Who we are

The Robin Hood Tax campaign is a movement bringing together dozens of organisations that work to reduce poverty in the UK and overseas, and campaign to tackle climate change. They have come together during the economic crisis to campaign for a new deal between banks and society.

If your organisation would like to join the campaign, please email membership@robinhoodtax.org.uk and we will send you details.

	ActionAid: We campaign for tax justice – so that poor people in developing countries don’t pay for the global financial crisis.
	Action for Global Health: We believe a tiny tax on financial transactions can radically improve the health of people in developing countries.
	Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA): This tiny tax could go a long way to improve millions of people’s lives in southern Africa as they tackle poverty, climate change and HIV, and strive for a better future.
	Africa Europe Faith Justice Network – UK
	African Initiatives
	Article 12 in Scotland: Eradicating poverty is key to creating a society where all can participate as equal citizens. This campaign can help achieve this.
	Aspect: We support the Robin Hood Tax to constrain risky and speculative financial transactions and raise funds for social and economic advance.
	Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL): The proceeds from this tax amount to no more than small change for the financial companies yet can make a real difference to the lives of our children.
	ATD Fourth World: Resources need to reach people in poverty who have been left behind by progress with their voices unheard and contributions unrecognised.
	Barnardo’s: Vulnerable children should not have to pay the price of recession; this would provide the money urgently needed to child poverty in the UK.
	BECTU
	Bond
	The British Dietetic Association
	Cafod: A means to help poor countries fight poverty and climate change and as the first step towards a fairer financial system.
	Cardinal Hume Centre: We recognise that the root cause of the problems facing most if not all of our clients is poverty and subsequent lack of opportunity
	Centre for Alternative Technology: we aim to inspire practical solutions for a low carbon future. A tiny tax on bankers would provide much needed resources in the fight against climate change.
	Chartered Society of Physiotherapy: We back the Robin Hood Tax because it will see banks contribute more to protecting public services, tackling climate change and reducing poverty.
	Chigwell Justice and Peace Centre
	Christian Aid: Fighting global poverty plus climate change is urgent but costly. This will help plug the financial gap and get banks working for the poor.
	Christian Medical Fellowship: this tax will release finances to support health services for the poorest & most vulnerable people here in the UK & in the developing world.
	Christian Socialist Movement: This tax isn’t robbing from the rich – it’s just asking everyone to play their part as a citizen of the planet.
	Church Action on Poverty: We believe in all its fullness for all people: This tiny tax could help millions struggling with poverty here and abroad achieve this dream.
	Church of Scotland Church & Society Council: Like the widows mite, a little can go a long way. We are not asking much from those who have plenty to give to those who have little.
	Church Urban Fund believes the campaign provides an opportunity to confront the scandal of poverty in our rich nation.
	Comic Relief: We have a long term commitment to helping people at home and abroad. We should all get behind this tiny tax to make a real difference!
	Commonwealth HIV and AIDS Action Group
	Communication Workers Union
	Community: Bankers caused a crisis, but our members’ communities felt it most. A tiny tax could help repair the damage, tackling poverty at home and abroad.
	Compass: We campaign for a more democratic, equal & sustainable world, we enable people to take action & make change. This tiny tax can do just that.
	Compass Youth: Just a tiny tax on banks could have huge impacts on the poorest people in society both here and abroad. You should support too!
	Concern Universal: This tax would generate vital resources for tacking the two most urgent challenges of our time – poverty and climate change.
	Crisis: We support the Robin Hood Tax campaign because this idea could offer a fantastic opportunity to end one of the most extreme manifestations of poverty in the UK – homelessness.
	Crossroads Care
	Disability Alliance: We believe the tax could help in our aim to end the link between poverty and disability. A third of disabled people in the UK live in poverty.
	Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility: We believe that the tax will help bring about economic justice and environmental sustainability.
	Economic Governence for Health: The Millennium Development Goals will never be met without support for bold ideas like these.
	EIS: We are currently engaged in a major campaign against education cuts called “Why Must Our Children Pay?” We believe passionately that our children, our teachers and other public servants should not have to pay for the greed of the few.
