By Russell Bruce
Statista have produced this interesting table of the average share of gross wages and social security contributions for selected OECD countries. The percent typically paid is also related to the level of income in different countries.
That the UK and the US are rather similar implies quite a lot about the path the UK is on to become every closer to the US economic model. Brexit is the neoliberal threat facing Scotland and something those on the left, like Jeremy Corbyn fail to come to terms with.
You will find more infographics at Statista
Another comparison is the level of pensions paid in other countries. The state pension in the UK is just £7,500 compared to £15,800 in France and £26,000 in Germany. French pensioners are twice as well off as UK pensioners, whilst German pensioners enjoy three and a half times the meagre UK state pension. It is a reminder than tax and contribution rates are related to poverty or living comfortably in retirement.
Fuel poverty is becoming endemic in the UK where it is not just pensioners who have to make choices between heating and eating due to the continued assault on social security payments. A proper balance is not just socially just but is an virtuous economic circle. These are groups that tend to spend their income, allowing money to circulate around the economy with much finding its way back into tax revenues.
Tax cuts for the wealthiest 10% do not circulate through the economy, they save it. Fair taxation and progressive social policy provide advantage to the majority in society and higher turnover for businesses through increased consumer spend.