Author | Lightnews

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 52m

Seems like Scotland is getting more out of the union than England.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 1d

Glad to see you didn't take this sitting down...

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 1d

It is possible that my post wasn't entirely serious. But please, go ahead and treat it as if it was.

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

I'm looking forward to seeing reinstatement of The Divine Right of Kings in the SNP's next manifesto...

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

Unbelievable tone deaf interviews on Jeremy Vine today. He appears to have found the two people in the country who think Andrew's been hard done by.

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

Remind us, what was a scottish army doing down in Derby in 1745?

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

Well, parliament can always change the rules on the succession, and has done so on multiple occasions. They could even reinstate the Stuarts if they felt like it. I think the next in line is currently a princess in Liechtenstein.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

Once again you are conflating the monarchy and the crown estate. They have been separate things since 1760. The crown estate IS classified as a public corporation separate from the treasury (although obviously that's where the revenue goes, where else would it go?)

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

It's a quango whose income goes straight to the treasury. If it were abolished, its replacement would be another quango whose income goes straight to the treasury. What else would you do with it?

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 2d

The crown estate was taken off the monarch in 1760.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 3d

Which monarchies are we talking about?

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Reposted by Andrew Thomson

Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 3d

She’s right. She *deliberately* hacked into Harriet Harman’s website, whereas Rachel Reeves is accused of obtaining a license late by accident. I assume that’s what she means, given Badenoch is widely known for her thoughtfulness and her self-awareness.

Sky News @news.sky.com · 3d

Badenoch says hacking into Harriet Harman's website 17 years ago 'not the same' as Reeves breaking law

Kemi Badenoch has said hacking into Harriet Harman's website when she was younger is "not the same" as Rachel Reeves failing to get a £900 rental licence for her home.

news.sky.com

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 3d

Origin Story. It's very good. Although be warned: the Webbs do not come out of it well.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 3d

Lower upper middle class fragility. See Orwell.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 4d

If wealth was limited to what was in bank accounts then yes, s wealth tax would be easy to set up. But assets are far more diverse than that, particularly for the very tich. That's what makes it hard.

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

The first thing you would do is look at how other places do it. Then you find only four countries in the entire world have a wealth tax and it raises a pittance.

Raise CGT and put a new higher rate on income tax. That can be done ASAP.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Labour have in fact increased spending since coming into office. The difference is Brown inherited an economy in 1997 which was in much better shape than Reeves inherited in 2024.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Yes, that and an entirely new taxation infrastructure and an army of tax inspectors and valuation experts to value assets and an army of lawyers to fight the inevitable court cases. Apart from that it's dead easy.

Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Yeah but your graph doesn't rhyme.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Blair kept to Tory spending plans for the first two years (and was severely criticised for doing so, even by the Tories). It wasn't until later on in the first term the work began to bear fruit.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Yep, right now we could do with a magnificently moustachioed American financier to arrange some dodgy loans and then conveniently die in the Waldorf Astoria.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

Introducing a wealth tax is really hard. Taxing offshore wealth is impossible.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

They can magic these things into existence. There's a big lever in Whitehall that you pull and all these things happen.

But seriously:
My wages aren't higher; those earning minimum wage are.
Councils have a bit more money; most is taken up by care costs.
And yes, I have seen my doctor quicker.

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Andrew Thomson @quantinghome.bsky.social · 5d

That's a contradiction. You can't magic a brand new tax into existence. It would take years to implement.

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Reposted by Andrew Thomson

Torsten Bell @torstenbell.bsky.social · 6d

Totally untrue garbage from @thetimes.com & @dailymail.co.uk today - smear dressed up as journalism. Some facts:
- There is no “£900 desk”
- my constituency office has Ikea desks/chairs
- we significantly underspent the new MPs allowance to set up an office
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Treasury minister leading budget plans spent £900 on desk

Torsten Bell, who is working with Rachel Reeves to fill a £30 billion hole in finances, also used his parliamentary expenses to claim £600 for three chairs

www.thetimes.com

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