	Ekklesia: We work for economic and financial systems worth believing in: ones that put people and planet first. Tax justice is key part to this.
	Every Child: The Robin Hood Tax is a great idea. A modest tax on bankers’ profits that could bring huge benefits to the vulnerable and poor, both here in the UK and in developing countries.
	Faith2Share
	Family Action: We support families in their homes and see the realities of UK poverty every day. This tax could help poor families everywhere.
	Forum for Stable Currencies: The Robin Hood Tax is an obvious solution to a problem that is deeply systemic.
	Friends of the Earth
	General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches: Present trading damages the under-privileged and poor; we must act in all possible ways to create a fairer world.
	GMB: High roller casino capitalists in banks and finance caused the crisis, but we are left suffering the pain. A Robin Hood Tax will begin to right some disgraceful wrongs.
	Greenpeace UK: Reckless speculation by banks didn’t just ruin the global economy. Had that money been invested in clean energy, we might already be tackling the climate crisis.
	Health Poverty Action: For the communities we work with – some of the poorest and most marginalised in the world – a Robin Hood Tax could transform lives.
	Hope for Children: This simple and imaginative idea has the potential to have a huge impact on the levels of poverty, bringing support to the most vulnerable of people.
	Housing Justice: There are more than two million people in need of decent accommodation in the UK.
	Interact Worldwide: A tiny tax on financial transactions can have a huge impact on supporting universal access to sexual and reproductive health worldwide.
	International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA): Current levels of funding are in no way sufficient to halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. The Robin Hood Tax is a simple idea, rooted in social justice, that would make a huge difference in scaling up the response.
	International HIV/AIDS Alliance: Half of people in need of HIV treatment are still unable to access it. The campaign will raise funds to stop people dying needlessly.
	International Refugee Trust: This is a crucial opportunity for the UK to fearlessly lead the way for the international community towards corporate responsibilty on a global scale.
	Jubilee Scotland: We support the tax because it will curb speculation, and because we agree with JM Keynes: ‘When the capital development of a country becomes the by-product of the activities of a casino, the job is likely to be ill-done’.
	Methodist Relief and Development Fund (MRDF): this simple idea could raise billions to tackle global poverty and climate change, and would be be a step towards a more just financial system.
	Musicians’ Union: We believe this would bring more fairness during a period of austerity where ordinary people are struggling and where all sectors including the cultural sector are seeing cuts in funding.
	Napo, the Trade Union and Professional Association for Family Court and Probation Staff: We represent staff in the Justice sector. We care passionately about fairness and equality and that is what the Robin Hood Tax is all about. It has our full support.
	NASUWT
	National Justice and Peace Network
	National Union of Students (NUS)
	National Union of Teachers: We fully support this campaign. If financiers profit from speculation, it is right that society should benefit from some of those profits.
	Nationwide Group Staff Union: Such a small tax, such a massive impact. This tiny tax would bring benefits both here in the UK and across the world – please join us and support our call for this tax.
	National Association for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA)
	National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO): We believe in the good society, which promotes fairness and social justice. This tax will help achieve our aim.
	nef (the new economics foundation)
	NUJ: A tiny tax – the least our financial institutions owe for the mess they’ve made without affecting tax payers who’ve paid the bankers’ bills.
	Oxfam GB: a tiny tax on bankers can make a huge difference for people living in poverty in UK and around the world.
	ONE: Bailouts shouldn’t just be for banks – the world’s poorest people have suffered too. That’s why we support the FTT.
	Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS)
	People and Planet
	Plan UK: This will help the poorest and most vulnerable children and young people, who have had their opportunities limited by the global financial crisis.
	The Poverty Alliance: Money seems to be tight for everyone at the moment – except for the financiers! This tiny tax could help make a real impact on poverty in Scotland and the UK.
	Practical Action: A tiny tax on the fruits of innovation in the financial system could allow poor people to use innovations to challenge their poverty and adapt to climate change.
	(POA) The Professional Trade Union for Prison, Correctional and Secure Pychiatric Workers
