Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #windfallTax
Most recents (22)
Kwasi Kwarteng is right to U-turn on one of his #taxcuts for the rich, but he needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with a vastly different plan if he wants to tackle the #costofliving scandal and reassure the markets and the country.
1/6
1/6
There is no evidence that lower taxes will yield higher investment or growth.
But we know that lower taxes will reduce support for those that need it the most, and deprive public services on the verge of collapse of much needed investment.
2/6
But we know that lower taxes will reduce support for those that need it the most, and deprive public services on the verge of collapse of much needed investment.
2/6
If the Chancellor is serious about tackling the cost of living scandal and shoring up the economy he will scrap planned tax cuts for the rich and instead:
3/6
3/6
As usual, the @EUCouncil is where good 🇪🇺 legislation goes to die.
At Friday's Energy Council, national governments are planning to water down the Commission's emergency energy measures proposed earlier this month. euractiv.com/section/politi…
At Friday's Energy Council, national governments are planning to water down the Commission's emergency energy measures proposed earlier this month. euractiv.com/section/politi…
Amendments drafted by the Czechs, who hold the rotating Council presidency, would allow countries to set higher caps on surplus revenue from energy companies than what is set at EU level for the #WindfallTax.
Energy analysts are warning this will create distortion in the market.
Energy analysts are warning this will create distortion in the market.
"Allowing countries to deviate from it and have lower caps creates confusion and uncertainty – and will slow down the investments we so badly need,” says @WindEurope's Giles Dickson.
Commission also warned: “uncoordinated caps...may lead to significant distortions".
Commission also warned: “uncoordinated caps...may lead to significant distortions".
Early indications suggest that this is due to be a Budget divorced from reality - a massive transfer of income to the wealthy in the height of the #costoflivingscandal when millions on low and modest incomes are being hammered.
1/5
1/5
Tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the rich are not the answer to the crisis we face.
They don’t help the people who need it the most, and rob our creaking public services of the investment they desperately need.
2/5
They don’t help the people who need it the most, and rob our creaking public services of the investment they desperately need.
2/5
The Budget today should do two things:
1. Provide additional protection for families on low to modest incomes via a £750 cost of living allowance to cushion the blow of rising prices, & boosting benefits to cover the increase in energy bills we have seen since last winter.
3/5
1. Provide additional protection for families on low to modest incomes via a £750 cost of living allowance to cushion the blow of rising prices, & boosting benefits to cover the increase in energy bills we have seen since last winter.
3/5
This is how it works
You deliberately make people panic with £6k fuel bills
Do nothing for 90 day
Limit bills to £2.5k
= surge in opinion polls
Steal £200bn of public money, give to power companies to subsidise bills coming down
The public to pay back + interest= #TrussTax
You deliberately make people panic with £6k fuel bills
Do nothing for 90 day
Limit bills to £2.5k
= surge in opinion polls
Steal £200bn of public money, give to power companies to subsidise bills coming down
The public to pay back + interest= #TrussTax
£200bn from the telegraph
"Liz Truss sails into uncharted waters – without Bank of England support
Borrowing will balloon under new PM's plan to foot £200bn energy bill"
telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/…
"Liz Truss sails into uncharted waters – without Bank of England support
Borrowing will balloon under new PM's plan to foot £200bn energy bill"
telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/…
The correct solution is a #windfalltax on the energy companies excess profits
"Boost for Liz Truss as new poll shows nine in 10 voters BACK her plan to freeze energy bills to help families through #CostOfLivingCrises" - screams the Mail.
The same poll found 75% of Tory voters BACK a #windfalltax on oil & gas companies' profits, which Truss opposes.
The same poll found 75% of Tory voters BACK a #windfalltax on oil & gas companies' profits, which Truss opposes.
The poll, commissioned by the Mail, put @UKLabour seven points ahead of the Tories,42% - 35%, with Starmer just ahead of Truss (36% to 33%) when voters were asked who would make the best PM.
Predictably, 56% of Tory voters said the #Partygate investigation should not continue.
Predictably, 56% of Tory voters said the #Partygate investigation should not continue.
Liz Truss’ intervention to freeze the #energypricecap for 2 years is a big one that shows the government has finally grasped the scale of the challenge.
But there is a sting in the tail.
1/5
But there is a sting in the tail.
