The new budget

50% super-rich tax. This signifies a lurch back the to left and a rallying cry to the party faithfull. Brown's move attempts to draw a line in the sand over the issue of the wealth gap (which btw has INCREASED since Labour came into power, not decreased). He's attempting to retain as many voters as possible by emphasising what Labour originally stood for and to divert attention away from the utter failings of this current government. "No more muddling around in the confusing middle ground, we're thoroughbred lefties now".

As I read some of the comments posted to some popular bloggers, I notice again and again arguments against the 50% tax, based in the extremely misguided idea that we live in an absolute meritocracy...one such comment reads: I only earn around 20k per annum, but i think it's an unfair tax system we have, just because the better educated have high paying jobs they are being taxed at 50%. They should be rewarded for their hard work and not penalised. They have studied and worked hard to be where they are and should be in a position to reap the rewards of their hard work. Instead they will be paying a higher tax to support the country's unemployed.
If we really did live in a pure meritocracy how could any right minded person have a problem with rewarding people for their hard work. But we don't. People living off the hard work of others is rife in society. Just look at landlords or stockbrokers, hardly back-breaking work, is it? And yet we're supposed to believe these people deserve every penny. Dream on!

The worst thing is though, that Brown has only done this now, at the fag end of a labour government. Even then, only because it suits him out of self-preservation not out of a sense of duty to the working classes. This is a political trap. The Tories have stated they want 45% for the super-rich and that they promised not to cut taxes but by putting it up to 50%, the Tories will be forced to cut taxes. This budget should be of no surprise to anyone. The goverment has lavishly spent more and more money year on years, arrogantly assuming that there would be growth next year. And now they find themselves out of money so they are looking around in desperation to put the squeeze on anyone they think might have some and if they can score political points at the same time all the better.