	Prospect: We support equality, fairness, respect and international solidarity. All these aims can be achieved with a simple effective tax process. We say yes to the Robin Hood Tax!
	Pump Aid: there are nearly one million people in the developing world who are living without access to clean water. A small amount of tax from bankers can make such a massive impact on development and help change this.
	Results UK: We are committed to building a world free of poverty by supporting innovative financing that will save people’s lives.
	RSPB: Innovative sources of finance are urgently required to help people and wildlife adapt to climate change in developing countries.
	Salvation Army: This is a tax on the causes and symptoms of inequality.
	Save The Children UK: This offers real hope of ending the scandal of child poverty in the UK while saving the lives of children in poor countries.
	SCIAF: We are Scotland’s leading aid agency, working to tackle global poverty and the challenges presented by climate change. This tiny tax is a wee step that could make a big difference to the lives of millions.
	Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations: We work to advance the values and shared interests of the voluntary sector and this tiny tax could bring much needed funds for our sector.
	Scottish Education and Action for Development (SEAD)
	Share the World’s Resources: We support this concrete proposal to raise billions to fight global poverty and promote sustainable development.
	Speak: We are a network connecting together students and young adults to pray and campaign for social justice. The Robin Hood Tax is just, so we’re campaigning for it!
	Stamp Out Poverty: We have worked towards this for many years – it is only fair that the financial world pay more to tackle poverty and climate change.
	Stop AIDS Campaign: World leaders promised universal HIV prevention, treatment, care & support by 2010. We’re less than halfway. Keep the promise – back the tax.
	Students Partnership Worldwide: We strongly support the Robin Hood Tax, believing that it has the potential to help save millions of the most vulnerable lives worldwide.
	TB Alert: We support the Robin Hood Tax – it’s a small price to pay for such a big return.
	Tearfund: This tax can raise billions urgently needed to fight poverty and protect poor people from the impacts of climate change.
	Together for Peace
	TRAID (Textile Recycling for Aid and International Development)
	Trades Union Congress: The banks fed the crash – a Robin Hood Tax pays back for the damage they caused and makes a fair contribution to jobs,justice and climate.
	TSSA
	UNA-UK (United Nations Association of the UK): Innovative financing is urgently needed if the UN Millennium Development Goals are to be met by 2015.
	Unicef UK: Millions of children around the world are denied their rights. This is wrong. A financial transaction tax could put it right for children.
	UNISON
	Unite: The financial crisis has brought insecurity to staff and damaged the reputation of this sector. We now see an opportunity to change the way the sector conducts itself.
	United Reformed Church: The aims of the RHT – to fight poverty and climate change and to move towards a fairer financial system – sit well with established aims of the United Reformed Church.
	University and College Union: Speculators and gamblers of international banking have taken us for a ride, low paid public sector workers bear the pain. We must fight back.
	Urban Forum: We have a chance to establish a more responsible and socially useful system – bank reform is too important to be left to the bankers.
	Usdaw: The time is right for a Robin Hood Tax that would bring much needed regulation and curb the reckless speculation that has damaged the country’s financial markets.
	v, The National Young Volunteers’ Service: We support the Robin Hood Tax as an innovative source of finance. Through volunteering, v helps disadvantaged and marginalised young people to stay engaged and acquire skills at this time of high youth unemployment.
	War on Want: We support the Robin Hood tax as a practical way for the banks to repay their debt to society. An idea whose time has come!
	WaterAid: A financial transaction tax will raise funds that could transform lives in the poorest communities through improved access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene.
	The Web of Hope
	World Development Movement: The financial sector has become self-serving and destabilising. The Robin Hood Tax could help control reckelss speculation and provide billions for poverty eradication and low-carbon development.
	World Wide Robin Hood Society
	YCI: Young people should not have to pay the price for the greed of the big banks. We support the Robin Hood Tax Campaign and call on governments to make global finance fairer.
	YWCA: The Robin Hood Tax would make a huge difference to the girls and women we work with who face poverty and disadvantage.
	Z2K: Justice demands immediate help for those on the lowest incomes who did not benefit from the economic boom and suffer even more in the bust.
	38 Degrees: It’s time that banks paid their fair share towards protecting the world’s poorest people and fighting climate change.

