Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 05/10/2026Granddaughter using her imagination with a twig for a magic wand, but suddenly she says it has stopped working (leaving me invisible by the way) because ‘it has gone dead- it needs charging’! Limitations on magic imposed by modern society. 280
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 01/10/2026At least there should be ramps as standard by certain carriages 000
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Oh good- but the trains running into Waterloo are brand new and have really dangerous gaps - especially at Vauxhall! Can you do anything about that? 100
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Seems impossible to have any sensible discussion on taxation in the UK. Very depressing indeed. 071
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 14/09/2026I had a very unpleasant encounter with a man who thought it was fine to come up right behind me, a 73 year old lady, on his Forest bike and ring his bell for me to get out of the way. Couldn’t Forest bikes detect if someone is on pavement and just stop after a couple of minutes? 010
Reposted by Judith FreedmanResolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 04/09/2026Many countries in the OECD raise more tax (as a proportion of GDP) than the UK did in 2025-26... ... but NONE achieved this with a lower 'tax wedge' for an average worker. Read 'Thin end of the wedge' here 👇️ 📉 buff.ly/UGrO4bY 132
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Suggest you read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans. It is lovely and fits into what you are saying here. 010
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 18/08/2026Yes though I don’t know status of that in USA 010
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 18/08/2026Does he refuse to sign contracts for his enterprises? Presumably not. Amazes me how people who don’t believe in marriage make such a big deal about what, for them, could be a simple admin process. Ricky Gervais: I may have to get married to avoid paying tax www.thetimes.com/article/7ba3...thetimes.comRicky Gervais: I may have to get married to avoid paying taxThe Office creator, who has been with Jane Fallon for four decades, is considering tying the knot to dodge a bill from the government after he dies 130
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/08/2026Emma Chamberlain, tax barrister, visiting professor of tax at the LSE and Oxford University, co-author of the Wealth Tax Report, has a guest post with Comment is Freed -‘The right way to tax wealth’. Clear, practical thinking from someone who understands and has thought deeply about all angles. 13510
Reposted by Judith FreedmanSam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 04/08/2026It's written by Emma Chamberlain - a barrister specialising in tax and co-author of the 2020 Wealth Commission report. I can guarantee you'll learn a lot about wealth taxes... 1433
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 29/07/2026That is what Mirrlees Review recommended. But the politics are difficult. 010
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 27/07/2026I’m pleased if government is looking at a whole range of fundamental reforms. The fact they are looking at them doesn’t mean they will happen but I hope some do. It is right to say big changes take time but we have to start somewhere. So worth looking but media and commentators should stay calm! 050
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 24/07/2026This-( just a coincidence that this comes from my son 😉) When this kind of ‘budgeting’ is used to justify tax changes it show just what is wrong with our approach to tax design and reform. And the political and media fluff and speculation does not help sensible debate at all. 160
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 14/07/2026Might be the only way to get me interested in the game…. 030
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 14/07/2026Maybe we can then keep the Bayeux Tapestry? 1141
Reposted by Judith FreedmanBrent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 12/07/2026“We need an Ozempic for cars. They are growing at a phenomenal rate, wreaking havoc on roads, squeezing out smaller vehicles and endangering pedestrians. Like ever-hungry teenagers, cars in Europe are growing on average a centimetre wider every year.” Don’t repeat North America’s mistake, Europe.theguardian.comBritain’s cars and SUVs are growing bigger – but there is a way to stop this deadly ‘carspreading’ | Christian WolmarLarger vehicles crowd our roads and are far more dangerous to pedestrians. Let’s curb them before they do even more damage, says says transport commentator Christian Wolmar 661246310
Reposted by Judith FreedmanJill Rutter @jillongovt.bsky.social · 12/07/2026Lot to be said for what we used to call a Unified Budget under Major (tax and spending plans together_) as per @financialtimes.com www.ft.com/content/abf4... But to start from scratch and complete by autumn would be very brave, prime minister..ft.comAndy Burnham explores holding expanded autumn BudgetUK’s incoming PM is considering combining fiscal statement with spending review to set out his political strategy 4224
Reposted by Judith FreedmanMayor of London, Sadiq Khan @london.gov.uk · 10/07/2026Two baby beaver kits have arrived at Ealing's Paradise Fields. Reintroduced in 2023 with Ealing Wildlife Group and Citizen Zoo, beavers are already stopping Greenford station from flooding and saving us money on infrastructure. Here’s what they’ve been up to 🦫 27929243
