I could not tell you my personmal rate or perc4entage of tax but iv seen in movies the american anxiety over doing tax returenes and the threat of investigasion.

our tax and national insuranse national insuranse being the contribution towards our retirment fund (which is also goin dowen tubes due to same reasons as yours) people are taking private retirment packages and it provides a portion of income to when we are if ever unemployed, maternitie leave stuff like that. The other amount is our tax.

if employed this is deducted mounthlie if you have a salerie and weeklie if your paid by the week. If employed their is no choice but to pay this if registered through a bussness as employed. Their are some little "cash in hand jobs" weer you no lonfger are registered as an employee have very little rights but it tends to be people reciving unemployment benifit who want the extrra monie, it is illegal to do this or to employ people like this and carries fines and prison sentenses.

if unemployed like your self the rate is dependent on your income or revinue your bussness makes per year.
I have frends paying nearlie 50% of tax on thir income. However they are millionaires and thir bussness is well established and has a massive yearly turnover. Their is also the usule bussness expense that can be taken off before tax and vat is payed.
Vat being Value Added Tax and is paid on everything we purchise it is currrentlie 15% of all purcises we pay, so if we buy something at £1 it is 15p we pay to the government. This is paid to the government by the bussness from which we purchesed the item.

my experinse of the national health has been varied. If i want a doctors appontment at a local G.P. clinic. i can have one within 3-7 days depending on popularity of general practisoner doctor (general Practisoner)

hospital appontment are diffrent and take some time. I wated 18 mounths for a gyniuological appontment for a low priority alment. The appontment was for inical counsultasion.
High prioritie would have me seen quicker.
I also paid £125.00 to a private doctor (the same NHS doctor) for my consiltasion, which then gave me direct and imidiate access to the nhs. lol bizzare that the private consultasion was to the nhs consultent gynocologist which then admited me into the system for the rest of my treatment to be carried out by NHS.

for my car crash, ER appontment, assesment, xrays and cat scanes, test for epilepsie, prescriptions and recite of medicasions,m.i.r. scan was all free and done in a resonable timlie manner obviouslie my er appontment was imideat or upon half an hour of being in the er hospital area. It took care of my birthing care, midwiferie to the actule stay at hospital for giving birth.

it takes care, of psykiatric care, (hopitalisasion and counselling medicated services) home visits from psykiatric nurses if needed, home helps for disabled or elerlie people and care assitants andi am sure a lot more i do not know about. Oh also eye examinasion for some and dental care for some. Precriptions for medicasions are free and the medicasions are free for some medicasions are free for all but you can pay for a prescription, however a prescription can have 3 items etc on it.

i don't know if your insuranse would have covrered all such things in the u.s.

thir is much complaining about the NHS system re wating list, equipment etc but people are prone to complaining lol as its mostlie taken for granted!

I gladlie pay my contributions when working as in my hart i belive such essental things like care when ill and psykiatric care should be provided for all and its got to come from someplace. I also knew at one time my helth would deteriate with age just knowing and glade its their as i never suffered any type of ill health for most of my life but its a comphert not having to worrie but when I needed it it was their.

i know lola provided links and i do hope she be back but i wanted to provide experinse for just me as an average jo who uses ther nhs.

lola has knowlage for both and off course knowlage of her familie working from within the system.

Just opening this topic up again. Something goofty happened with the forums and several topics closed. Sorry.