Church of Scotland Church & Society Council: Like the widows mite, a little can go a long way. We are not asking much from those who have plenty to give to those who have little.

Selling Antique Rings

Thank you very much for the list! Great!

Static

Do you think a bank is really going to pay a new tax? The cost will be passed on to the consumer just like any other tax on corporations or bank. Retards.

Tgenza111

So apparently this group has no understanding of economics or history for that matter. Robinhood the outlaw protested taxation not banks.
And in his early form, something rather lost in later years, Robin Hood was also an enemy of the Church, an organisation that was viewed by the highly-taxed peasantry as being both unbearably sanctimonious and a drain on their income. The political-media-welfare complex is the 21st century equivalent of the Church, a monster that encompasses the taxpayer-funded Left-wing media, taxpayer-funded charities, quangos and our enormous and bloated local government and welfare system.
And, behold, look who is supporting the Robin Hood tax (most figures are from 2008, the latest year for accounts):

Action Aid – which received 16.5 per cent of its £67,727,000 income in 2008 from taxpayers, including £5,967,000 from the British government and £4,939,000 from the EU.

Barnados – in 2007/08 it received £10,507,364 from taxpayers.

Christian Aid – Another 18m from taxpayers, some 20.8 per cent of all its income.

RSPB – which receives an incredible £19,731,000 a year from Johnny Taxpayer.

Unicef – another £5,454,000 from the pot

Spaceweaver

Given that this will be really successful, who is going to manage this huge fund. What person/organization can be trusted to put such amounts of resources to the beneficial ends it is raised for. Who is going to decide on priorities and distribution?

Jamescoogan

Hey. I love and have given support to this idea.
Can it be implemented in Ireland/ Irish banking system?
Who administers the funds raised?

Gimme some cholo

Hi James - as the Irish banking system has effectively been nationalised then the government would simply be taxing itself - so it wouldn't work...

Guy

Keep up your good work. You have my full support!

Dog House

Wow! I'm impressed by the number and quality of organizations that you have managed to get behind this idea.

Infrared Sauna

Not sure I think this would work.

Jordi

C'mon Peter Pan, 0.005% (that's 500,000ths) of EVERY transaction made thru a bank. OK it will hit some personal banking but also more importantly it would hit those that use the markets an ordinary Joe Soap like you and me does not operate within. The ones where the richest people and corporations operate, futures, shares etc, exactly where the crisis was created in the first place. So the reclamation of money injected into banking by us the tax paying citizen would be reclaimed in the main from those that generated the crisis in the first instance.

Peter Pan

I think this is a dumb idea. If we tax the banks, they are just going to pass the additional cost onto the consumer through higher fees. This is not the solution. Rethink.

BigBadHoodie

even if it does, it comes back at such a tiny amount that it's barely noticable. you transaction would have to be at least over what £500 to get a penny to come out? it's nothing to people like us!

Peter Altmann

I am with you on your side

mike

Why stop at taxing the banks?
Big business has continued to announce huge profits throughout the economic down turn. Why are they not contributing? Why were they not asked to bail out banks? It is their country society too.

ny escorts

wow. this is amazing. but do you think it will work?

DJ

Loves the hard work and effort being out in to get us our Robin Hood Tax but is a little disappointed that the SNP (ruling party in Scotland) are not being questioned as the other leaders are. Whilst Scotland may not have tax powers they do have considerable influence (way more than the Green Party) but are not being questioned. Like I say just a little pointer

websitedevelopmentcompany

Robin Hood Tax is the best, most creative approach marketing campaign I've seen a charity take. Keep up the great work and well done for thinking outside the box and I hope it achieves the result you are after.

David Palmer

I think this is a worthy campaign and that members might also be interested in the The Sack Your MP! (SYMP!) Campaign which starts with the 2010 election and will fight on to reform MPs and how our political system is run. We don’t claim to have all the answers (we need your help on that), but JOIN US and force the reform of MPs.

Visit the www.SackYourMP.ORG/scandal site to find out more, look at the evidence www.SackYourMP.ORG/evidence where we have video, radio and online articles.

If you have questions about our campaign visit www.SackYourMP.ORG/faqs

Visit the www.SackYourMP.ORG/invite to invite your own friends and use our secure widget to select friends easily from your email address book.

