Miliband plans tax on bank bonuses (From Lancashire Telegraph)

National News

Miliband plans tax on bank bonuses

4:37pm Friday 10th February 2012 in National News © Press Association 2011

Labour Leader Ed Miliband during a visit to Griffon Hoverwork in Southampton

Getting young people into work using a tax on bankers' bonuses is a major priority for Labour, leader Ed Miliband has said at the launch of the party's local election campaign.

Ahead of the party's regional conference in Southampton, Mr Miliband visited the city's Griffon Hoverwork plant, which he said was an example to British industry

He was shown around the factory, which is currently involved in fulfilling an order for 12 22-metre craft for the Indian coastguard plus two more for the Korean coastguard and the Venezuelan agricultural ministry.

Mr Miliband said having one million young people out of work was bad for the country's economy.

During a question-and-answer session with staff, he said: "We want to see a tax for bankers' bonuses and we say use that money to get young people back to work. They are not going to like it but it's the right way to use that money."

He said a future Labour government would offer more support for young people who choose not to go to university and called on companies to introduce more apprenticeships.

Mr Miliband also called on the Government to abandon controversial NHS reforms in order to protect the jobs of doctors and nurses.

He said: "I say better not to go ahead with that big wasteful re-organisation and use that money to protect frontline services."

Adrian Went, managing director of Griffon, which employs about 160 staff, said: "We are very proud of what we do here. I feel we are helping to restore the maritime industry in Southampton - this is a classic British product and a classic Solent product."

He added: "We got across to Mr Miliband that we are working with local colleges to develop our apprentice schemes. It is quite testing to get candidates for apprenticeships that are of the right academic standard as there is such a high proportion of school leavers that are swept away into university."

Comments(2)

pjl20 says...
5:53pm Fri 10 Feb 12

The problem for Mr Miliband is that as a former Cabinet Minister in the previous Labour government he had the opportunity with his elected colleagues to introduce these taxation policies when in power and they didn't do so. The RBS bank is a good example of a lost opportunity, although £45 Billion of tax payer funds was injected into the bank, it was not nationalised even with an 82% equity stake. Therefore the politicians do not have the power to exert day-to-day control over bank policy and remuneration. Mr Miliband, I think, will have a very long wait before he has the opportunity to introduce his taxation proposals upon bank employees however determined he may be about it.

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newscritic says...
7:09pm Fri 10 Feb 12

What baloney from another sit on the fence politician.

I couldn't care less what bankers earn, that isn't the real issue.

Taxing their bonuses will not create one new job because the political will isn't there to create new jobs.

Take the latest bank bailout of quantative easing - all going to the same old people and not to employment or business.

The likes of Milipede, Cameroon and Clugg haven't a clue how to get people back to work especially as they don't want workers to retire therefore keeping the young out of work.

Cameroons advisor today said that pensioners should downsize and get back to work!

Austerity aint working with Greece set to explode into a spiral of public dissent and the collapse of the Eurozone.

This shower of idiotic politicians are useless.

But they could of course prove me wrong. Can't see any signs of improvement though.

Miliband plans tax on bank bonuses (From Lancashire Telegraph)

National News