Nervous/anxious/scared about the Autumn budget 2024

Thank you! I was trying to list everything i had heard recently. The backlash would have been immense.

It would make more sense to align free prescriptions with state pension age.

I’m a low paid working parent married to another working parent. Both in charity sector. I’m worried that the increase in NI and minimum wage will mean we can’t afford childcare for our disabled child and we can’t afford for me not to work either. No one seems bothered about older children who need childcare and can’t go to standard after school clubs.

I voted to improve public services and end what seemed like decades of awful austerity but I’m worried we won’t see an end but rather and awful extension.

@KoalaCalledKevin did they? I missed that but thanks.
@PandoraSox - says it all

Change in pension tax. Rumours about limiting the amount you get as a tax free lump. Not sure how I feel about this, it would complete screw people over.

This one's been ruled out, afaik

I think it would cost a lot to means test free prescriptions for the over 60s in England, cheaper to make them free to everyone of that age.

Prescriptions are free for everyone in Scotland and Wales regardless of age.

Agree - this is going to be the thing that hurts the average person the soonest.

I think tax personal allowance freezes are going to hurt the longest. They have already stagnated over the last decade, really.

@AlbionLass
I agree, I know just what you mean

@AlbionLass
One of the least satisfactory aspects of all this is the way Rachel Reeves and her colleagues seem to be enjoying all this. They are gloating.

That is such a daft thing to say.

Labour bankrupted the country last time they were in power, but that didn’t stop us from taking issue with the tories and Austerity

No Labour didn't bankrupt us.

We really do need to look into rents as a whole. Private rents are totally out of control.

People bleat move cheaper. Ok so now the job tends to pay less. Move smaller. Ok but so is everyone else. Even in social housing. Try finding a one bedroom to rent.

HMOs are a tricky subject as it is. They remove family sized homes for what used to be whole house rents for just a room.

Universal free pensions for the over 60s .. my husband is 61, we have no mortgage, his Pension is £24k a year .. I earn £70k - why is he getting free prescriptions? My sister has £200k in the bank, and a big fat person .. free prescriptions- that needs sorting out

I haven't seen any gloating.

They have an unenviable task.

People always moan about the budget, I've heard it all my life and I'm nearly 75. However life goes on, we manage.

I've never before come across anyone being scared of an upcoming budget.

What was upsetting in October last year was the huge increase in mortgages (a couple I know, early thirties, faced an increase of about £1,000 per month), and in fuel bills.

It's easier for me as a retired person, I realise that, but I never found budgets any more daunting than any other day of the year and I had plenty of periods where I was hard up when younger, not well off now.

This trend of accusing anyone who has any issues with labour of being tories is incredibly tedious.

I think we can all admit that the tories have screwed us all into the ground, while still acknowledging that labour are no better than them. And they’re not. Already they’ve been at the centre of donations, one of their MP’s suspended for punching someone to the ground, Keir Starmer is the one whipping up a frenzy by telling the media how dreadful this is all going to be.

I didn’t vote for either of them, and the reality is that the majority of people who did, voted for them to get the tories out.

The @the tories did x@ is going to have a short shelf life. Labour bankrupted the country last time they were in power, but that didn’t stop us from taking issue with the tories and Austerity.

There basically isn’t a leader among the lot of them, and we need to acknowledge that the only people’s interests any government have in mind is their own.

What did she claim for? Hair dye? Shapeless jackets? How did she run up that bill?

As a young person. THANK YOU

Firstly absolutely not- no way will this happen and secondly this years social housing rent increase has already been decided, announced and applied

My SH rent is already nearly £900 a month. I'm on a swapper site and people with newer tenancies are paying up to £1200 a month, I've seen the odd one even higher. It's getting ridiculous.

The money it would cost to means test would mostly be a waste. Very few people will earn enough to pay more than those kind of sums. And the higher the rents keep going, the more people end up claiming part of their housing costs on UC instead of paying it all themselves from their wages.

Social housing won't actually be social housing for much longer the way things are going. It will only be for the unemployed. Then what incentive is there for them to get a job?

MPs have to account for all their expenses claims. Have you been asleep since the scandal in 2009. If you want to see what she claimed for it’s all in the public domain.

The OP is a little dramatic.

But what are we expecting?

Raising employer NI contributions. Not really sure how I feel about this one. I have really read up on how it will impact small/medium/large employers.

Increase in borrowing. I don't see what other option they had. I'm all for a small increase to hopefully stimulate the economy.

Changes to inheritance tax. Good, it only applies to a tiny proportion of the population and most of the wealth has not been earned.

Increase the budget for education. Brilliant. The children in this country are our future and I'd rather prioritise investing in them. I do think we need a big rethink on early years education.

Increase in spending for the NHS. Thepay rises were overdue. As a PP has said, I agree that the whole service needs restructuring.

Changes to the discounts available for buying a council house. Hopefully, i would scrap them altogether.

Changes to ISA allowance. This one would hit us as a family but it is incredibly generous.

Removing the tax exemption for private schools. I don't agree with this one. I think it's an easy win with many voters. I do worry about the implications of targeting one type of education and not others.

Freeze on tax thresholds. Were any of us expecting different!

Change in pension tax. Rumours about limiting the amount you get as a tax free lump. Not sure how I feel about this, it would complete screw people over. * *

Changes to CGT. Another one which could have implications for us. Again I think it's fair even if it screws us over.

What else have I missed?

Were you asleep during the expenses scandal?

Apart from their abilities!

They are far left. Nothing moderate about them.

It’s even finding an nhs dentist tbh which was actually where I went wrong. I was thinking of the private fees to even get looked at which can hinder a lot of people.so yes the small fee for a check up but make sure every single person has access to it.

Aw, you spoilt the fun with facts!