Here's the thing about the 'Evil Rich'. They know how to make money,they didn't get rich by being stupid and they certainly haven't stayed rich by being stupid either.
Which is exactly why they're fleeing the new French Socialist government and it's confiscatory tax rates in droves:
The latest estate agency figures have shown large numbers of France's most well-heeled families selling up and moving to neighbouring countries.
Many are fleeing a proposed new higher tax rate of 75 per cent on all earnings over one million euros. (£780,000)
The previous top tax bracket of 41 per cent on earnings over 72,000 euros is also set to increase to 45 per cent.
Sotheby's Realty, the estate agent arm of the British auction house, said its French offices sold more than 100 properties over 1.7 million euros between April and June this year - a marked increase on the same period in 2011.
Alexander Kraft, head of Sotheby's Realty, France, said: "The result of the presidential election has had a real impact on our sales.
"Now a large number of wealthy French families are leaving the country as a direct result of the proposals of the new government.{...}
Gilles Martin, a Swiss tax consultant, reported the same trend. "Since the socialists came to power in France, I have been deluged with inquiries from rich French people who would rather pay their tax in Switzerland," he told Switzerland's 20 Minutes newspaper.
A report earlier this year by London estate agents also showed France's richest people were heading to Britain to escape new higher taxes.
Yes, when the Socialist robber barons start salivating about stealing other people's money, there's usually someone else nearby more than willing to take in wealthy business people and take advantage of the availability of wealth creators and economic engines for a smaller slice of the pie.
As British PM David Cameron said, "If the French go ahead with a 75 per cent top rate of tax we will roll out the red carpet and welcome more French businesses to Britain and they can pay tax in Britain and pay for our health service and schools and everything else."
Don't think this phenomenon is limited to France.
O, Marianne [ sc, France ] , great lady, how far thou art fallen. But thou hast made thy bed, & now must thou sleep in it. [ To be fair, Sarkozy was quite a headache, a la Nixon. The Bettencourt scandal, which implicated his cabinet, eg, Woerth, was an incessant, abiding distraction. ] Back to the Socialists & their dreary company policies.
ReplyDelete1 thing I recall humourously re France is the popularity of 49-employee concerns. Why precisely 49 employees ? Well, at the dreaded 50 number, suddenly, you encounter a whole new raft of regulations & stipulations including : the worker councils. & try to fire someone in France ! Just try. Even if they are an habitual drunk, constantly tardy for work, you literally have to go to court to fire them !
PS : to neighbour Belgium : just do it ! Have a velvet divorce like Czechland & Slovakia. Convert silly Euroland Brussels into a self-governing enclave.
to neighbour UK : please, Back-Bench Tories, don't permit, under any circumstances, the creation of a circus, political-list Lib-Dem Senate. Keep the Lords as they are or abolish them, but no 15-year ( ! ) political-list Senators.
-- dragon/dinosaur