Osborne and the non doms

I’m sitting in a George Osborne fringe event, where he’s being given the Parky treatment by Steve Richards from the Indy. He’s discussing his new tax on the non domiciles: a £25,000 annual charge. Won’t this turn them away, asks Richards. No, Osborne replies, the average non dom earns £100,000 he says, so £25k ain’t much to them. But as he’ll know, the average non dom pays £26k in tax, so this Tory idea would push their tax burden over 50%, which I doubt these highly mobile folk will suffer.

His speech was excellent, though, and lifted spirits in the hall no end.