Well just remember that things are certainly not much rosier the other side of the channel. Since WW2 the West has prospered, and is now faltering. The East is the new growth/prosperous part of the planet. The pendulum swings.

I look at my P60 and see how much tax and NI I pay and get quite angry at people moaning about a few cuts. My tax is going up, but I'm OK paying to help others in need. People on lower wages love to gripe about those with higher incomes, but they often have no concept of how much tax they pay vs what they take out of the system. We can't scare off the higher rate taxpayers, if we do then there UK ltd will be bankrupt (OK, more bankrupt). Both Labour and the Conversatives know this and pander to top business (whether banks, drugs companies, oil companies) for this reason.