1/5
By refusing to ask energy companies - who will be making £170 billion worth of excess profits over the next 2 years - to foot the bill, the government will instead be asking our public services and communities to pay for this through lower investment.
2/5
2/5
And for families on low to modest incomes, average #energybills of £2,500 a year will still be a big hit when combined with the rising cost of food and everyday essentials. Yet, the government has done very little to boost their incomes.
3/5
3/5
📆 Day 1 in office, and our new PM needs to hit the ground running. The govt has wasted weeks as the country walks into a catastrophic #costoflivingcrisis.
@Trussliz must set out her plan to protect people against rising bills and shore up the economy.
It should include:
1/
@Trussliz must set out her plan to protect people against rising bills and shore up the economy.
It should include:
1/
1️⃣ Freezing the #pricecap for the next 6 months while she puts in place a new system of free basic energy with rising tariffs for higher energy use: Short term relief that will protect people against high bills for the long term.
2/
2/
2️⃣ Implementing a #GreatHomesUpgrade to insulate millions of homes and lower bills and emissions.
3️⃣ Increasing the #windfalltax on #fossilfuel giants: Using this to give families a £750 cost of living allowance, alongside a permanent boost to benefits.
3/
3️⃣ Increasing the #windfalltax on #fossilfuel giants: Using this to give families a £750 cost of living allowance, alongside a permanent boost to benefits.
3/
📈 #Inflation has hit 10.1% as prices continue to rise.
This spike in prices is all the more painful because it is hitting at a time when:
- Living standards have been squeezed for over a decade, leaving people with little cushion to absorb this
1/5
This spike in prices is all the more painful because it is hitting at a time when:
- Living standards have been squeezed for over a decade, leaving people with little cushion to absorb this
1/5
- Millions of families were already unable to make ends meet because our social safety net has been ripped up, and
- Public services are on their knees after years of underinvestment.
2/5
- Public services are on their knees after years of underinvestment.
2/5
Leaving families & the economy to languish won’t prevent inflation getting worse, & risks a deep recession which will scar our economy.
Govt should urgently:
1️⃣ Increase the national #livingwage to reflect the #costofliving & support workers to negotiate fair wage deals
3/5
Govt should urgently:
1️⃣ Increase the national #livingwage to reflect the #costofliving & support workers to negotiate fair wage deals
3/5
.@UKLabour’s call to freeze the #energypricecap is a bold measure that grasps the scale of the crisis we’re facing.
Millions of families that simply cannot afford to pay more for energy wouldn’t need to live in fear of further hikes.
1/6
Millions of families that simply cannot afford to pay more for energy wouldn’t need to live in fear of further hikes.
1/6
And recent @NEF analysis shows that a 20% #windfalltax on excessive profits & closing of loopholes would raise £14bn. It’s a no-brainer.
2/6
2/6
This package should be accompanied by a boost to social security to ensure a real safety net for those who need it - including direct payments to households that are already struggling with the April price rise & increasing cost of food, rent, travel and other essentials.
3/6
3/6
1/x Vláda se patrně chystá přijít s mimořádným zdaněním energetických firem (čti ČEZu) formou tzv. windfall tax. Odůvodňuje to dosti bizarně, takže jsem se k tomu rozhodl po delší době zase sepsat (neplánové) rychlovlákno. #windfallTax #ekonvlákno
🧵
🧵
2/x Už jsem v minulosti nějaká psal, třeba k dani z nemovitosti:
Nebo k HDP:
Dneska teda windfall tax.
Nebo k HDP:
Dneska teda windfall tax.
3/x Windfall tax (daň z neplánovaných nebo také nadměrných zisků) zjednodušeně funguje tak, že si nějakým způsobem definujete "normální úroveň zisku" (třeba historickou) a rozhodnete, že zisk nad tuto úroveň firmě jako stát vezmete. Odrbat nechutné pracháče je sexy, ne?
Today, #inflation has continued to climb to a 40 year high of 9.1%.
When a third of people in the UK are already struggling to afford everyday essentials, these price rises will deliver yet another painful blow.
1/5
When a third of people in the UK are already struggling to afford everyday essentials, these price rises will deliver yet another painful blow.
1/5
With 10 years of wage stagnation and a hollowing out of our social security system, it’s no wonder people are now breaking under the pressure of soaring prices.