Visit the link below to register with the Sack Your MP! site and be kept informed about the progress of the campaign.

http://www.SackYourMP.ORG/register/

Please visit our site and see how you can make your vote count.

The Sack Your MP! Team

PS Please Follow us on Twitter http://bit.ly/twitmp and be a fan on Facebook http://bit.ly/fbsack

tracia

http://storyofstuff.org/

how about linking up with these guys very interesting

ipod to computer transfer

An incredible news. In that way you are not only looking forward in helping yourself but you are also reaching out to others that are in need of help..

Silver

I love the idea of the RHT... but how would the banks react to this? They would put mortguage premiums up, overdraft chargers through the roof. The money the government took from them, they would take from us.
Assholes :(

joshuanelson

Okay, I'd pay money for one of those green robin hood hoodies in the recent video. Seriously, good way to raise funds for the campaign and get free advertising!

manhattan pressurized walls

So nice to know that there are organisations that work together to reduce poverty in the UK and overseas, and campaign to tackle climate change.

David J. Parker

Robin Hood Tax sounds so much more appealing than Tobin Tax.
However, it doesn't change the need for it as the world economies attempt to get back to "normal" and the next meltdown.
The definition of insanity is doing them same things as caused the problem and expecting a different outcome.

wookiehare

How lovely that we have the support of all these organisations. Keep up the good work

res evil

I live on Thamesmead and saw the robin hood poster stuck on our walls this is bad we dont want posters on our walls it makes our streets look dirty so keep out

Ali G

very naive. good thinking though. but ultimately the customers are going to feel the pinch, banks will decrease interest for example, but they will find a way of taking our money so their profit margins don't budge, unless they go up...

JRP

19-3-2010.
Hi ALL can I share some good news with you about TAX, and that is our Greenwich Council in SE10 is telling us all that there's Going to be NO INCREASE IN COUNCIL TAX again this year, which is explained in their Council Tax booklet covering 2010-2011, which just happens to have a photo of me along with some of the children and helpers on the front cover, taken at the opening of our Neighbourhood Pride Community Garden in Abbey Wood SE2 last year, which I'm pleased to say is still up and running.
To find out more about my many Community Garden Projects please visit my website www.recycling.moonfruit.com Thank YOU.
May you and yours and what you grow live long and happy. John.

Al Gore

Take out the climate change nonsense and I might be persuaded that it's a good idea. So, probably, would a lot of other sensible people.

In my very humble opinion of course.

catherine cosgrove

robin hood tax is a wonderful opportunity to turn concern into action. By calling on some of the richest institutions in the world to help those at the other end of the economic spectrum it puts people before profit. i hope you get loads and loads of support for this campaign. cathy cosgrove

John Newton

When I donate to charity, I expect my money to be spent directly on helping people whom the charity purports to support, not to part-fund a tax-increasing lobby!

123

then you're naive...

Sidson

But this tax could be a good tax. First of all, it would be feel by very few people - the mega-rich.

However, I'd like to suggest that this tax falls on the rich's heritage or income, not on the banking transactions.

eugenebutcher

When I donate to charity, I'd love to think that the money might be spent in a way that might actually create real change. Robin Hood Tax is the best, most creative approach marketing campaign I've seen a charity take. Keep up the great work and well done for thinking outside the box and I hope it achieves the result you are after.

Ken Wimbor

I work for a teachers' trade union and wonder if you could let me know how my organisation can become a supporter of/affiliate to your campaign.

Thanks.

Ken Wimbor

Maid Marian

If your organisation would like to join the campaign, please email membership@robinhoodtax.org.uk and we will send you details.

Thanks!

Chris

Oh well I suppose charities first gave us chuggers now it's natural progression that their into steath taxes!

Robin Hood

Thanks @Chris. So stealthy we've been making films, creating facebook pages and discussing it openly on this very website.

Chris

I'm not saying your not publicising your tax scheme, I'm saying your hiding the fact that it will be taxing the general public! You say your taxing the bankers, but your actually taxing the money they handle. Money into pensions doesn't just go under someone's mattress, it goes into the system and would be taxed as well as any other money in the system.

Had you planned to actually tax the bonuses bankers receive perhaps then I could support that idea.

