UK slaps one-off tax on oil and gas giants to ease the pain of soaring household energy bills

[onthedarkside]

U.K. Finance Minister Rishi Suna

 

LONDON — U.K. Finance Minister Rishi Sunak has imposed a windfall tax on oil and gas majors as the government scrambles to alleviate the country’s worsening cost-of-living crisis.

 

The measures come a day after a deeply embarrassing investigation into lockdown parties at Downing Street and amid sustained pressure on the ruling Conservative government to do more as soaring inflation pushes up the price of everything from food to fuel.

 

“The oil and gas sector is making extraordinary profits not as the result of recent changes to risk-taking or innovation or efficiency but as the result of surging global commodity prices driven in part by Russia’s war,” Sunak told lawmakers in the House of Commons on Thursday.

 

(more)

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/26/cost-of-living-crisis-uk-slaps-windfall-tax-on-oil-and-gas-giants.html

 

[Slip]

Johnson's government is starting to reek of desperation, but will it be enough to topple those gorging on the swill?  At least if Bojo goes there may be a very slight improvement.  

Edited May 26, 2022 by Slip
apostrophe s.

[SunnyinBangrak]

This is very unfair. A more sensible approach would be to lessen tax on oil and gas, not act with impunity and punish energy companies. It was only a year or 2 ago when they were making huge losses yet carried on serving the public. This 25% extra tax will never be dropped, govts are like drug addicts in that respect.

 I would suggest Shell, BP and other large energy companies delist from the LSE and move to jurisdictions which still have due process and the rule of law.

 Boris once again does the wrong thing by trashing the UK's reputation as a good and fair place to conduct business.

[baboon]

9 hours ago, onthedarkside said:

LONDON — U.K. Finance Minister Rishi Sunak has imposed a windfall tax on oil and gas majors as the government scrambles to alleviate the country’s worsening cost-of-living crisis.

No, they are scrambling to alleviate the anger over Partygate. They couldn't give a toss about suffering. These are people who burned £50 notes in front of the homeless, after all.

[gearbox]

Smells of communism. When the oil was down to $20 a few years ago did they consider gifting some money to the oil companies to help them in difficult times?

[Bluespunk]

So partygate leads to a tax on those making massive profits by exploiting energy requirements.
 

johnson’s hubris just keeps on giving. 

[SunnyinBangrak]

3 hours ago, baboon said:

No, they are scrambling to alleviate the anger over Partygate. They couldn't give a toss about suffering. These are people who burned £50 notes in front of the homeless, after all.

Exactly. That is the only reason for this windfall tax. Johnson and co know full well that by punishing energy companies the price hikes will be passed straight to the consumer. Total disaster in terms of managing inflation and energy prices, but a wonderful diversion of the party gate embarrassment. 

[Pedrogaz]

Great....about time. You should have done the same during the pandemic to the bandits who fadeout like bandits then.

[SunnyinBangrak]

15 minutes ago, Pedrogaz said:

Great....about time. You should have done the same during the pandemic to the bandits who fadeout like bandits then.

The end result here will be more expensive energy, and more expensive everything. Once the poor spend the 650 pound checks on lager and smokes they will suffer. Like the Americans with their "stimmy" checks, nobody is laughing now that gas has way more than doubled and stuff like baby food is harder to find that a fist sized gold nugget. No reason for energy companies to remain listed on the London Stock Exchange after the UK govt behaved like I would expect the CCP or some Marxist regime to behave. 65% tax on profits after already forcing all this investment in green mumbojumbo is going too far. 

[mrfill]

6 hours ago, gearbox said:

Smells of communism. When the oil was down to $20 a few years ago did they consider gifting some money to the oil companies to help them in difficult times?

Like years and years ago in 2020 when Shell received a tax rebate of £99.7m (on £21bn net income) from the UK government. Or in 2018 when they paid no corporation tax at all ?

 

At the moment they are making 'unexpectedly high profits' because they are charging such high prices and have said they don't mind paying more tax. No thought about reducing the price of course, to reduce their 'unexpectedly high profits' .

[dunroaming]

19 hours ago, Slip said:

Johnson's government is starting to reek of desperation, but will it be enough to topple those gorging on the swill?  At least if Bojo goes there may be a very slight improvement.  

Desperation indeed!  Still Jeremy Corbyn would be proud of his latest U-turn and the windfall tax!  Can't get more socialist that that.  

 

I would love to see Bojo go, but not to a Labour Government  He should be removed by his own party (oops! don't say party!) but most of them around him are too gutless to do it and would be a poor replacement.  And that is the problem.  They are all spineless liars on one level as they continue to back the moronic Johnson.

[Purdey]

Someone please explain, how does adding a tax bring costs down? Won't energy companies simply add the tax to their products?

[dunroaming]

8 minutes ago, Purdey said:

Someone please explain, how does adding a tax bring costs down? Won't energy companies simply add the tax to their products?

That is a fair question.  In France and other EU countries they capped the price increase from the energy countries that meant they couldn't increase it any more than the cap.  However the UK didn't do that which is why we have these eye watering increases.  Putting a windfall tax on them is unheard of for a Conservative Government but in desperation that is what they have done.

 

Whether they plan to put a future cap on the increases  remains to be seen and does go against normal conservative policy, but who knows with these clowns?  BP have said that they will be reviewing their North Sea operations but I have no idea what that means.

[BusyB]

Actually it's all a bit of smoke and mirrors to protect the crime minister - this money will be paid to consumers who will ... yes ... use it to pay the energy companies for their bills. There are far better schemes underway in Europe to target those who really need the help.

[Andycoops]

A pure diversionary tactic to try and move the narrative away from the blundering blonde bunter who was born a liar and will die a liar.

[mrfill]

13 hours ago, dunroaming said:

That is a fair question.  In France and other EU countries they capped the price increase from the energy countries that meant they couldn't increase it any more than the cap.  However the UK didn't do that which is why we have these eye watering increases.  Putting a windfall tax on them is unheard of for a Conservative Government but in desperation that is what they have done.

 

Whether they plan to put a future cap on the increases  remains to be seen and does go against normal conservative policy, but who knows with these clowns?  BP have said that they will be reviewing their North Sea operations but I have no idea what that means.

UK does have a cap and has had for some while.

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/price-cap-increase-ps693-april

[wombat]

13 hours ago, dunroaming said:

 

I would love to see Bojo go

Sadly the alternative is comrade what's his name...that would be a real travesty.

BOJO knows he is on a good thing and will stick to it.

[baboon]

15 hours ago, Purdey said:

Someone please explain, how does adding a tax bring costs down? Won't energy companies simply add the tax to their products?

'Try that and we're nationalising your assets' is always an option...

[dunroaming]

10 hours ago, mrfill said:

UK does have a cap and has had for some while.

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/price-cap-increase-ps693-april

I am talking about the cap that the countries brought in to deal with the current massive price rises.  By October my bills will have risen to  £290 pounds a month from £120 a month.  France put a price cap of 4% on energy companies as did other countries.

 

That is why the Government have been forced to make a windfall tax on the energy companies here and are now throwing money at the people to try to save their sorry (deleted). 

[Lancelot01]

On 5/27/2022 at 5:32 AM, SunnyinBangrak said:

Exactly. That is the only reason for this windfall tax. Johnson and co know full well that by punishing energy companies the price hikes will be passed straight to the consumer. Total disaster in terms of managing inflation and energy prices, but a wonderful diversion of the party gate embarrassment. 

Where did you obtain your degree in economics or are you simply surmising?