To want a budget which puts young people and families first

HFJ · 2024-10-28T19:59:20+00:00

In advance of an upcoming budget that will likely hammer working people (again, despite the rhetoric), I’m consoling myself by imagining my own budget. You’ll notice a theme. This is because I believe young people and families are the future, deserve to have hope, aspirations and goals. Please feel free to contribute. 1. The first 5 years of young people’s full time earnings to be tax and NI free. This would enable all to save for a house deposit, rather than only the few who inherit. Imagine the incentive to work hard! 1. No increases to any tax that primarily affects working age people, including fuel tax (because working people need fuel to go to work) 1. No stamp duty for young people and those with children under 18. This enables them a fairer chance of buying property rather than have to compete unfairly with cash buyers 1. Complete removal of the pension tax free cash allowance. This is because 100s of 1000s are poised to take their 25% lump sum and plough this into the property market (tbf I think the gov has got wind of this, hence the landlord tax changes) 1. instead of massive increases to NHS budget (which does not really benefit the young or families), a £10 charge to see the doctor, so people start to take ownership for their health 1. Removal of the free prescription for over 60s. Instead, use this money to bring back the school nurse and perhaps even school dentist visits Any other ideas?

viennawaitsforyouu · 31/10/2024 11:16

Mlanket · 29/10/2024 20:24

I’ll answer that for you

“Real wages grew by an average of 33% each decade from 1970 to 2007; but they are now back at the level they were at in 2005, according to data from the Office for National Statistics, ONS (Times, 2023).
Indeed, the Resolution Foundation calculates that after 15 years of stagnation, average earnings are £230 below the trend before the global financial crisis of 2007-09 (BBC, 2023).”

Isn’t 2005 back when milk cost 50p, what a joke

TigerRag · 31/10/2024 11:03

RichTea90 · 31/10/2024 07:16

You get reduced council tax? 🤷‍♀️

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Whoopee

I've lost count of the amount of posts on Facebook groups about the youngest child coming off the UC claim and the parents losing so much money. They lose their work allowance (£404 for those who rent, £673 for those with no rent costs) plus the money they get for their child.

RichTea90 · 31/10/2024 07:16

Viviennemary · 31/10/2024 06:21

I agree completely. A lot of folk on benefits will get a big shock when they have no children at home. Single people get a really raw deal IMHO.

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You get reduced council tax? 🤷‍♀️

Viviennemary · 31/10/2024 06:21

Schnauzersaremyheros · 29/10/2024 01:38

Well said! 👏

Us childfree/childless singletons really do get the raw end of the deal.

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I agree completely. A lot of folk on benefits will get a big shock when they have no children at home. Single people get a really raw deal IMHO.

Mlanket · 31/10/2024 05:36

My head doesn't explode if someone points out that older people voted Leave and younger people voted Remain, because its true.

Youre brave! 😆

MereDintofPandiculation · 30/10/2024 22:28

Kendodd · 30/10/2024 22:04

Don't take things so literally.
I'm older, I voted Remain (went on the marches and everything, along with plenty of other older people). Doesn't change the fact that older people voted Leave and we have them (us) to 'thank' for Brexit. My head doesn't explode if someone points out that older people voted Leave and younger people voted Remain, because its true.

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We're not going to agree.

Nogaxeh · 30/10/2024 22:22

MereDintofPandiculation · 30/10/2024 21:34

The incentive to build is the profit that you make. We have a number of areas around where I live which have planning permission for houses, but houses are being built and released at a snail's pace in order to maintain high prices.

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Yes. The control of the large housebuilders has to be broken. I would do things differently. For example, I would have the local council build the roads and put in the utilities for a new area of housing, and then sell individual building plots on the site to people wanting a home, who could then choose a design and a builder to build it for them.

I'd also find a way to have councils build houses directly (as they used to), and various other changes. The big housebuilders have no interest in massively increasing the rate of housebuilding, because they have no interest in seeing house prices go down.

Kendodd · 30/10/2024 22:12

Meadowfinch · 30/10/2024 13:43

Not when inheritance tax is at 40% now.

By forcing people to spend earlier, they lose up to 20% tax take. They also risk those people running out of pension if they live to an old age, and then falling back on the state to keep them, resulting in higher pension credit bills and possibly housing bills as well.

The benefit to the economy of the early spending, could be offset against the increased costs but it wouldn't fill the gap.

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Inheritance tax isn't 40%
For 96% of estates it's zero.

Kendodd · 30/10/2024 22:08

I also recognise that as a group, we've had a much easier ride through life than younger people. We've also been constantly favoured, over other groups by politicians.

Kendodd · 30/10/2024 22:04

MereDintofPandiculation · 30/10/2024 21:31

They weren't. Else they'd have used terms like "more likely to vote Remain".

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Don't take things so literally.
I'm older, I voted Remain (went on the marches and everything, along with plenty of other older people). Doesn't change the fact that older people voted Leave and we have them (us) to 'thank' for Brexit. My head doesn't explode if someone points out that older people voted Leave and younger people voted Remain, because its true.

