Simplify the tax rates...

So Gordon Brown Alistair Darling is to introduce a new 50p top rate tax band on everyone who earns more than £150,000 a year.

Apart from breaking a manifesto pledge not to raise tax rates, when will Labour realise that you do not make the poor rich by making the rich poor.

Apart from making work for accountants (Hi Sean), why not simplify tax rates. On the first £10,000 you pay nothing – taking the poorest out of a vicious circle; 20p on £10,000.01 up to £50,000 and 30p on £50,000.01 to infinity and beyond.

If Labour is not careful, we will have another brain drain like we had in the 70s when income tax reached 98p in the pound. Utter madness.

Good news for Ian Blair...

The Metropolitan Police Force are investigating the missing CDs containing personal data from HMRC.

How Ian Blair must be rubbing his hands in glee. This latest government cock-up gets him off the front pages (till his next cock-up) and almost makes some people forget about the fact that he, too, along with Alistair Darling should be shown the door.

But only some people...

Move over Darling

How is Alister Darling still in his job?

Not that long ago politicians would resign if something went awry in their department. As the boss they take ultimate responsibility - or at least they should.

In April 1982, then foreign secretary Lord Carrington said that he would have to resign when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands - even though he had nothing to do with it and it was Margaret Thatcher's poor diplomacy that led to the war.

The head of the Inland Revenue (now Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs), Paul Gray, has done the decent thing and resigned.

It is high time that the chancellor followed his lead and fell on his sword.

UPDATE: The Daily Mail reports: "Meanwhile, Paul Gray, the £190,000-a-year chairman of HM Customs & Revenue [sic] who resigned yesterday, is set to remain on full salary pending a deal to let him retire on a full pension. Mr Gray, who was praised for quitting 'as a matter of honour', will not lose a penny by falling on his sword." Hmm, would that we could all resign in such circumstances...

FURTHER UPDATE: It has now been revealed that Paul Gray did not do the decent thing but was sacked by Alister Darling.

Another government disaster...

Unbelievably, the Government has lost details of 25 million child benefit recipients. The information including bank details - contained on two disks - was sent to the National Audit office by unrecorded delivery. In the House of Commons today the deputy chancellor (Gordon Brown still runs the economy) Alistair Darling apologised for what he said was "an extremely serious failure" but insisted people were not at risk from ID fraud.

Can anyone now seriously believe that the government can be trusted with ID cards?