A Biased Coup

I woke this morning and measured
Whether, I am a child
For yesterday when shopping out
VAT on my bill was filed
Yes filed, I say, on school clothes
Those things we have to wear
In compulsory education
For ‘children’ everywhere!

And yet I’m not an adult
Til 18 years are reached
Or is that so, for I have heard
By 16 rules are breached
And adult rates are then charged
On buses and much more
And sex is legal so I’m told
But not voting says the law

So now at fourteen years of age
Confusion is quite rife
For I’m an adult in my clothes
But don’t get the adult life!
And then by sixteen they’ll charge me
The adult fare – it’s true
Yet I won’t be an adult then –
Well ain’t that a biased coup!

To put this in context, I have just found out that value added tax, which is supposed to be zero on children’s clothes, is actually charged at the full 20% on all school uniform (and other clothes) for children over the age of 13 in the UK which effectively renders school uniform for key stage 4 as adult clothes!!!

English: British school children in London, England (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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