After New York City’s race for mayor catapulted Zohran Mamdani from state assembly member into one of the world’s most prominent progressive voices, intense debate swirled over the ideas at the heart of his campaign.
His critics and opponents painted pledges such as free bus service, universal child care and rent freezes as unworkable, unrealistic and exorbitantly expensive.
But some have hit back, highlighting the quirk of geography that underpins some of this view. “He promised things that Europeans take for granted, but Americans are told are impossible,” said Dutch environmentalist and former government advisor Alexander Verbeek in the wake of Tuesday’s election.
Verbeek backed this with a comment he had overheard in an Oslo café, in which Mamdani was described as an American politician who “finally” sounded normal.
I think you’re missing something here; in the UK we also talk about pre-tax income.
It’s important in lots of ways, for example you choose how much to pay into your pension, and you get tax relief on that.
If you just talk about post-tax income you would miss the enormous difference between someone who is on £54,350 and pays the minimum 8% into a pension (£50k taxable) and someone on £62,500 who pays 20% into a pension (£50k taxable). The second person is a lot better off overall, because they have saved £12,500 in their pension and the first person has saved £4,350, which compounds pretty quickly.