Latest news reveals that professionals from the financial sector in the UK are leaving Britain in a bid to avoid the planned raise of personal top tax rates to 51% in April 2010.
It is reported that hedge funds managing billions have already moved to Switzerland in the past twelve months with more following suit as we speak. Guernsey and the Isle of Mann are other destinations on private equity manager’s lists of tax havens, with many lawyers now busy advising professionals from all facets of financial management on how best to leave the country. The prospect is being made even more attractive as Switzerland’s member states of Zurich and Zug are proactively targeting British business with even lower than their already-low 14% tax rate. A tasty proposition for those about to lose half of their income.
And it’s not just financial professionals who are jumping aboard the arc to set sail for financial salvation. It is reported that young Brits, either looking for their first job or those moving and improving jobs before they settle down with a family, are opting for foreign shores; Australia being the most popular destination. At the other end of the scale, the popularity of Britain’s South Coastal cities and towns, such as Brighton and Bournemouth, is declining amongst pensioners as those lucky enough to be able to afford retirement in the first place, seek a better quality of life overseas. Even British icon Michael Caine is alleged to have got in on the action, claiming he will return to America if Britain increases the tax rates any further. English speaking destinations with warmer climates such as Australia, New Zealand, the U.S and Canada (albeit less warm) were the most popular targets for relocation.
It’s now thought that more British live abroad than any other nationality, ironically at the same time that immigration has hit its highest level ever recorded. Swapsies anyone? You don’t have to be a genius to work out that this mass exodus of young people and money-making professionals (along with their money) will have a yet further negative impact on the British economy in the long run. Who knows what ‘being British’ will mean in the not-so-distant future.