Dear Sir,

The following is exactly as most immediately apprised by a personal and highly respected friend/adviser apropos payroll tax, and hopefully suitable for inclusion in your Letters section. I honestly do not know to whom to now turn at this most challenging time as a semi-retired person.

There is absolutely no consideration for small businesses; none whatsoever. There are many small business owners saying “to heck with it” and packing it in because of this.

We small local guys, struggling to make ends meet, are lumped in with the big law, reinsurance and accounting firms. It’s the most annoying thing ever, but no government has ever considered “the little guy” in its attempt to tax the big money.

They never consider that we small guys pay into our companies out of our own pockets regularly just to pay the bills — and then they tax the butt out of us, when we do manage to eke out a few extra dollars.

It irritates me to no end. And you don’t even want to know how much time I’ve put into figuring all this extra dividend tax stuff for all my clients! I’ve spent more time doing payroll tax this week than I did all of last year.

Can you help me, please, Obi-Wan Kenobe? You are my only hope.

When I as a small-business person was once confident of a listening government I then initiated a Swot movement — Stop Wasting Our Taxes. However, the present government regrettably seems far more inclined to instead listen solely to both labour and big business.

After all, there is very great strength in numbers — what else other than “Mob Rule” can close down our government via screwing the doors of Parliament shut? — rather than the small entrepreneur having worked all of their lives, and despite all odds, simply to do their very utmost to somehow survive and make ends meet.

TED GAUNTLETT

Sandys