How the British Consumer is being Screwed

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Today with the advent of the world wide enconomy and the internet, global companies manufacture and sell their wares all over the world. This christmas I had to shop for friends and relatives in both the United States and the UK. It is frighteneing how much more the British consumer has to pay in comparison to their American Cousins.

I have been careful to compare like for like. Normally UK prices include VAT but US prices exclude sales tax. For the sake of comparison I have deducted the horrendously high 17.5% VAT from the UK prices and compared them with the US (Excl Sales tax) Prices.

The worst offenders are large companies. Microsoft are charging, in some cases, 36% more for their software here in the UK than in the US. Of course, our governement cares nothing about the British comsumer, nor inflation apparently.

The UK £ / US $ exchange rate on 20-Dec-2007 was £1 = $2.032.

If you think that the current situation is fair then do nothing. Remember that we are paid on average aboput 10% less than our American cousins.

However, if you think this is unfair and unacceptable then write, call or email, television channels, newspapers, MP's and local councillors. Let's fight for fairness and let us stop subsidising the rest of the world.

Sources:

Amazon USA
Amazon UK
Cheap iPods
Microsoft
Jaguar