Mate good to see you found the right thread. I am not an accountant but who ever has given you them figures needs there head checked. If you buy shares and hold them for the year you are entitled to capital gains tax. What happens there is that you will only be taxed on fifty percent of the profit you had made on that trade at your taxable income. When I first started playing in this end of town I was hoping to try to achieve the same outcome by holding for the year to claim the capital gain. In reality it does not work like that and by the end of the year you will more than likely find that your money has dwindled away to nothing unless you have backed a real winner.
With regards to paying 50% tax on any gains within the twelve months is a load of baloney. At the end of the financial year when you do your tax return your accountant will work out was your taxable income is and you will pay what ever percentage of tax in which ever bracket you fall into. There are other things like capital losses which you should be able to claim as a tax deduction on any trades that have gone up sheet creek. One thing though if you are a full time trader you may not be able to claim any capital losses against your income. I hope this helps a bit, like I said I am no accountant so maybe someone else might give you a better understanding about this.
I am not sure of your financial circumstances but maybe get yourself a good accountant to lead you onto the right path as they are worth their weight in gold. There is a good one in Warick who I would highly recommend.
Cheers
