LONDON — The British government’s intention to tax the humble Cornish pasty, a cheap, savory snack much beloved by workers and students, has opened a new front in the country’s never-ending class war.
In his U.K. budget last week, Finance Minister George Osborne announced he would close a loophole that allowed some fresh-baked takeaway items — including pies, sausage rolls and pasties — to escape a 20 percent sales tax. The move, however, has caused a media storm, with tabloid headlines portraying the new tax as an attack by the Conservative-led government on working-class life.
This week, Osborne faced questions from a parliamentary committee on aspects of his budget — which included such macroeconomic measures as a cut in the top rate of income tax and a lowering in the personal tax allowance for retired people. But it was the levy on the lowly pasty — a mix of meat and vegetables encased in pastry — that generated all the headlines.
The proposed change would tax any food hotter than the ambient temperature but could pose issues: Do you check the temperature in a sausage roll or pasty, or the cooler crust? Might the buyer ask to have it cooled to get it tax-free?
