Whiteshill swimming lessons lead to tirade on tax and inequality

Whiteshill Primary School children faced the loss of their swimming lessons due to lack of parents paying the voluntary donation of £2.90 per child per lesson. However after hearing of the loss an anonymous donor stepped in with £300 to make up the shortfall.

Standish Woods: the bluebells are looking stunning

The Dept for Education doesn't allow compulsory charges for items like swimming - and rightly so - but it is a poor situation when schools have to rely on such goodwill - the Dept for Ed should be funding such activities properly. To learn swimming should not be a privilege - yes some of those refusing to make a donation could probably pay but why not take it out of the tax system - now don't get me on that.... the gap between our richest and poorest workers widens evermore....

The poorest quintile of the UK population pay a greater proportion of their income as a whole in tax than the richest. This cannot be right. This is compounded by Britain's notably soft approach in dealings with companies which are domiciled in tax havens. Under Labour even the Inland Revenue itself transferred ownership of its buildings (incl the tax office in Stroud) to a company registered in Bermuda for tax purposes!

This very real increase in inequality is damaging social cohesion and distorts our whole economy. Directors' pay at Britain's top companies soars at more than seven times the rate of average pay. In contrast average earnings are rising just above inflation at 3.7%. Last year at Tesco, for example - which is third from the bottom of the low payers amongst big companies - its 368,000 staff get an average of £11,594, down from £12,713 a year ago yet its chief executive, Sir Terry Leahy, was paid more than £5m.

Labour have made some improvements, compared to the Tories, but they are very minimal. Our society is growing more unequal and now all three main parties shy away from increasing tax for those earning over £100,000. Meanwhile, our health service is being damaged by Government policy whilst New Labour continue to spend billions on its illegal war in Iraq.

Why are the main parties so scared to tax the rich? Where is the debate? Wealth inequality is rising and contributes to ill-health, crime and other social problems and even those who are materially better off are not always happier.

The Green Party has a different approach, believing top earners should contribute more in taxes and that for peace and community harmony we must reduce the current gross inequalities, both between the richest and poorest countries and the richest and poorest people within them. Greens want 60% on earnings over £100,000 like in Denmark and under Thatcher plus we need to abolish tax havens for the super-rich. These havens cost an estimated £25bn-£85 billion a year; up to 74 per cent of all the income tax the exchequer receives! Public services could really benefit from that!!

Greens also advocate a Citizens Income (CI) like in Alaska: an automatic, unconditional payment sufficient to cover basic needs to every individual, working or not with specialist benefits, such as disability and incapacity benefits paid on top. A CI is the most efficient way of circulating wealth, allowing maximum possible economic activity (within ecological limits), whilst eliminating unemployment and poverty traps.

There is a viable alternative to our current tax system, but we wont find it with the other main parties. Yes I said don't get me going on all that....it is great that Whiteshill children will be able to continue swimming but we shouldn't have to rely on such donations.