Ολαντ : "75% φορολογία" - Κάμερον " καλώς ήρθε το ( γαλλικό ) κεφάλαιο"

Cameron Says Rich French Tax Exiles Welcome in the U.K.

By Nicholas Winning

If French President Francois Hollande‘s government slaps a 75% income tax rate on those earning over €1 million a year, then Britain would be very happy to take those people in, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday in a comment that may put some French noses out of joint.

Mr. Cameron knows a thing or two about the controversial issue of taxing the rich after his government’s decision in March to lower its top rate of income tax to 45% from 50% on incomes over  £150,000 drew strong criticism from unions and the main centre-left opposition party. But his view was warmly received by the audience at an event for business people on the fringes of a summit of Group of 20 leaders in Mexico Monday.

“Every country sets its own tax rates, but I think in a world of global capital, in a world where we’re competing with each other, in a world where we want to send a message that we want you to build businesses, grow businesses and invest, I think it’s wrong to have completely uncompetitive top rates of tax,” he said when asked by one businessman in the audience what he thought of the plans of one European government to lower the pension age to 60 and introduce a 75% tax rate for top earners.

“If the French go ahead with a 75% top rate of tax we will roll out the red carpet and welcome more French businesses to Britain and they will pay taxes in Britain and that will pay for our health service, and our schools and everything else,” Mr. Cameron said to a round of applause.

On the pension issue, Mr. Cameron said his government believed in combining pension provision with a rise in the retirement age that is linked to longevity. He also warned that a cut in the pension age in one euro-zone country could have consequences for fiscal transfers to other euro member states in problems.

“It does make it quite difficult to ask one set of taxpayers to subsidise a different set of retirement ages,” he said.

WSJ