Thinking of going on a stag night or weekend or, for some guys I’ve known, a stag week? I see that Budapest is ‘the Paris of the east’. (Does that mean dog poo all over the pavements, bad service and expensive coffee, then?) Anyway, if you are there and are thinking of buying yourself some togs for the wedding, the reception or the honeymoon (presumably only if you are the groom for the latter one), then you might want to think again. A recent news item (I can only think that it must have been a slow day – or that I was desperate to write a blog entry) was that 'Hungary introduces tax on ties'. Unveiling the plans for a tax on ties, Hungary’s culture minister Maria Schneider (talking about unveiling, it couldn’t be, could it…? No, but it's a thought) said: ‘Ties and bow ties are created by designers, who are artists, and therefore some of their earnings should support the arts and culture here in Hungary. Good design is after all a sign of culture, so it is right that the Culture Ministry should benefit from it. People are just as keen on buying a Cavalli tie nowadays as they were more than a century ago on buying a Dickens book.’ And they think people are shallow nowadays. Anyway, the point is that Schneider wants a tax (the rate is low) on all sales, but, hey, think of all the fun you can have with a tie…
…and some of it is in my Taxation 2Get knotted article on Taxation.co.uk.