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 05/07/2026i think the only difference between us is terminology. Lawyers and economists don’t always use words the same way, as I have discovered! 010
Reposted by Judith FreedmanJoel S. @joelhs.bsky.social · 05/07/2026It's tragically appropriate that we spent a whole generation telling students that the humanities were moribund, and they should all study STEM, only for the greatest innovations in STEM to prove why the humanities were so essential all along. 361785478
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Require filing and strike them off if they don’t file. Audit done properly should be a help not a burden, especially with new technology. Charge higher fees upfront to fund enforcement, as Jim suggests. 000
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026How do you redistribute without public spending? Do you mean seeing welfare as negative taxes? But this is still a form of public spending isn’t it? Genuine questions! 100
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Yes, I agree that there should be more pre-incorporation requirements too. 110
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Sole traders have to use MTD for income but companies don’t- another rather unfortunate incentive to incorporate in fact. 000
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Yes, that is the argument that was used in 1991. But obtaining the benefits of incorporation should have a cost. The fact that it is so cheap in the UK leads to many problems. A quick search suggests its costs more to incorporate in Estonia than in the UK now. 010
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026In 1991 I argued against removal of audit requirements for small companies but politicians equate ease of incorporation with entrepreneurship and growth (which is rubbish) and have continued to raise the audit threshold. Incorporation should not be cheap and easy. 1124
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026But you can’t redistribute revenue unless you raise it. It is in the interests of all to do that effectively to obtain the revenue needed to achieve democratically agreed political objectives with as little creation of disincentives and distortion as possible. 120
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 04/07/2026From The Times today -Michael Jack was the first chair of the Office of Tax Simplification - I also prefer the idea of an Office of Effective Taxation 1135
Reposted by Judith FreedmanOwen Zidar @omzidar.bsky.social · 01/07/2026Our latest post open.substack.com/pub/everywhe...open.substack.comAnother Reason the Labor Share Keeps Falling: Taxes!When firms pay workers in promises rather than cash, the national accounts struggle to keep track. 253
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 27/06/2026We need more revenue. We should just tax large multinational more- easy, isn’t it? ( Irony klaxon) 030
Reposted by Judith FreedmanHelen Barrett @helenbarrett.bsky.social · 23/06/2026Not for the first time I ask: how can a bag be an unexpected item in a bagging area? 1909
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 07/06/2026I love this corner of London! Also nearby a church that provides for rough sleepers plus concerts! 110
Reposted by Judith FreedmanEduin Latimer @eduinlatimer.bsky.social · 28/05/2026This is most striking figure from Millburn Review. They estimate that around half of the 18-24 population who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) are not claiming any benefits. This limits how effective any reforms to the benefit system can be in reducing the NEET rate. 22513
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 23/05/2026We don’t have usufructs in English law but there could be some kind of trust. But if If Brian has eg only a life interest then he can’t decide who gets the land when he dies. 100
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 23/05/2026They can share the farm equally but pay Adam a salary that comes out before profits are shared. The bigger problem could be providing for the inheritance tax if land was not transferred this years ago, which I would have assumed to be the case. 130
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 23/05/2026Yes happy to agree to differ on our priorities but who inherits farms and whether they are viable once taken over is a very real social issue in the countryside. Existential I would say. So fairly important in #TheArchers whatever our personal preferences. 130
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 23/05/2026Thanks- that is pretty much what I was talking about. There is no way would Brian and Jenny would not have sorted the formalities years ago. Remember Ruth being a trustee for Ruari? It would not still be entirely up to Brian who gets the land and succeeds. 020
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 23/05/2026That is so but it needs to be plausible. They are very careful about other storylines like abuse and alcoholism.The inaccuracies and nonsense around inheritance spoil it for me. Agreed we don’t need full legal analysis though! 130
Judith Freedman @judithfreedman.bsky.social · 22/05/2026Confused by Home Farm partnership storyline. What does partnership own if not the land? Does Brian rent the land to the partnership? Have they thought about inheritance tax ? Why can’t partnership own the land? Same thing with Brookfield. Scriptwriters get some legal advice- please! #TheArchers 4172
