Is it time to invest in pitchfork futures? That’s what Will Collier thought after finding this story:
The Irish government plans to institute a tax on private pensions to drive jobs growth, according to its jobs program strategy, delivered today.
Without the ability sell debt due to soaring interest rates, and with severe spending rules in place due to its EU-IMF bailout, Ireland has few ways of spending to stimulate the economy. Today’s jobs program includes specific tax increases, including the tax on pensions, aimed at keeping government jobs spending from adding to the national debt.
The tax on private pensions will be 0.6%, and last for four years, according to the report.
Will adds, “Lovely. Raiding citizens’ savings to pay for a “jobs program.” That’s not just robbing Peter to pay Paul, that’s ripping off Peter’s grandma to give Paul a bar of genuine iron pyrite.”
Think that It Can’t Happen Here™? There’s been talk in DC for a couple years now of simply raiding everyone’s 401(k) retirement plans for all their value now, in exchange for monthly IOUs later. Some exchange. And Lord only knows what they’d spend it on — jobs training might be the best of it.
The Treasury and Labor departments seem to have put the kabosh on those plans for now despite “a tremendous amount of interest in the White House.” and I doubt anything remotely like that would get through the GOP-controlled House.
Still, you never know what mischief a desperate government will get into, as event in Ireland have proven yet again.
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