Robin Hood

Thanks Chris. Probably the most detailed piece on this site about the incidence of this tax (ie. 'who pays?') is here: http://robinhoodtax.org.uk/debate/the-robin-hoo...

wil

You really have no idea what you are talking about.

I am cancelling my standing orders i have to two charities listed above.

wookiehare

This just shows how committed you REALLY were to those people who benefit from the charities you were supporting. I'm very sad about this - it seems so petty somehow and perhaps spiteful?

Maid Marian

I'm very sorry to hear that, Wil. We're pretty convinced the tax will help a huge swathe of people in need - affcted by poverty and climate change - across the world. Have you seen this article? http://bit.ly/a8go0X

Anthony Lane

you guys need to link up with a group called avaaz who are doing a similar thing with folk.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/robin_hood/?cl=48241617...

that is if you are not already. / Tony

Robin Hood

Thanks Tony. You'll be pleased to know we've been working with Avaaz on that action.

Sean W

Personally I think who ever came up with this idea should be incredibley proud that they have got lots of greedy people so scared of this fantastic TINY tax that, not only have they been paid huge amounts to stuff up the economy, but now they are being paid to throw their rattles out of their prams, while risking tipping them over by leaning too far out of them to reach for the computer keyboard so they can leave their cry baby 'this is a bad idea, please don't let the grown ups take our money, this tiny tax on the banks will not work' comments.

As a supporter of The Robin Hood Tax I would like to thank those who have left negative comments, as the only thing you are really doing is showing how transparently frightened you really are to find out that the honest, hard working people that you have exploited for so long have finally found a voice, and trust me we are going to use that voice to shout out the message 'YOU CAN'T STOP THIS, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR GREED!'

Sarah

I've searched no10 petitions site for a public petition in favour of the Robin Hood Tax and was surprised there doesn't appear to be an official one set up by the organisers of it, why not??? I did see one for the Tobin Tax with just 7 signatures.
Will this organisation be setting up a RHT petition on the Downing Street site? Judging by the number of fans on facebook a petition set up by RHT org would surely be deluged with signatures but the last thing we want is numerous petitions being set up for the exact same thing by every tom, dick & harry, so it would be preferable if robinhoodtax.org set it up and sent details out to supporters, facebookers, twitterers etc.
Lobbying the Gov't with a petition would most likely be the most effective method, bar a full on revolution, to get the message across that Joe Public means business and that we want a fair return of our bailout money which should not be achieved via cuts in vital public services which are already way overstretched as it is.

Maid Marian

Thank you Sarah. Good point in many ways, but we have already tabled some Early Day Motions and have sign up on the site, and have asked people to contact their MPs. We don't want to spread ourselves too thinly! Best for robin and ther crew to send their arrows selectively!

Refuge

Refuge supports the Robin Hood tax and the opportunity it offers to ensure all those experiencing domestic violence have access to the services they need.

VeggieKris

What a bright idea! Congratulations for getting so many organisations on your side. I note that there is an Early Day Motion, EDM 913 tabled by Linday Hoyle, that already has more than 50 signatures from MPs, including Peter Bottomley as the only Conservative. I recommend asking your MP to sign it if he or she has not yet done so.

Here is web address of the EDM:

http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?...

It would be good to see this as an issue in the general election.

Titus

What a great idea, who founded this? I would love to write a piece for mu Uni newspaper. Can you give me more details on who started this, why and plans for the future. I would love to help

Titus

Katherine P

This proposal has the whiff of a perpetual motion machine. There is no way that a tax can raise that amount of money without hurting ordinary people who save into ISAs and pensions over decades for their old age - and who also donate to the charities on your list. The rich, on the other hand, will probably find a way to get around the tax.

I spent half an hour with a spreadsheet looking into the impact over 45 years of regular personal saving into managed investments, if the performance of each investment was reviewed on average every three years and reinvested, with the Tobin tax removed on each transfer (as the pension pot grew over a lifetime). The tax was roughly the same as one whole year of these savings.

I shall be asking those charities here that I donate to, to make a micro-saving that they won't really notice (at least in the short term, like the tax), and that also helps the planet, by asking them to remove me from their postal mailing list.

