system is very much rooted in the past and it needs to be brought up-to-date. When you consider the changes that have taken place over the last decade or so in relation to Social Security, and the family friendly legislation which is now incorporated within our Employment Law, you get to realise that a change to independent taxation is now long overdue and these changes to the tax system will be the last piece of the jigsaw.
From the general responses on the evening, and the tone of some of the questions, it was clear that some people see these changes as tax rises by stealth. While there will always be winners and losers when any system is changed, the flip side is that under the existing system, many more are currently disadvantaged.
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However, all is still to play for as the second part of these proposals, the compensatory allowance, will not be debated until the new Assembly is formed, after the next election, and no doubt it will be a topic at the various hustings that will be taking place in the middle part of next year.
The good news is that there are plenty of opportunities to find out more about how these changes will affect individuals, and I would urge anyone with concerns to go onto the government website and make use of the tax calculator, which will give you a particularly good indication of what is the best choice for you when the time comes.
Taxation is never a popular subject, but this is an opportunity for people to get to understand how these changes are going to affect them and which might be the best option to take, and there is plenty of time to give consideration as to how this transition is best managed.
Malcolm Ferey is the CEO of Headway Jersey and has worked within the charity sector for over a decade. He maintains a keen interest in providing solutions and resolving issues that affect the local community.?