2/5
2/5
And the government’s excuse for not acting big simply doesn’t stack up.
Failing to support the economy risks long-term economic scarring that could take generations to turn around.
3/5
Failing to support the economy risks long-term economic scarring that could take generations to turn around.
3/5
At the centre of the #railstrike dispute is a decision by the government to cut investment in our railways and tube by £4bn. This is the wrong call when we should be putting more money into public transport to help people with the cost of travel.
1/6
1/6
Rather than bringing unions and train operators back round the table with a new funding settlement, the government is doubling down on the need for pay restraint to stop a wage-price spiral.
2/6
2/6
Wages have been stagnant for over 10 years – so many workers have already seen a big squeeze in their living standards. Public sector workers have been particularly hard hit with pay falling by 4% in real terms for over a decade.
3/6
3/6
Übergewinnsteuer Teil 3, Ausgestaltung und rechtliche Aspekte: Ich bin Ökonom, kein Jurist, habe aber vor längerer Zeit eine Ausbildung im Steuerrecht gemacht und bis 2018 für 8 Jahre als Referent für Steuerpolitik im Bundestag gearbeitet. 1/x
Meine Erfahrung dort: Es macht wenig Sinn mit Menschen, die prinzipiell (z.B. weil sie Interessen vertreten) gegen eine Steuer sind über deren Ausgestaltung zu diskutieren. Zumindest solange nicht, wie Diese glauben, die Steuer noch komplett abwenden zu können. 2/x
Daher werde ich mit dem Folgenden Niemanden überzeugen, der bisher nicht davon überzeugt werden konnte, dass eine Übergewinnsteuer prinzipiell sinnvoll ist. 3/x
Fortsetzung Übergewinnsteuer: Sieht man es makroökonomisch kommen weitere Argumente für die Steuer hinzu. Unter Anderem möchte der Bundesfinanzminister schon im kommenden Jahr wieder die Schuldenbremse einhalten. 1/x
Ich finde das falsch, aber er gewinnt auch keine Glaubwürdigkeit, indem er in diesem Jahr immer mehr Kredite aufnimmt, und gleichzeitig behauptet nächstes Jahr würde die Schuldenbremse auf jeden Fall gelten. 2/x
Vielmehr würde es Sinn ergeben schon jetzt einen kleinen Teil der Ausgaben für Unterstützungsmaßnahmen der Haushalte (die womöglich auch noch einmal ausgeweitet werden müssen) auch über Steuern und nicht vollständig über Kredite zu finanzieren. 3/x
Ich muss mich mal zur Übergewinnsteuer äußern. Selbstverständlich kann man dazu unterschiedlicher Meinung sein, aber die Debatte ist aus meiner Sicht (die eines Ökonom und Befürworters) schon durch viele zweifelhafte oder sogar falsche Argumente geprägt. 1/x
Viele machen den Denkfehler, Gewinne als etwas in der Marktwirtschaft Wünschenswertes bezeichnen. Das ist aber nur das Gewinnstreben, nicht sein Erfolg. Im Idealfall sollte der Wettbewerb dafür sorgen, dass langfristig nur geringe Gewinne entstehen. 2/x
Ein Wohlfahrtsmaximum wird bekanntlich erreicht, wenn ein vollkommener Wettbewerb dafür sorgt, dass der Preis den Grenzkosten entspricht. Das bedeutet nicht, dass überhaupt keine Gewinne entstehen. Alle Unternehmen die günstiger produzieren machen dann immer noch Gewinne. 3/x
Fantastic article here.
“If refineries in the U.S. get damaged during hurricane season, or anything else contributes to the market’s tightness, we could be in real trouble."
reuters.com/markets/commod…
“If refineries in the U.S. get damaged during hurricane season, or anything else contributes to the market’s tightness, we could be in real trouble."
reuters.com/markets/commod…
"Two years ago, margins for making fuel were in the dumps due to the pandemic, leading to multiple closures. Now, the situation has reversed, and the strain could persist for the next couple of years, keeping prices elevated."
& with #WindfallTax gonna get worse.
& with #WindfallTax gonna get worse.
Global refining capacity fell in 2021 by 730K barrels a day, the first decline in 30 years, according to the International Energy Agency. The number of barrels processed daily slumped to 78 mbpd in April, lowest since May 2021, far below the pre-pandemic average of 82.1 mbpd
#THREAD
Wages, only just back to 2008 levels once you account for inflation, are declining again.
