VAT, Cake and other ties

[Emma]

I can't beleive it, I was leaving advice on Saturday about shed security on one of the threads, without realising that that very evening mine had been taken!


This was how the thread started in "Someone stole my shed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "
It then became off topic so I have started a thread for the vagaries of UK VAT.
Jaxom

[VicB]

Lack of crime in france and vat on food in UK

Sad, Sad ,Sad, My wife wants to return to UK as we retired to France, I am reluctant as we watch UK TV and so much crime in UK, here we can leave our doors unlocked, keys in our car, no muggins, young children and youths who are courteous to elders and each other, the only problem they speak a different 'lingo' and being in our 70's it take a bit of doing to learn. I dread returning but have to do as wife wants, just hope I can pick a good spot to live that is crime free and friendly.
Also we only pay �400 per year council tax here, no road fund licence for cars, no TV licence, fuel is cheaper, food prices about the same but its does include vat, wait till GB intro vat on food in UK.
However, I sympathise with your plight, UK should have the Gendarmes there, they sort it out.

[Alice]

Hello VicB, What a pretty picture you paint of life in France. Have spent a lot of time there myself. Yes, what you say is true, but only of rural regions with all the drawbacks that go with that. In equally remote areas of Britain the same things would be true. In big cities all the same problems arise. Look at the news. Much of the lifestyle that you (I too) love in France only exists through massive subsidies that UK taxpayers (and otheres) pay to subsidise that lifestyle.Without these subsidies France would be a maedieval backwater in the middle of Europe. That's why we pay them. Politically, socially and economically without them the place would be up in flames (literally) Might get this deleted for political comment . Love France but can see what it's all about. Viva la France. Cocorico..

[Don Vincenzo]

France

I totally agree with you that big cities have social problems and pro, but surely I cannot agree with you that France is in the middle of Europe, perhaps you refer to the old EU. Vive Europe!!!!!!!!! Don Vincenzo

[blossom]

I thought the uk already has vat on food, apart from milk????

[Jaxom]

VAT is a funny thing when it comes to food here in the UK. Some things attract vat and some don't. Cake is vat free but biscuits are vat incurring.
It is a case of food that is considered a staple and therefore necessary part of daily diet and foods that are considered to be a luxury.
Butter is vat free but margarine and butter that spreads straight from the fridge incurs the vat.
Jaffer Cakes went to court to prove they were exempt from VAT even though the product itself is to be found in the biscuit isle and not the cake isle.

[Squirrel]

Can someone please tell me when cake became a staple in the diet!!!! For heavens sake we have so many obese people in this country and they call cake a staple! GRRRR Perhaps if they changed the labelling so that we know which products we have to pay VAT on, it might make people think a little before stuffing themselves with junk food!

I am not above buying naughties myself, love chocolate cake!, but calling it a staple is the outside of enough. Lordy I have not been this hot under the collar over something since way back when!

[Sunbeam]

Perhaps if everything 'healthy' was VAT free - GOOD meat (not nasty processed/frozen yuk) Fresh vegetables, Free Range Eggs, etc & all the rest of the gumpf (and that is the only way to describe it) is VAT-able then people would chose to eat a better diet. Whilst I recognise that good quality (esp meat & proper vegetables, not the force-grown stuff ) costs more due to the length of time it takes to raise it, there is no comparison when it comes to taste... when are we as a nation going to become food lovers rather than sitting back and accepting the c**p that is constantly dished out to us by supermarkets/schools/fast food companies etc...

and whilst I'm standing on my soap box why is it when the govt is constantly harping on about childhood obesity (and adult) do they allow the fast food giants to promote their children's meals with TOYS!!!!! My son has been to M-D approx 3 times (missed lunch - starving child situation) I gave up trying to give him their healthy options when I gave him their fruit bags the first time we went - dry sour pre sliced, prepacked nastiness; wouldn't it have been cheaper to give sell a whole banana/apple - how much more convenient can they be? They come in their own packaging too!) When we pass one now - he asks if we are going back in, not because of the food - aside from their ''fries'' he had to be coaxed into finishing his meal - but because he got a neat little car to go with it... it is out and out bribery - buy our product & you get a pressie!!! Argggghhhhhhh!

I apologise to any fast food fans out there - and having got all that off my chest I will attempt to step with dignity off my groaning soap box - sorry!!

[Lesley Jay]

Not all bicuits have VAT on them. They need to have chocolate on then they are liable to VAT. Gingerbread men are VAT free but if they are decorated with more than two spots of chocolate then VAT is liable. Cereal bars have VAT on them. The majority of food is VAT free.

[Peter]

Lesley, do you get out much?

[Lesley Jay]

I read a lot you cheeky devil !!!!!

[Clarea1]

I cannot believe that some biscuits are tax free becuase they are considered 'essential' but for long enough woman have had to pay VAT on sanitary products, I ask you... what is more essential?

As a woman I would have to say I consider sanitary wear essential (can you imagine the fuss if you turned up to work looking like an RTA victim every 3 weeks? I also consider that in times when sanitary wear is essential, biscuits and gingermen with lots of chocolate are also essential!

[lyndap]

Clarea1, I totally agree,especially with the essential lots and lots of choc at the above mentioned certain time! I recon sanitary items should be free, plus at least half price chocs to keep us free of pmt.Crickey you definately do get some strange things to talk about on this forum.

[Jaxom]

Cake being VAT free goes back to the days when people cooked their own.
The ingredients for cake are as near to bread as they can be.
Cake= Flour, fat, sugar, raising agent, salt, egg, milk.
Bread= Flour, fat, sugar, raising agent, salt, milk powder, water.
Not all households could bake loafs of bread but they could make flat bread or cake to put on the table. Think back forty years ago to what British people ate at mealtimes. This was before Supermarkets and meals then were rather basic. Meat, potatoes and two-veg. Chocolate and snack food was not an everyday part of the diet and you could not buy vast quantities of cake either. Shop cake was just too expensive. Basic ingredients to make it on the other hand were not. Flour, fat, sugar, raising agent, salt, egg, and milk had to be kept at normal wage earners levels.

[Squirrel]

I do see what you are saying, but perhaps it is time that customs and excise (is that what they are called over here - the bods who deal with vat.) should be taking another looks at what is taxable! Have calmed down a bit now but still think it is a crazy system! Just a thought, but how about everything on the shelves showing their price EXCL:USIVE of VAT and then adding VAT at the till when it has all been totted up - that would make people sit up and think!