GUEST COMMENT: Non doms must be sacrificed for the good of us all

If you are the UK government you have a problem. (Well actually you have hundreds of problems and no money to pay for them, but I digress.)

One of your major problems is that your electorate thinks you are a bunch of soft, old Etonian banker appeasers who talk big on reining in city excess, but who back down when challenged.

However, you have spotted a nice way to win back the hearts of the masses and trouser a tidy extra sum of tax revenue for HMRC. There is only one species the chattering classes hate more than the bankers: the Non Doms.

Not only are Non Doms Johnny Foreigner, but they are exactly the sort of foreigners who got their money by 'cutting a few corners' in their own countries and are now pricing us out of our own. They are also not paying nearly enough tax.

This is partially, but not entirely true.

The reality is that most Non Doms are financiers. Moreover, most of them are our, 'special relationship' friends the Americans. Until now, driving them out has been the political equivalent of being buried in an unmarked grave. Not any more, Nowadays 'most' of the UK population is ready with the pitchforks. All they need is a cheerleader.

Step forward, Vince Cable.

In Vince, we have a man with recent form for banker bashing. We also have a man who has rightly pointed out that most of the population would rather run over a banker than a cat.

Vince does not want eventual board membership of BigBank PLC (or BigMedia PLC come to that), which gives him a great deal of credibility. But is he strong enough to defy the forces of vested interest and get it done?

I rather think and hope that he can. Vince is in last chance saloon. His recent outpourings have made him a political liability. He needs to help get the coalition back on track with the electorate, or die trying.

Non Doms are the natural target. They are also a necessary sacrificial lamb. Most of my City friends have no idea of the vendetta that is being stored up against us. If the City isn't seen to do something to appease the electorate soon, there will be years of pain to come.

If this sounds a little too like a turkey voting for Christmas, understand this; I would rather pay tax to the UK on my worldwide earnings rather than bring about the sort of changes to the remuneration landscape that are being muttered in the corridors of Westminster.

Go on Vince, make my day.....

The author is a senior trader with long experience of working in London.