OMG!!!! you economic illiterates. Have you ever read an economics textbook?

(there….saved you the bother)

Dialectic of a Universal Transaction Tax – You might find this article interesting, it brings up some good points. Ultimately though, any extra taxation will inevitably be passed to us, the taxpayer, which is what you are advocating.

http://thedailybell.com/3437/Dialectic-of-a-Universal-Transaction-Tax

1 – It’s a European law textbook they need to read. As long as the UK is opposed to an FTT (and all three major parties are), it can’t be imposed on an EU-wide basis. Literally nothing to see here…

I don’t understand the comment about economics textbooks. I’ve read an economics textbook. It bore no reality to the real world.

“it can’t be imposed on an EU-wide basis. Literally nothing to see here…”

Hence you have nothing to worry about then

5 – It’s better than that. I work in the City. If this does get imposed, it can only be on a non-EU wide basis, which would mean that all the broking/trading currently done in Paris and Frankfurt would re-locate to London. Quids in!

If our continental friends wish to silt up their financial harbours, that’s entirely their own affair. We can shake our heads and profit from their foolishness.

@6 – exactly – it’s an excellent idea!

Its really nice to see the true face of the European Union on display, the forcefulness is great, last time I checked the UK,Sweden ,Czech Republic, Romania,Bulgaria Luxembourg,Malta,Cypress,Ireland and Slovenia were all against a European financial transaction tax, in one way or another.

To think all this opposition has disappeared, the legal barriers have come down, just because the Franch and the Germans have decided to push ahead, its amazing..

“OMG!!!! you economic illiterates. Have you ever read an economics textbook?”

Oh please don’t be daft, even if this tax costs twenty times more than it coins in revenue, its not illiterate. Banks make profit, banks continue to make profit, banks also lent money to Governments and now those government’s cant afford to pay, the banks did it on purpose to the governments so the banks really do have to pay!

Robin Hood was fighting against high taxes , not for them

LOL. Must have been a different Robin Hood to the character my parents told me about then. Rather than steal from the rich to give to the poor, i’m guessing he wrote about the evils of inheritance tax and political correctness then?

Maybe the sheriff of nottingham used to blame unemployment on Robin Hood’s activities creating a dependancy culture……

I wonder. If we do actually have an FTT will those pushing so hard for it ackowledge the damage and economic disaster it will inevitably be?

Or will they be like Europhiles – singing all the Euro’s praises and never admitting to any of the dangers or damage it has caused.

It’s funny how the two groups overlap so heavily, yet it’s pretty plain to see the Euro has been a failure and those who advised against it were right. Now we are supposed to the people who got it so horribly wrong *again*???

Jan 6 (Reuters) – France aims to take a decision on financial transaction taxes by the end of January to set an example for the rest of Europe, even if Germany does not follow immediately, presidential adviser Henri Guaino said on Friday.

The idea, which is unpopular with Britain, will be discussed when President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel meet next Monday in Berlin and at a meeting of the European Council in Brussels on Jan. 30.

“Decisions will be taken by the end of January as far as France is concerned,” Guaino said. “France will take the lead on this issue. We will see how it can be applied.”

“It’s better if Germany is involved. I hope we can do it with Germany. We will keep discussing it in the coming days and weeks, but France is ready to lead by example on this front and hopes it can bring others along,” he said.

:):)!

“Both leaders have made clear that banks helped cause this economic disaster and must shoulder their fair share of the recovery costs.”

Excellent, so why not try to tax banks rather than users of banking services?

“Both have indicated a proportion of the revenue could be used to tackle poverty and climate change.”

That will be interesting as an FTT will reduce overall revenue collection.

“led to a financial crisis that knocked at least £1.8 trillion, and as much as £7.4 trillion, from our GDP according to the Bank of England.”

That’s even more interesting, given that UK GDP is around £1.4 trillion. So we’re in negative territory now are we?

“Simon is a spokesperson for the Robin Hood Tax campaign” (and should probably check in his figures before he publishes Europhile Propaganda, thanks @Tim Worstall).