Orthodox economics expected workers to get a better share of the pie during years of low unemployment, but 'free-market' #capitalism isn't working.
Why?
theconversation.com/wages-why-are-…
Wages, only just back to 2008 levels once you account for inflation, are declining again.
Orthodox economics expected workers to get a better share of the pie during years of low unemployment, but 'free-market' #capitalism isn't working.
Why?
theconversation.com/wages-why-are-…
First, the decline of union power together with the rise in firm power: British workers are not able to collectively demand & secure pay rises via unions - despite profits being up around 60% in real terms in 20 years, compared to growth in workers’ real wages of about 14%.
Second, while recorded unemployment has fallen, the actual level of unemployment is higher: workers on incapacity benefits would be in work if suitable jobs were available, but are not counted in the official unemployment statistics.
The #WindfallTax was a tax on "the excess profits of the privatised utilities" introduced by the 'New @UKLabour' government of Tony Blair in 1997, following a manifesto commitment to impose a "windfall levy" on the privatised utilities.
Was it any good?
Was it any good?
New Labour's #WindfallTax came after 18 years of Tory rule, which had seen #neoliberal privatisation of many state-owned assets, at prices which many considered too low.
It aimed to "put right the bad deal which customers & taxpayers got from the privatisation of the utilities".
It aimed to "put right the bad deal which customers & taxpayers got from the privatisation of the utilities".
The #WindfallTax produced a one-off income to the Govt of £5 billion, used to fund the New Deal, a questionable 'welfare-to-work' (workfare) program, & capital investment for schools & 'Learndirect', a training provider owned by the private equity firm Queens Park Equity.
Key point that's being missed about Rishi Sunak's Energy Profits Levy (#WindfallTax) on oil & gas profits: companies will be able offset investment in new fossil fuel extraction against their taxable profit. That's exactly what they'll do.
This tax is highly damaging to climate.
This tax is highly damaging to climate.
That's why Rishi Sunak didn't simply raise the existing Supplementary Charge on N. Sea oil & gas. That also allows investment offsets but not as big & only after profits from investment are booked.
The fossil fuel interests that fund the Tory Party will be delighted.
The fossil fuel interests that fund the Tory Party will be delighted.
... in fact, it's unlikely the #windfalltax will raise anything like as much as is being claimed. Nor will encourage investment in renewables.
With oil & gas profits soaring, fossil fuel corps will minimise their tax liability by ploughing profits back into new oil & gas...
With oil & gas profits soaring, fossil fuel corps will minimise their tax liability by ploughing profits back into new oil & gas...
It’s time to tax the profits of Big Energy Corporations and to give the money back to the people.
Our finance ministers should act & protect the interest of all european citizens. #WindfallTaxNow
Our finance ministers should act & protect the interest of all european citizens. #WindfallTaxNow
The Text of our #WindfallTax call
The idea of taxpayers paying for oil firms' decommissioning bills has been an ongoing issue we’ve tried to grapple with at EV – easily misrepresented because it's confusing.
The way analysts and commentators have explained it to me over the years is as follows...
The way analysts and commentators have explained it to me over the years is as follows...
In previous years, oil companies have paid more tax than they were due to – they’ve put money into the Treasury over and above their annual requirement.
When they get to the point of decommissioning – which is so costly that it effectively wipes out their profits...
When they get to the point of decommissioning – which is so costly that it effectively wipes out their profits...
..they then claim a rebate back from the Treasury which is used to justify their expenditure.
That is not “fresh” money, it should have been sitting there for them to claim back. So, in effect, there is no net cost to the taxpayer.
That is not “fresh” money, it should have been sitting there for them to claim back. So, in effect, there is no net cost to the taxpayer.
Good to see @hmtreasury is looking seriously at how to implement my proposed #windfalltax on excessive profits online giants have reaped during Covid while so many other sectors have been devastated by enforced lockdowns.
thetimes.co.uk/article/amazon… @thesundaytimes @ShippersUnbound
thetimes.co.uk/article/amazon… @thesundaytimes @ShippersUnbound
This is the right fair thing to do.
Most recently, I spoke about my #windfalltax thoughts in this #thread. ⤵️
Most recently, I spoke about my #windfalltax thoughts in this #thread. ⤵️
