The budget
 

Let's focus on the budget! (Muslims or not)

In particular people on the lowest incomes:

https://news.sky.com/story/budget-la...-live-13040934

I ain't making £131,000, do I qualify for universal whatrever-is-called benefit?

Re: The budget
 

The NI cut is a headline grabbing initiative that will make people feel richer because the net pay amount that is on their payslip and which appears on their bank balance will be numerically larger - significantly so, for middle earners and upwards. But as he hasn’t increased tax thresholds in line with inflation for several years now, we are all worse off in real terms even after the NI cut.

This will have been a useful exercise for the economy if it prompts consumer spending sufficiently to jolt it back into life, however mostly it’s a blatant electioneering stunt, with the added bonus of, if it doesn’t work and Labour gets in, screwing their own economic plans from day one.

I noticed the official Treasury PR photo of Jeremy Hunt preparing his budget had him sitting beneath a framed portrait of Nigel Lawson.

Jeremy Hunt is not Nigel Lawson.

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Only a General Election can do that.

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Its a politically motivated short term budget rather then a budget which would improve things for this country in the long term.

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I stocked-up on beer, expecting a tax hike. Well, at least I won't have to buy any more for a while.

I no longer pay N.I., have not had Child Benefit for over a decade, so it was a nothing budget for me.

Re: The budget
 

Indeed. The UK remains in the icy grip of the productivity slump that began with the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and was topped up by Brexit. It means living standards are falling whilst taxes are increasing. Whilst the OBR and other economic bodies talk about it, Brexit was conspicuous by its absence in Hunt's list of reasons for the ongoing productivity slump. It's the economic elephant in the room.

The UK sadly remains on track for its predicted 15% reduction in trade intensity as a result of Brexit. So what? Trade intensity increases competition and allows countries to specialise in what they're relatively more efficient at, thereby increasing productivity.

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Personally, I’ll continue to get hammered on tax. I’m not a massive drinker so not much of an impact there, lung lollies well obviously there’s an increase there


Meh for me

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Capitalism has the UK in a death spiral. The Government restricts itself arbitrarily from investment, the private sector won’t either it’s just there to extract, extract, extract and offshore the profits. Wages are so low, and inflation so high, there’s limited scope to raise taxes in any significant way. Living standards have taken enough of a hit.

There’s one way out and it’s the big “do not touch” button. A wealth tax.

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I didn’t say that it would. It’s not the only useful measure or desirable output.

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It could increase net wages if receipts from a wealth tax could justify a reduction in income tax.

Given the state of the economy, we'll probably have to do a wealth tax without a reduction in income tax if councils aren't to go to the wall next year.

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Are you suggesting communism as an alternative, because that’s always turned out great?

Or a third way? Which I’d be happy to listen to.

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Undoubtedly el gov will pump out another budget before the election later this year...

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Bit of a movement towards mutuals at the moment. Nationwide Building Society is buying stock-exchange-listed Virgin Money and Coventry Building Society is in exclusive talks to acquire the Co-operative Bank from its private equity owners.

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The alternative to the failed privatisations that, at best, haven’t created genuinely competitive markets and at worst require further public subsidy in any case isn’t “communism”.

It’s a “red” herring.

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The budget went down well then....

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I am 81 and the budget will not help.
All of the PMs shouild try living solely on a state pension

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Yes in Winnersh

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I doubt it made much difference either way.

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It was rubbish

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Given that the intention was to ' buy votes', then that's a failure.

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I’d be interested to see underlying data to the polls. Are they not moving full stop or is there movement in there with no overall change?

A 4% cut in “tax” for working people but not pensioners should, in normal times, move some dials. However perhaps this lot so incompetent they’ve lost everyone that’d be motivated by such things already and their vote is really at the floor of true believers, people who hate “socialism” and those that don’t understand economics.

Abolishing NI and recouping that revenue from income tax or VAT would be quite a move against the interests of traditional Tory voters.

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I don't think this budget deserved to change the polling.

People aren't daft. Those of us who have benefitted from the 4% NI cuts this year know that, however welcome it is to household finances, it's an election bribe. In 2015 or 2017 it could have worked, but people know this is a desperate measure from a government that no longer has the goodwill of the general public to make such a pre-election giveaway work.

Only 12 months ago we were being told that NI cuts were unaffordable. Well the economy must be going great guns now if suddenly we can afford a 4% cut...

Instead of short term sticking plasters, what we need is a truly radical long term plan for growth over the next 50 years, along with the investment to support that.

Re: The budget
 

Politicians are only interested in the next 5 years , and then only in the last year having filled their boots in the first 4 years.

People are daft, to put it politely, when it comes to voting. They vote on whether the leader is a bit of a laugh/ has charisma (hence Boris), or how the self interested media tell them to. A benevolent dictatorship might be better all round. A least there's a bit of stability/ long term planning ;)

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A ≠ B

How does increasing someone’s Council Tax on a Second Home become taking the Second Home away from them?

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Nobody wants to solve the housing crisis - it's the base upon which the whole pyramid scheme is built.