Looks like you’re on your own there Simon!

“Excellent, so why not try to tax banks rather than users of banking services?”

I thought your claim was that it was impossible to tax banks (or a corporation in general) as the tax would always be passed to a combination of customers, workers and shareholders.

to “knock £1.8tn” off UK GDP you would need, roughly, for the financial crisis to have caused UK GDP to be 10% lower than it would otherwise have been, every year for the next 10 years. Lord knows where the £7.4tn number comes from – the next 100 years? The author should have written “knock £1.8tn off GDP over a decade“. You have to specify the time span, because unless specified otherwise GDP is reported annually. Editor asleep at the desk.

LOL. Must have been a different Robin Hood to the character my parents told me about then. Rather than steal from the rich to give to the poor, i’m guessing he wrote about the evils of inheritance tax and political correctness then?

Maybe the sheriff of nottingham used to blame unemployment on Robin Hood’s activities creating a dependancy culture……

The Kingdom must raise money to fund its war with France. In response to a taxation on trade routes, Robin Hood organises a blockade around the town of Nottingham.
- The Hooded Menace by George Lucas age 67½.

casino banking business model that only 4 years ago led to a financial crisis that knocked at least £1.8 trillion, and as much as £7.4 trillion, from our GDP according to the Bank of England.

This is not true. The Bank of England has not made this claim, The Robin Hood campaign should stop saying this.

Andrew Haldane has calculated that if “different fractions of the 2009 loss are permanent – 100%, 50% and 25%” [my emphasis] then the present discounted sum of the reduction in the path of GDP to infinity (i.e. not just over the next 10 years) would be these numbers.

This is entirely arbitrary – there is no reason to think that projecting forward the estimated reduction in GDP in 2009 is a sensible way to estimate the long-run cost of the crisis. Haldane is making an illustrative point, not an assertion about reality. In reality, there may be no permanent reduction in the path of GDP at all (i.e. are we poorer now because of the Great Depression? It’s not obvious that we are).

“But Germany, Italy and the European Commission today urged France not to go it alone on the issue. “It is necessary that the different countries do not go it alone in the application of this tax. ”

I am so very confused – for months much talk and no action and now a heroic France has stepped up to the plate, willing to implement this flawless tax, which would put an end to the outrage of banks making profits ( I still can not believe that one, banks make profits, we have allowed this to happen!!!!!! )

But now we see Frances European brothers and sisters saying no France don’t do it, so very confusing.

@6 – Sure. Hope you don’t trade with ANY other EU-centric companies, because you’re going to lose that business, or have a punitive tax slapped on top. Then you’ll whine and I’ll laugh.

@14 – Of course, and Plan A meant the economy would recover. Reality doesn’t factor in ToryNomics. Gotta support the 1% at all costs, build another bubble.

Speaking as an Old Nottinghamian, the most notable thing about Robin Hood is that he is – like his tax – a legend.

Keep up the displacement activity, guys,

The European Commission’s estimation that a financial transactions tax (known as a Tobin Tax) would raise €37bn (£30.5bn) is “based on overly optimistic assumptions,” Ernst & Young says today.

The Commission has acknowledged that it did not address the impact of lower GDP on revenue collection from other taxes,” states economic adviser Marie Diron. “Even when modelled against the best case scenario this incurs a €39bn loss, making the net impact on overall tax revenues a loss of €2bn.

Using the Commission’s worst case scenario, involving a 1.76 per cent hit to GDP, the tax could result in a net loss to public finances of €116bn.

Ouch.

Sure. Hope you don’t trade with ANY other EU-centric companies, because you’re going to lose that business, or have a punitive tax slapped on top. Then you’ll whine and I’ll laugh.

This isn’t right. It isn’t even wrong.

If an FTT is levied in France, then all the trading carried out by BNP Paribas in Paris, will move to BNP Paribas in London. Where it won’t attract an FTT. What “punitive tax” do you suggest should be applied to this? A French tax on BNP for relocating services to the UK? Do you know anything about European law?