Thread by @docrussjackson

#THREAD

The number of UK billionaires has increased by a fifth - from 147 in 2020, to 177 now - since the onset of the Covid pandemic, according to a report calling for a progressive wealth tax to tackle rising inequality amid the #CostofLivingCrisis.

equalitytrust.org.uk/sites/default/…

“The sudden explosion in extreme wealth was in large part due to measures aimed at lessening the impact of COVID on the economy, as central banks pumped TRILLIONS of pounds into financial markets, leading to a stock market boom which effectively lined the pockets of shareholders”

“While Covid-19 saw billionaire wealth rise to levels never seen before, the construction of the economic infrastructure that has enabled this mass accumulation stretches back over the last four decades.”

#EnoughIsEnough

The @equalitytrust report found that the number of billionaires in the UK had risen more than tenfold from 15 in 1990, when the Sunday Times first published its Rich List, after taking into account inflation over that time period.

#EnoughIsEnough #SupportTheStrikes

Using inflation-adjusted wealth data from archive copies of the Rich List, it said the combined wealth of Britain’s billionaires had risen to more than £653 BILLION in 2022. “This represents an increase in billionaire wealth of over 1,000% over the past 32 years.”
#EnoughIsEnough

“That we have allowed the very richest few to accrue such a staggering amount of the nation’s wealth since 1990 is a national disgrace. The UK’s record on wealth inequality is appalling, grossly unjust, & presents a real threat to our economy & to our society.”
- Jo Wittams.

“Every year we are invited to celebrate the very richest individuals & families in the UK, while food bank usage continues to increase, 3.9 MILLION children are living in poverty & 6.7 MILLION households struggle to heat their homes.”

“We call on the Government to tax wealth in line with incomes, reform the financial sector & end the UK’s role in tax avoidance. Two-thirds of Britons agree that ordinary working people do not get their fair share of the nation’s wealth & it is time the government took action.”

Tax equality campaigners claim the government could raise up to £37 BILLION to help pay for public services if it introduced wealth taxes.

Tax Justice UK has called on the government to introduce five tax reforms targeting the very wealthy.

Instead, we're getting #austerity 2.0

“At a time when most people are being hit hard by the #CostOfLivingCrisis it would be wrong to cut public services further. The wealthy have done really well financially in the last few years. The chancellor should protect public spending by taxing wealth properly.”

#TaxtheRich

Figures released in November by the @TrussellTrust revealed that 1.3 MILLION emergency food parcels were provided to people between April & September this year by food banks in the charity’s UK network, almost half a million of these went to children.

#30pLee blames the parents.

The UK Govt CHOOSES to demonise & inflict poverty on the already vulnerable.

The 1.3 MILLION emergency food parcels figure is a third more than were provided during the same period in 2021, & an increase of more than 50% compared to pre-pandemic levels.

trusselltrust.org/2022/11/10/alm…