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A spare house, with language as vulgar as that is it any wonder there is a housing crisis :rolleyes:

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House-building in the richer parts of the country seems to be costing the Conservative Party votes so only natural that they try and free up second homes for regular occupation. We voted in June 2016 not to return small boat immigrants to France, so they all need to live somewhere.
https://www.politicshome.com/news/ar...lection-losses

Re: The budget
 

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New definition of "a typical case" I hadn’t come across before…

https://www.cableforum.uk/board/atta...0&d=1709990976

Look on the bright side - more Government revenue on the CGT when they sell the second home.

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Amusing, coming from someone who posted

and

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Pass on the second house to one of your off-springs and if you have a second off-spring, pass your third house to that one.. This way you solve the IHT problem too.

How do you pass on the first house? that's the real problem.

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I don’t think that’s entirely accurate!

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7 year rule. You buy them on their name

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Or…

They could live in it.

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If its not occupied, sell it.
Hanging onto an empty house you dont need is just nuts.

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Those are not good reasons to hang onto an empty house, move on.

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The memories can’t be that valuable if a small increase in council tax isn’t worth paying on top of all the other associated costs. Insurance, maintenance, energy, etc.

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Yes, I did - if they didn’t want to live in it, either sell it or let it.

Leaving a house empty to moulder and deteriorate seems strange, unless you are proactively maintaining an empty house?

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Sell it and rent somewhere else if you want to visit the area. Keep the photos for the memories and help the housing crisis and your pocket by selling it.

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A “holiday home”?

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I’m curious as to why you think you’re entitled not to pay towards the services provided by the council in the area where your house is located.

Note that excuses like ‘we don’t send our kids to school/use social services/libraries’ do not apply. The whole point of socialised services is we all pay for all of them regardless of need so we all have them when we need them regardless of means.

The long-settled democratic view in the UK is that we pay for local services via a charge related to property value. Second home exemptions are an anomaly whose time is long overdue.

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Can afford it ? Then pay it and hush

Can’t afford it ? Sell it and then perhaps see if there’s a ‘home bank’ in the area

You’re in a truly privileged position, stop complaining

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There's nothing nasty about using the tax system to discourage inefficient uses of a finite resource.

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It is indeed your decision how to use it within the parameters of the taxation system that prevails.

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The Government you have repeatedly voted for...

To quote the old saying - "I never thought leopards would eat MY face,' sobs man who voted for the Leopards Eating People's Faces Party."

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I'd rather save my sympathy for those that deserve it, you know, like people who don't have one house to live in rather than those with a spare one sat there for emergency reminiscing

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I'm really unsure what is nasty about the whole thing. It's up to you if holding a second, broadly empty, property is a good use of your assets.

Local authorities will, rightly, consider it an ineffective use of resources since that's not someone living and spending in a local community.

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A lovely, but flawed, sentiment. The Government intervenes in all kinds of ways in how people use their income and assets.

One week in every six.

Of course it should, that's the point of the state - to address these issues.

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You seem to think you’re the only person who has ever had to wrestle with what to do with additional property. I’m not inexperienced in this area and if my attitude seems cruel to you, be assured I have been equally cruel to myself.

It’s not on for you to point the finger solely at the failure to build houses, real though that is, when we have a genuine problem in certain parts of the country with families who have lived in an area for generations and can no longer find anywhere to live thanks to holiday homes. Housing is first and foremost a requirement of human existence. Housing as leisure is a distant second. Housing as an investment should frankly be extremely tightly regulated as it is one area in which those who already have material means are demonstrably making life more difficult for those without.

If you have more than one house in your possession then you are one of the super-privileged few and frankly you should either pay a sum that recognises your privilege or sell to someone that actually needs it.

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I can look myself in the mirror quite happily, I’ve discouraged everyone from voting Conservative my entire lifetime and the consequences of doing so are a country in decline.

This is the thin end of the wedge for what will be required to put the country on a level footing after decades of flawed economic policy.

And for what it’s worth Free Palestine!

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You OK, hun?

https://gifdb.com/images/high/sad-cr...lor5d9c1qr.gif

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Nobody in any civilised society has ever had absolute freedom to use their property as they choose. Never, ever, ever. Humans living in community have obligations to one another. They recognised that even in Ancient Rome. The wingnuts on the libertarian fringe of right-wing politics have no excuse.

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You’re confusing nastiness with honesty.

Actually, why don’t you protest and not pay?

‘From your door mat to your duck pond’

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Then pay up and shut up, you come across as a real spoilt bratt atm.

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Welcome to the wonderful world of a Conservative government, maybe you'll realise why many of us can't wait to see the back of them. Your lot have been picking on the easy targets for years. I can't recall you speaking out about the bedroom tax, but now you're being hit by a posh version it's a national outrage. Maybe you should look in the mirror and have a think about all the people this government have crushed without giving them a second thought.

End of the day you voted for them, and I bet you will again. Sorry but you'll get no sympathy from me.

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Try living under labour in Wales all are bad as each other , soon in Wales you will vote for a party not person says it all :td:

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I'm trying to work out the logic between people posting about council tax on second homes and a Free Palestine march.

It's eluded me up to now but the pebby's dropped. I deduce that you believe them to be spending too much time on the forum and need to lose a bit of weight (hence take a look in the mirror) and to go on a march to walk it off. :D

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This is so far from the truth it’s laughable. Or it would be, if I thought you were dim enough to believe it. I actually don’t think you’re this stupid, so I’ll simply post you a :rolleyes: and leave it there.

Re: The budget