Robin Hood

Just for the record we have asked Katherine to send her calculations to the team so we can respond.

Sean W

What a very negative response to a very possitive and common sense idea!!
'half an hour with a spreadsheet looking into the impact over 45 years of regular personal saving into managed investments, if the performance of each investment was reviewed on average every three years and reinvested.....'
My my ... that sounds the sort of thing a very frightened big bank chief executive would do on an evening for 10 minutes after spending the previous 3 hours making a spreadsheet working out how they would be spending this years huge bonus that was awarded to them because they only lost £3,600,000,000 (£3.6bn) instead of £24,000,000,000 and yes that is how many zeros there are when we are talking billions. THE GREED SICKENS ME!! When this site first started the 'yes' 'no' vote wasn't there some rather strange bulk 'no' votes in a very short space of time? ...hmmmm I wonder if we have found the 'fat cat' that crept in to try and steal the warmth of the raging fire that we call THE ROBIN HOOD TAX!!

alison adnitt

Whole heart-idly support the idea. Would love our organisation to be involved - we are not registered in UK just yet though but let me know when and how we can be involved.

Angelo Mac

I applaud this innovative tax idea, but I find the excessive presence of Christian orientated charities a disgrace. I would like to see also other charities that are based on other religious currents like Buddhism, Hinduism and yes why not a charity that support shamanism and Indigenous groups in the Amazon forest and other rain forest around the world, which are currently so much in danger, and paramount key for the survival of Mother Earth! Get yourself sorted!!

Robin Hood

We are reaching out to all faiths Angelo. In Britain, the Christian groups came early to the table but we are sure others will join us. It is a priority for us. Please do watch this space...

Jackie Harvey

Not before time. I seem to remember a similar tax being mooted many years ago. I think it was suggested that a tax on all financal trasactions at a rate of 0.0001 would be enough to take all low paid workers out of the tax system.

Jane Thompson

I agree with Bill Nighy's wriggling banker - it's "quite a good idea".

I only have one query.

What's stopping them?

David

I support the idea of a Robin Hood Tax, but it is not enough on its own.
All that has happened will happen again unless the banks and the City are properly regulated and more rigorous oversight is enforced. Anyone, especially top execs, found to be circumventing new rules should be heavily and publicly punished, not just rebuked. Make it clear and make examples of those that stray!

Hamish

Please remember when petitioning MPs through your website that you should add MSPs aswell.

This campaign needs bigger backing like nelson mandela or Obama i think we all underestimate the power and control the billionaires have just look at Tommy Sheridan he is being bullied and harrassed by them through 'our' own system.

mr change

basically this is a good idea but why chuck money down the drain, we all know that the local councils do all the stupid roadworks in march just to avoid budget cuts. and every goverment contract is mugging off the whole country. if this is a "robin hood" tax, surely use this to lower income tax??
if i was to give a pound to every organisation above, i wonder how much of my pound would go back into marketing and campaining to get more money out of the public??

reform the selfish britsh "dog eat dog" socity. The time is now.

Linda

I agrree wholeheartedly with this, as a low earner myself it sickens me all this talk of "charity" and "aid" people on low incomes should be paid more or pay less tax. Nobody wants charity and there is more than enough wealth to go around.

John Handley

The list of memebers largely makes up the good and great of the not-for profit sector. What they think they are supporting is an alternative source of grant funding without the accountability they have at present. A nostalgic trip down memory lane. Policy officers in these organisation rarely have any understanidng of finance and less about economics.

Peter S

Half-baked socialist claptrap. That is about all I can say and still remain civil.

Jeremy

I would be more than happy to provide some space for a stall at our festival.

Jeremy

Jeff Mowatt

I'd be far happier to see a fund overseen by civic and community leaders and yes, as Alex says above seed fund new business.

As an anti-poverty organisation ourselves we've both advocated for this and put it into practice when Russia's economy collapsed a decade ago. It created 10,000 new businesses and was replicated in several other cities.

The fundamental flaw however is that this form of capitalism which concentrates wealth in the hands of a minority is a root cause of poverty and the harm done continuously by far exceeds that that could be undone by retrospective philanthropy from lofty foundations. In comparison to the harm being done by free market capitalism, one twentieth of a percent is insignificant.

