Currently non-doms can be peers (though a bill now going through Parliament would change that).

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The government is not wrong to tighten taxation of non-doms, but it needs to tread carefully.

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Remember how he promised to pay for a cut in inheritance tax by increasing tax on non-doms?

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The original non-doms were Greek shipping moguls who fled their socialist country to base themselves (and their businesses) in London.

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"Members of the House of Commons and House of Lords who are non-doms should not sit in Parliament, " he said.

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The danger in imposing a draconian tax regime on non-doms is that many of them may pack their bags and go elsewhere.

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An attempt to introduce a levy on foreign workers (known as non-doms) was botched, and may yet drive many high-earners out of the country.

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But what is jarring nerves is that the Treasury also appears to be cracking down on the offshore trusts where non-doms hold much of their wealth.

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On the other hand, as the Treasury paper lays out, non-doms, who include shipping tycoons and City high-fliers, pack an economic punch much weightier than their number, currently around 115, 000.

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