Regressive Intelligence
I think (not sure yet) I have figured out what they mean by "GST is regressive". However here's an excerpt from an insightful article introduced to me from the LJ-er formally known as badnomad (LFKAB) ....
"Contrary to what most people believe, GST is not necessarily a regressive tax vehicle. Nearly 70% of households in Singapore do not pay personal income tax, with the bulk of the personal income tax burden falling on the top 5% of income earners. Therefore, a higher GST would not be much of a burden on middle-income households. Although a higher GST would impose an additional burden on low-income households, this could be eased by providing small cost-of-living supplements to, let's say, the bottom 20% of households. For example, if, hypothetically, GST were to be raised from 3% to 6%, poorer households with an income of S$2,000 or less would pay an additional S$60 in GST a month. The government could easily provide S$60 to these households and thus eliminate their additional consumption tax burden."
Read the rest here GST GST GST! 2%, 5%, 7%, 40%, %, % and more %
"Contrary to what most people believe, GST is not necessarily a regressive tax vehicle. Nearly 70% of households in Singapore do not pay personal income tax, with the bulk of the personal income tax burden falling on the top 5% of income earners. Therefore, a higher GST would not be much of a burden on middle-income households. Although a higher GST would impose an additional burden on low-income households, this could be eased by providing small cost-of-living supplements to, let's say, the bottom 20% of households. For example, if, hypothetically, GST were to be raised from 3% to 6%, poorer households with an income of S$2,000 or less would pay an additional S$60 in GST a month. The government could easily provide S$60 to these households and thus eliminate their additional consumption tax burden."
Read the rest here GST GST GST! 2%, 5%, 7%, 40%, %, % and more %