We have to understand that economics should serve people first, rather than profit based on the manipulation of abstract numbers.

http://www.p-ced.com/1/about/background/

Amy

I completely agree with Alex - the idea's okay but please let's sort out the UK before throwing money at the third world.

Alex Smeeden

I don't agree with using the money raised to waste on the third world. Billions of pounds are spent on Africa every year without the tiniest bit of real fundamental improvement.
This should be used to allow the government to pay for the bank bailout, to fund the growth of small businesses (partly in order to create jobs for the unemployed), and to improve infrastructure and technology (including 'green' issues) in the UK.

Tom

Predictable who is against, yawn. I for one like this idea.

Christine Clifford

Robin Hood won't save the day | Tim Worstall | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
www.guardian.co.uk

seen this and posted on my FB page. We need to counter his arguments

Pip

Robin Hood was against taxes on the poor - the rich in those days didn't pay any...
something like the situation at the moment then.

Justice 4 All

Thank You Robin Hood. The tide is with us, the wind is in our sails. Change is coming, there's no turning back now!

Goldstein

Martin and CDS, it's a commercial, not reality.

All groups use them and the same inane observation could be made about anyone who does.

And poor old Robin, didn't exist. He's just a fictional as a benevolent banker is. However, King John did and he and his nobles kind of did take advantage of the poor as I remember. You know your history I assume, not just the stories.

Remember the cherished document, "The Magna Carta?" It applied only to nobles to protect themselves and what they owned. Regular people?, well the heck with them. Of course, they just got to be generational serfs then, not real slaves. I'm sure they appreciated the distinction.

You might want to pick another fictional era that doesn't have a real history behind it.

As for Bill, well at least he's funny.

CDS Trader

One thing, you do know Robin Hood was for lower taxation not higher right?

Martin

This is a joke, isn't it?
Even with my scant knowledge of fiction I know that Robin Hood was against taxes!
And what makes Bill Nighy an expert?

Stephen May

I believe that the overwhelming majority of people in Australia are fed up of big bank self spending on advertising , management bonuses then crying poor and holding their hands out for government hand out and bail out packages. I for one support this initiative.

working class manager

Get real! The banks only did what the world clamoured for: "Make us feel richer - put money in our pockets we didn't earn" So they did. The money wasn't real and we all knew it, deep down. So the richest charities in the history of the world combine to ridicule the emperor's new clothes and pretend they aren't naked themselves. You hypocrites!

Kon Joo Lee

I think we do not need more money to stop climate change.
We need new technology only.
Current
manure, humic acid(water pollutant, air pollutant, soil pollutants) + O2 (with electric energy) + bacteria=
1. GHG emitted(CO2, CH4, votalic organic matter, NO3 NH3, H2
2. sludge may digest with CH4 and CO2
3. remaing pollutant may water pollution source
4. emitted GHG may be comeback with rain
It make environmental crisis only

My new method
manure, humic acid(water pollutant, air pollutant, soil pollutants) + CO2(GHG) + algae+catalyst+ sun energy= clean air+clean water + biomass

Sinepymkus

Good to put all these charities down here. I now know who not to donate a single penny too.

J Crowe

Could the 'pyramid principle' (if not too discredited by earlier examles usually for self gain) work here to secure exponential growth in 'Yes' votes to a volume of support governments would have real difficulty to ignore?

Simply each 'Yes' voter is asked to pass on the proposition to at least 2 other likely supporters. Bingo!

Paul Corbett

I fully support the implementation of a Robin Hood Tax. However, as long as this remains a national campaign, it'll be very difficult to implement. Banks, businesses and politicians will reject it based on the argument that financial services would flee to countries without such regulations. This is a worthy cause but it won't work without a global commitment. Considering what happened at Copenhagen this year, it won't be easy but I wish the campaign the best of luck!

Dog Kennel

I'd have to agree with you Paul. It's either all or nothing for something like this.

Graham Peter King

Brilliant and obvious! an oh-so-simple idea. Definitely gets my backing. Surely it should get everybody's.

Infrared Sauna

It sure seems like a wonderful idea. The tricky part will be getting everyone to back it

james

This is a silly idea!

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