MereDintofPandiculation · 30/10/2024 21:34

Nogaxeh · 29/10/2024 18:44

Build the infrastructure, train the tradesmen. Britain built millions of houses in the past it can do so again.

It will take a while, but it took decades to get into this mess. You wouldn't expect to be able to fix it with one budget.

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The incentive to build is the profit that you make. We have a number of areas around where I live which have planning permission for houses, but houses are being built and released at a snail's pace in order to maintain high prices.

MereDintofPandiculation · 30/10/2024 21:31

Mlanket · 29/10/2024 16:52

But I didn’t vote for that. So stop blaming older people. End of. Plenty of younger people voted for Brexit. Maybe have a go at them?

That posters was talking statistically though…

They weren't. Else they'd have used terms like "more likely to vote Remain".

Jellycatspyjamas · 30/10/2024 19:07

@XenoBitch I honestly had no idea that was a "thing", that's a nightmare.

XenoBitch · 30/10/2024 19:03

@Jellycatspyjamas

This is from our council's documents about housing....

Where the main and/or joint applicant (this also includes partner of the main applicant included on the application) have a combined savings/capital in excess 21 | P a g e of £16,000, they will be ineligible to join the allocation scheme. The applicant/s will be expected to use this money to secure accommodation

XenoBitch · 30/10/2024 19:01

Jellycatspyjamas · 30/10/2024 18:32

My DP pays a high rent to his landlord (is almost 50% of his take home pay), but would not be eligible for council housing as he has over £16k in savings... but could never buy either. So he is stuck in a gap that I imagine a lot of other people are.

Eligibility for council housing has nothing to do with savings - the £16k savings threshold is for entitlement to UC, not social housing.

He failed the 'financial test', which includes savings.

Jellycatspyjamas · 30/10/2024 18:32

My DP pays a high rent to his landlord (is almost 50% of his take home pay), but would not be eligible for council housing as he has over £16k in savings... but could never buy either. So he is stuck in a gap that I imagine a lot of other people are.

Eligibility for council housing has nothing to do with savings - the £16k savings threshold is for entitlement to UC, not social housing.

XenoBitch · 30/10/2024 17:28

LakieLady · 30/10/2024 17:10

Building council housing would also reduce the number of people paying high rents to BTL landlords.

So many people qualify for UC purely because their rent would be unaffordable without that it would eventually lead to a reduction in the benefit bill.

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My DP pays a high rent to his landlord (is almost 50% of his take home pay), but would not be eligible for council housing as he has over £16k in savings... but could never buy either. So he is stuck in a gap that I imagine a lot of other people are.

Boomer55 · 30/10/2024 17:12

The budget is done, and seems a lot about nothing. 🙄

LakieLady · 30/10/2024 17:10

Kendodd · 28/10/2024 21:47

I think the one thing the government could do to improve the lives and future of a great many citizens would be a massive council house building programme.
Really good quality, spacious homes with affordable rent. And I would put key workers, including higher income ones, at the top of the list, first to be housed, but ultimately there should be enough for everyone who needs/wants one. It would also be an income generating asset for councils.

Building council housing would also reduce the number of people paying high rents to BTL landlords.

So many people qualify for UC purely because their rent would be unaffordable without that it would eventually lead to a reduction in the benefit bill.

GrannyRose15 · 30/10/2024 16:57

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 13:03

Increase in house price isn’t taxed, it’s earned through inflation!

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So it isn’t a real increase is it. It is just the way that money keeps its value.

Gummybear23 · 30/10/2024 15:02

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 13:01

If inheritance were taxed at 99% and people spent all their money before they died… most of the spending would give the government at least 20% in vat..a win!

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What nonsense

Meadowfinch · 30/10/2024 13:43

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 13:01

If inheritance were taxed at 99% and people spent all their money before they died… most of the spending would give the government at least 20% in vat..a win!

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Not when inheritance tax is at 40% now.

By forcing people to spend earlier, they lose up to 20% tax take. They also risk those people running out of pension if they live to an old age, and then falling back on the state to keep them, resulting in higher pension credit bills and possibly housing bills as well.

The benefit to the economy of the early spending, could be offset against the increased costs but it wouldn't fill the gap.

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 13:03

GrannyRose15 · 28/10/2024 22:37

Every penny of it has been taxed once, sometimes twice and in some cases many times. How would you like everything you had worked for taken by the government.

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Increase in house price isn’t taxed, it’s earned through inflation!

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 13:01

Meadowfinch · 28/10/2024 23:13

This would simply result in people spending it on their children while alive -private school, university fees,, skiing holidays etc. I'd rather see my dc have a first class education while I'm alive than hand my life savings to the govt when I die.

If anything that would increase the inequality between the haves and the have nots from an earlier age.

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If inheritance were taxed at 99% and people spent all their money before they died… most of the spending would give the government at least 20% in vat..a win!

Gall10 · 30/10/2024 12:59

JudgeJ · 29/10/2024 01:44

So you would take it to give as unearned income to many who do nothing but take?

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Spoken like a true Tory!