Can a nation in crisis rely on the baby boomer generation to step up? I think the UK is about to find out | Phillip Inman

A raid on property wealth and pensions is being signalled by the Treasury, and it has sound reasons for doing just thatDear baby boomer, the government is coming for you and your store of wealth. The property and pensions built up over the past 40 to 50 years are, for the first time, in play. The triple lock on the state pension might be guaranteed, at least for the time being, but for the wealthier boomer, it looks like their private assets are being laid out on a chopping board, ready to be carved like a Sunday roast and fed to hungry government departments starved of funds for almost two decades.These are desperate times and taxing the wealthy is a desperate measure. No government wants to do it. If you tax the rich, they might fly away in their private jets. That’s happened in Norway, one of the few European countries to retain a wealth tax. It’s true that older middle-income voters are more likely to stay put, but they also have a tendency to vote with their self-interest in mind. And because baby boomers are the most active age group on polling day – many of them among the richest in society – that has always spelled disaster for the party in government.Phillip Inman is senior economics writer for the GuardianDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei TheGuardian Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei TheGuardian