Taxed & Taken

Gary Stevenson has become one of Britain’s most influential voices on inequality, arguing that the rich are getting richer while everyone else falls behind—and that a 2% annual wealth tax is the solution. In this episode, I take Gary’s argument seriously and examine it from first principles. We explore: * Why house prices and asset values exploded after 2008. * How Quantitative Easing and governme...

Why do homes feel more unaffordable than ever? Most people blame greedy landlords, property developers, foreign investors or a lack of supply. But what if they’re only looking at the symptoms? In Episode 30 of Taxed & Taken , we take a completely different approach to the UK’s housing crisis. Instead of asking “Why are houses so expensive?” we ask a much bigger question: What happened to our money...

Most people think property investing is about buying houses. The wealthy know it's about building freedom, protecting wealth and creating opportunities for generations to come. Over the past two episodes we’ve explored how to build a profitable property portfolio. But building wealth is only half the challenge. In this episode, we explore how experienced investors think once they’ve built a succes...

Welcome back to Taxed & Taken: The Podcast They Don’t Want You To Hear. This is Part 1 of a special two-part series on Property Investing. In this episode I explain why property remains one of the most powerful wealth-building tools available to ordinary people and how successful investors think differently from landlords. We discuss: ✔ Why property creates wealth ✔ The five wealth engines of prop...

What if everything you’ve been taught about money is backwards? For decades, we’ve been told to work hard, get good grades, find a secure job, buy a house, and save for retirement. But according to Robert Kiyosaki’s bestselling book Rich Dad Poor Dad , that advice may never lead to true financial freedom. In this episode, we break down the most important lessons from Rich Dad Poor Dad in plain Eng...

Most people are told to pay off the mortgage, get out of debt, and save cash. But is that always the smartest move? In this episode of Taxed & Taken: The Podcast They Don’t Want You To Hear , we question whether rushing to become mortgage-free could actually cost you long-term wealth. We compare two people with the same mortgage: one invests £300 per month from the start, while the other overpays...

In this episode, I break down the Laffer Curve and why it matters today. The basic idea is simple: if government taxes work too heavily, people work, invest, build, and take risks less. And if the welfare system makes dependence more rewarding than independence, dependency grows. This episode looks at how government policy has made work pay less, why Britain’s tax system punishes productivity, and...

Most people experience the business cycle as victims. They buy late in the boom. They borrow when money feels cheap. They trust the experts. They panic in the crash. And then they watch the wealthy buy the assets they were forced to sell. But the business cycle doesn’t just destroy wealth. It redistributes it. In this episode of Taxed & Taken — the podcast they don’t want you to hear , we look at...

What if middle-class parents are sacrificing everything… for the wrong future? In Episode 23 of Taxed & Taken: The Podcast They Don’t Want You To Hear, we explore one of the biggest assumptions in modern Britain: Is private school really the ultimate investment in your child’s future? Or has society confused educational prestige with financial freedom? This episode explores: The true £500,000+ cos...

What if your state pension isn’t what you think it is? Not a pot. Not savings. Not something building up in your name. Just a system where your money is used immediately… and your future depends on the next generation doing the same. In this episode of Taxed & Taken — The Podcast They Don’t Want You To Hear , we break down the reality of the UK state pension system: * How the pay-as-you-go system...

You’ve been taught your entire life to work hard, save money, and be responsible. But what if that advice is exactly what’s keeping you stuck? In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we break down one of the most misunderstood concepts in modern economics: 👉 The difference between money and currency Because once you understand this… You start to see why: * Your savings don’t go as far as they used to...

In this episode of Taxed & Taken , I break down: * Why lowering prices by law doesn’t create abundance * Why it often leads to shortages instead * And how one of the biggest drivers of today’s housing crisis… is actually a hidden form of price control most people don’t even recognise The Core Idea A price is not just a number. It’s a signal. It tells producers: * how scarce something is * how urge...

