Letters to the Editor
Fiscal failure
[RE: High inflation is denting recovery: The Bank of England must act now, Thursday]
Andrew Sentance makes some very good points. Quantitative easing (QE) has resulted in inflation. As an importer of wine, buying mainly in euros, weaker sterling affects my prices directly and we have no choice but to pass these on to the consumer. However, I don’t see what the Bank of England can necessarily do about this. QE can’t just disappear . It’s a different issue for George Osborne, however, Firstly, as a retailer the most damaging policy implemented by Osborne was the increase in VAT. This has had a hugely damaging effect on my business. We are now paying less VAT to HMRC (due to the damaging effect on our retail sales) than we were prior to him enacting the rate rise. The VAT lost as a result of the fall in revenue has exceeded the extra 2.5 per cent collected per sale. The intention of the policy, I presume, was to collect more tax. But the result is that my company is paying less tax. And other policies have made matters worse, such as the duty escalator rises – again government policy has added to inflation. Green taxes are also increasing our energy bills. The bottom line is that the Bank of England has done everything that can be expected of it. But the current government has thrown petrol on the fire through its failed policies.
Stephen Forward, Essentially Wine
BEST OF TWITTER
Horsemeat has now been found in school food. This whole problem looks like it’s gone undetected for far too long.
@rebecca3t
Why is David Cameron slamming supermarkets for horsemeat? He should be angry at the suppliers.
@King_David
Quantitative easing has been attacked by the Public Accounts Committee. Many of us have been saying the same for a long time.
@spygun
If the US is able to get free trade with the EU, without being in the Single Market, why can’t Britain also?
@DouglasCarswell