Bristol's richest man won't pay 50p tax rate
Bristol's richest businessman, Peter Hargreaves, is threatening to leave the country rather than hand half his income to the taxman.
Chancellor Alistair Darling announced a 50 per cent tax rate for those earning more than £150,000 in last week's budget.
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Peter Hargreaves.
It means the 63-year-old entrepreneur, co-founder of financial adviser Hargreaves Lansdown, would have to pay an extra £500,000 a year in tax.
He told The Times business supplement: "I won't pay. I'll leave. Why wouldn't I? If I stay I'll pay half a million more a year in tax.
"If I leave the country I can save £3 million a year. It's almost like the Government is offering me a bribe worth £3m a year to go and live abroad."
Mr Hargreaves, who started his business in a bedroom in Clifton in 1981, is now the fifth richest man in the West Country, according to The Times Rich List.
If Hargreaves was starting out in business now, he wouldn't have chosen Britain.
"I sat down with my wife on Wednesday night (after the budget) to start talking about where we are going to go," he said.
"I paid £13m in tax last year. I wouldn't mind if it was money well spent.
"Does the Government not realise that any time any country in the world has raised taxes the people in the upper echelons pay less tax, because they avoid it.
"The tax take from the very wealthy will go down and they will end up taxing the poorer people because the wealthy people will just avoid it."
The Isle of Man and Monaco are two locations he is looking at.
Hargreaves sold shares worth £75m last year, but kept a £281m stake in his company.
His partner, Bristol City chairman Stephen Lansdown, 55, also sold shares but kept a major stake in the firm which employs more than 600 people and is the largest independent stockbroker outside London.
When the company floated on the stock exchange in May 2007, just before the credit crunch struck, the two entrepreneurs pocketed £150m between them. About 20 of their staff also became millionaires.
Bristol is still benefiting from the company's success.
Only two weeks ago Stephen Lansdown sold £47m of shares in the company to finance the construction of a new stadium for Bristol City football club.
Head of Research at Hargreaves Lansdown, Mark Dampier, said: "We all feel the same way. It's certainly a disincentive to work any harder."
Mr Hargreaves is not alone.
Leading accountancy firms have been inundated with calls from business people running firms both large and small worried about the tax hike.
"Lots of people, who have paid taxes in good faith and helped make the UK a lot of money, are now saying 'enough is enough'," said Michael Wistow, head of tax at the City law firm Berwin Leighton Paisner.
But Simon Woodroffe, founder of Yo! Sushi and former star of Dragons' Den, doesn't agree.
He said: "The 50 per cent tax rate is the right thing to do. We live in this blame culture, forever pointing fingers at politicians. It's all our faults. Anyone who is earning more than £150,000 is very rich and ought to spend more.
"Does it stop an entrepreneur? I think not. I met very few people who did it for the money. I've met a lot who did it for the fear of not having any money.
"There's lots of reasons that drive people, whether it's ego or trying to prove something to someone."
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by Mark, Bristol
Thursday, April 30 2009, 9:04AM
“Wai-Gong - that is wrong on so many levels that it's not worth picking apart!”
by Robin, Antalya Turkey
Wednesday, April 29 2009, 12:41AM
“If the government and in particular the Chancellor ot he Exchequer had done their sums correctly in the first place the country wouldn't be in the state it is in now. The only way the economy can recover is by generating revenue from direct and indirect taxation. However, there is a limit to what the British tax payer should have to pay for the government's mistakes born of greed and noses too far entrenched up the backsides of the American money machine. Greed and crass stupidity, lack of regulatory controls and a couldn't care less attitude as long as I am making money, THAT is what created our present crisis and now these idiots want the tax payer to bail them out for the next decade or more - yeah right, I am on the next bus out.”
by Robin Hollingbury, Antalya Turkey
Wednesday, April 29 2009, 12:29AM
“Britain has become a country where success is punished with extortionate taxation. Work hard and prosper sure - NOT, that should be rewarded not penalised. As it is taxes are too high across the spectrum. Sure Mr Hargreaves has done well, fair play to him. He is one of Bristol's biggest employers, if it wasn't for his success then hundreds may still be looking for a job. Too much sour grapes and jealousy. He worked hard for his money, why in the name of sanity should he give half to the government - shameful that is what it is and that is one of the reasons I too left Britain.”
by Reanne, Bristol
Tuesday, April 28 2009, 2:18PM
“I do think its wrong that you work hard and longer hours to earn more and then just have most of it taken away to pay for immagrants and other things that seem like a complete waste of time! My boyfriend works his ass off so he can make a good life for himself and hes only 21! He does alot of overtime and what he earns gets taken away from him when hes tryin so hard to save especialy now everything is getting more expensive! Its out of order!”
by Wai-Gong, Bristol
Tuesday, April 28 2009, 7:34AM
“Funny how a fuss is never made about the disparity of the fixed taxes which are hugely unfair. e.g Say someone on £15000 buys a £1000 tv (just an example), the tax is 1% of their income. For the person on £150000 the tax is 0.1% of their income. Is this fair?”
by Whagwan, Bristol
Tuesday, April 28 2009, 7:32AM
“Funny how nothing is ever mentioned of the fact that all the fixed taxes tax the poor by a lot more. e.g. a person earning £15000 wants to buy a £1000 tv (just an example), the VAT on this is 1% of their income. For the person earnign £150000 it's 0.1% of their income. Is this fair in the first place?”
by Grahame, Central Bristol
Monday, April 27 2009, 11:36PM
“Uber-communists and anarchists make me puke. What have any of you ever contributed?”
by Peter john, Kingswood
Monday, April 27 2009, 10:02PM
“Goodbye Mr Hargreaves and close the door behind you,your greed and the greed of your kind created the problems of the world and now you don't what to pay the price.I wish I had £500,000 to payout.Make sure you close the door behind you and don't bother to come back in better times.Nobody likes a scab anyway.”
by Horace Dowty, Portishead
Monday, April 27 2009, 9:50PM
“Come,come Mark,we must be honest,as buisness men we do every thing possible,indeed impossible, to pay as little tax to the exchequer as possible.”
by Mark, Bristol
Monday, April 27 2009, 9:30PM
“Horace, mine reduced mine by legal means. However, it didnt stop me paying plenty of taxes from the business itself (corp tax etc) and then tax on the dividends that i eventually took out. You will also be paying those things, so its not like you are evading tax.”