In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we break down one of the most important—and misunderstood—forces in the global economy: Oil Because when oil moves… everything moves. What You’ll Learn • Why oil is the hidden driver behind inflation• How rising energy costs ripple through the entire economy• Why stock markets often fall when oil rises• The role central banks play—and why they often make things w...

Most people aren’t building wealth. They just think they are. They’re saving in money that’s losing value. They’re investing in things that don’t produce. And they’re speculating… without even knowing it. This is how people work for decades… and still don’t get ahead. There are only three financial games: * Saving → protects what you have * Investing → grows what you have * Speculating → risks wha...

What if the thing you’ve been told is making the country richer… is actually making you poorer? Every time you hear “government investment” or “more funding,” it sounds like progress. More money. More support. A stronger economy. But what if that money isn’t being created… just taken, shifted, or quietly diluted? In this episode, we break down the uncomfortable truth behind government spending — h...

Most people believe buying a home is the safest financial decision they can make. It feels responsible. It feels secure. It feels like progress. But what if that belief is quietly keeping people stuck? In this episode, we break down a real-life scenario of a young couple choosing between buying a £442,000 home… or investing the difference. The result? A potential £4.46 million gap in their future....

If every job “helps the economy”…why does it feel like life is getting harder? In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we break down one of the biggest economic myths pushed by modern politicians — that all jobs contribute equally to growth. Because they don’t. Some jobs build wealth. Some support it. And some quietly drain it. You’ll discover: * What real economic growth actually looks like (and why y...

Across history, the same pattern keeps repeating. The moment a society stops rewarding effort, it begins losing the very people who make that society work. Entrepreneurs leave. Doctors leave. Investors leave. Ambitious young workers leave. Why? Because people respond to incentives. In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we explore the simple economic principle that explains why some countries become i...

We’re told the economy needs to be stimulated , managed , and steered by governments. That politicians create jobs. That spending drives growth. That central banks keep the system stable. But what if most of that is a myth? In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we break down what the economy actually is — not GDP, not government spending, and not stock markets. At its core, the economy is simply mill...

Politicians love to celebrate GDP growth. But GDP measures total spending — not prosperity. It can rise because of debt, government expansion, money printing, or population growth — even while wages stagnate and living costs climb. In this episode, we break down: * Why GDP is easy to manipulate * Why GDP per capita matters more * How growth can make a country bigger — but its people poorer * The k...

Welcome to Taxed & Taken: The State’s Share and Why Money and Freedom Matters. Let me ask you a question. If I told you there was an investment that: * Pays you less than the real cost of living * Quietly erodes your purchasing power every year * Funds a system that depends on your silence * And is marketed as “safe” Would you buy it? Because millions of people do. It’s called a government bond. M...

Imagine a world where everything got cheaper — food, energy, housing — and your money bought more every year. Sounds like progress, right? So why do governments and central banks treat deflation like an economic apocalypse? Because they don’t fear inflation. They fear deflation. Deflation doesn’t mean collapse. It simply means prices fall — often because productivity rises and technology improves....

Most people think inflation means prices going up. It doesn’t. Inflation is the decline in the value of money — and rising prices are just the symptom. Episode 9 – Protecting Your Sav… In this episode of Taxed & Taken , I explain why fiat currency is a broken measuring stick, why saving in pounds, dollars, or euros guarantees you lose purchasing power over time, and why gold and silver have histor...

In this episode of Taxed & Taken , we examine why modern money no longer holds its value — and how inflation quietly erodes savings, wages, and economic freedom. We break down how today’s fiat currency system allows governments to spend without immediate taxation, pushing the real cost onto ordinary people through higher prices and weaker purchasing power. Using historical examples and real-world...

On August 15th, 1971, something fundamental changed — and most people never noticed. In a short Sunday night television address, President Richard Nixon quietly severed the final link between the U.S. dollar and gold. There was no vote. No public debate. No warning. Just a promise that “your dollar will be worth just as much tomorrow as it is today.” It wasn’t. That moment didn’t just change Ameri...