“There is no such thing as public money; there is only taxpayers’ money.”

— Margaret Thatcher

The quote "There is no such thing as public money; there is only taxpayers’ money." is famous quote attributed to Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013), British stateswoman and politician.

Speech to Conservative Party Conference (14 October 1983) http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/105454
Second term as Prime Minister
Context: Let us never forget this fundamental truth: the State has no source of money other than money which people earn themselves. If the State wishes to spend more it can do so only by borrowing your savings or by taxing you more. It is no good thinking that someone else will pay – that ‘someone else’ is you. There is no such thing as public money; there is only taxpayers’ money.

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Margaret Thatcher 348

British stateswoman and politician 1925–2013

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