Like the Danes, we need to pay for the society we want | Letters

Karin Blak responds to an article about children’s homes in crisis and what can be learned from the Danish system

As a Dane who went through Danish children’s services, and later worked in Sure Start centres as a family therapist in England, I found your article particularly resonant (English children’s homes are in crisis. Does Denmark hold the answers?, 1 November). Adopting similar care here requires two changes: our attitude to paying tax and our electoral system.

Denmark’s basic national income-tax rate and average municipal income-tax rate together amount to about 37%, almost twice England’s 20% basic rate. Although allowances and other contributions make this an imperfect comparison, we need to acknowledge Danes’ willingness to pay for the quality of services that underpin a stable society. Tax-funded services benefit us at every level of society, including care we hope neither we nor our families will ever need.

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