Why the police are *not* protecting Philip Green from #UKUncut

After yesterday’s renewed attempts to disrupt the operations of high street retailers by #UKuncut, in the run up to Xmas, I thought I’d take a look at their hashtag on Twatter.

There’s a particularly stupid and facile blog post at the UK Uncut site, which is being retweeted to death, comme ci:

And it goes a bit like this:

Yesterday I was arrested inside Topshop on Oxford Street after just two minutes of protesting.

Hahahahhaa.. carry on.

For chanting “pay your tax”, two snarling beefcake thugs hired by Topshop bent my arms behind my back, shoved me in front of two coppers, who then frog marched me out to the back of the store

It’s probably not the whole truth to say that all this happened for ‘”chanting ‘pay your tax’”. More likely it happened for committing a breach of the peace, or disrupting the lawful right of the trader to trade, and the consumer to consume.

and onto the police station, where I remained for seven hours.

I think this is what parents would call, “sending you to your room, to think about what you have done"

Police station cells are barren concrete holes where the only signs of life come from the immortal carvings etched into the wooden bench by some previous guests of the State.

Yesterday’s police cell promoted two things things: 1)Walking in a circle 2)Thinking………

And yet. as is so often the case with recalcitrant children, this thinking time culminated in all the wrong conclusions.

Why on earth are the police protecting the likes of Topshop, Vodafone, Boots, and Barclays bank!!

Well… why on earth should they not protect lawful businesses from a disruptive rabble?

This is crucial, you see. As far as I am aware, while some of these organisations may have had favourable tax arrangements agreed by Dave Hartnett of HMRC, who we can agree is a common enemy, they have not broken any law.

The bosses of these companies take an active interest in reducing their contributions to public funds.

The ‘bosses’ – a telling expression – of publically listed companies have a legal obligation to do just that – minimise the amount of company funds they surrender in taxes and levies by all legal means – and to do otherwise would be a dereliction of their duties as company directors. FACT.

9 people got arrested yesterday, six in London, and three in Nottingham. Dozens of police heavys guarded the front of Vodafone, Boots, and Arcadia stores across the country.

I’m no fan of the police, and am always ready to point at them and shout “THUG”, but why would they not protect these businesses? #UKuncut had been vocal about their planned actions. Like it or not, these companies pay corporation tax and significant business rates, which entitle them to the protection of the police, when a threat against them has been published.

You might think that they should pay more tax and rates, but the law says they should not. They are observing the law as it lies. If you don’t like what they’re doing, campaign to change the law.

The political Right in this country like to talk about the horrors of a “something for nothing” culture.

First of all, let’s identify what this author considers to be “the political Right [sic] in this country” who “talk about the horrors of a ‘something for nothing’”.

The latest British Social Attitudes Survey is instructive in this respect. [Although their website is broken at the moment so I have to draw from press sources]

A MAJORITY of the British now believe unemployed benefits are too high, oppose extra taxes for public spending and are increasingly against higher charges to protect the environment, according to a major survey.

Let’s be honest, shall we? There are people on every (and no) wing of the political spectrum, whose belief in fairness is about getting out what you put in, and not expecting a free ride.

63 per cent of the 3,297 people questioned believed parents who "don’t want to work" were a reason why some children lived in poverty.

See? Can we thus suppose that anyone to the right of Dennis Skinner is considered to be on “the political Right”, in the mind of this author?

Well, Phillip Green pays no tax on his company dividends. He couldn’t give a monkeys about public funds, yet his stores are granted protection by the police force – a public service!

Unless I’m very much mistaken, Philip Green (I checked the spelling, unlike some), was not actually in the Oxford Street Top Shop store, and personally needed no protection from the Met Police.

So what and whom were the police protecting? Well, like I said up front, there are the people working in the store, in an effort to pay their way, paying tax in the process. These people don’t have an agenda other than to put food on their table, and presents in their kids’ stockings. And #UKuncut are fitfully making their working lives a misery.

And there are the consumers, 20% of whose every spend goes straight to HMRC in VAT, the remainder of which, before profits and corporation tax, pays for wages (jobs, taxed), services (jobs, taxed), goods (wages, taxed) and premises (jobs, taxes). The consumer doesn’t have an agenda other than to find something nice for themselves or a loved one. And #UKuncut want to disrupt their shopping experience and ‘make them think’.

#UKuncut hopes they’ll think “wow – I didn’t realise how corrupt and evil this corporation is. I shall go elsewhere"

But actually they think “I really want that black top, Why are these intimidating shouty yobbos stopping me and why haven’t the police moved them on?”

Companies like Topshop also make full use of waste disposal services, the Royal Mail, ambulances, fire service,and road maintenance.

In point of fact, most businesses have to use private waste contractors such as Biffa. They use Parcelforce and help to ensure that it’s the only part of Royal Mail which actually turns a profit, thus subsidising cheap mail for the rest of us.

Businesses do not use ambulances. People use ambulances. People whose hefty contribution in tax and national insurance entitles them to do so.

As for the rest, business rates, corporation taxes and VAT generation (to say nothing of hauliers tax overheads) mean that they are perfectly entitled to expect roads to be mended and fires to be put out.

How amazing would it be if the unions and the police federation organised to withdraw their labour from these companies. Binmen should refuse to pick up Vodafone’s garbage! The police should refuse to attend demonstrations or arrest shop lifters at Topshop and friends.

Based on the above, I agree – this would be very amazing indeed. Don’t you?

Philip Green, if you refute tax payments, then you should rely on your beefcake thugs to protect your profits, and not call in the cops. Yesterday you,and the rest of your ilk, proved that you really are filthy rich scroungers.

*Sigh*

AJ

Advertisement