Scared of what labour will do

What do you suggest then? That they have their benefits cut? End up homeless on the street.... ?

But it still means that this person is getting public money to top up their income to equal somebody whose job pays £60k a year. Not on IMHO.

@BIossomtoes our lynchpin customers are mainly in defence. Last year, they spent less. A lot less. They pared back contracts and deferred start dates. I don't want to think about the UK's readiness to meet a real threat frankly.

Yes. I was gutted when they got in. Honestly hoping they're going to prove me wrong.

Not everyone gets housing benefit. If you own your home, you get a short term loan to cover the interest.
Maintenance is nothing to do with the DWP, and it not counted anyway. It does not affect UC.

So, someone not claiming the housing, and not getting maintenance - look it up. It is nowhere near what you would get working in a NMW job.

@ARealitycheck round here in beautiful bucolic south Devon, agricultural land is costing stupid money because it's pretty, it makes for lovely weekends and apparently excellent game shooting, and often delivers a handsome farmhouse too. Some of it has stayed in families for generations, but in the 25 years I have been paying attention, there have been a lot of hedge fund managers throwing their bonuses into buying property. Some have invested a lot of money into improvements, and I quite applaud their efforts. But as you say, it's valued well above its productive value.

Somebody the other day was getting £4k a month net. Housing benefit. Part-time job, universal credit, maintenance.

Maintenance isn't included in any calculations & high housing benefit will be due to high rent.

I mean is makes me made that tax payers money goes into private landlords hands via housing benefit. There should be much more social housing.

Op I don't understand your posts really.. so the economy is tanked because of Brexit, wars and the Tories.... tough decisions have to be made.

So means testing winter fuel allowance - explain why wealthy pensioners need this money? When it would be better to give to poorer families?

So inheritance tax for farming - all other family businesses are subject to inheritance tax, why should farming businesses be treated differently? Also the thresholds are very high so only the huge and very very wealthy farmers will be effected by it.

Tax for pension income...again surely if you are wealthy enough to be taxed as you earn over the threshold then why shouldn't you pay tax.... And there be more money for poorer families.

Do you want poor people to get less money? Tories have cut everything with 14 years of austerity. Poor people can't be squeezed anymore. It's time the boomer generation were squeezed too!

Somebody the other day was getting £4k a month net. Housing benefit. Part-time job, universal credit, maintenance.

I am worried too. The Tories wanted to bring in drastic changes, and it was thrown out by the courts due to them not giving enough time for consultations. Labour have said they intend to carry on with the changes.
It is all speculation for now though, until the Green Paper thing comes out. But be assured that various disability organisations and charities will be fighting it.

I think we might have discussed this before. But agricultural land is priced well beyond it's productive value. Mostly due to the tax breaks and subsidy system that has allowed this inherited wealth to remain in a small number of families for centuries in some cases.

In the video I linked to upthread somewhere it suggests that land prices are so high precisely because rich people are buying it to avoid inheritance tax. Perhaps this will bring the prices back down again?

Most of us have no option other than to “take the pain quietly”. A few pence on income tax or lowering the threshold for IHT would be fine by me if we saw the results in improved public services. It shouldn’t have shocked me how neglected defence has become but it’s been run down to the point where it scares me. I could spit nails when I think of all those wasted years of fucking austerity.

The only people I know who get benefits more than someone who works are disabled parents of disabled children. And I am sure they would happily give up the money of it meant their disabilities vanished too.

A single disabled person with no kids is not getting more than someone who work.

No - I googled - link provided at the bottom of the post. I have seen lots of articles on the options available to farmers such as trusts.

That was admiration BTW @Azdcgbjml.

@Azdcgbjml , I presume you are in the business professionally. Yours was a remarkably rapid and detailed response.

If they are clever they will be fine!

Key Strategies to Avoid Inheritance Tax on Farms

1. Maximise Agricultural Property Relief (APR)
2. Ensuring that your farmland, buildings, and assets qualify for Agricultural Property Relief is the most straightforward way to avoid inheritance tax on a farm. This means keeping the land in active agricultural use and making sure you meet the ownership or occupation requirements. For example, ensuring that a farmhouse remains “character-appropriate” to the farm is critical to maximising APR on the residence.
3. Utilise Business Relief (BR) for Non-Agricultural Assets
4. While Agricultural Property Relief covers the farm itself, other aspects of the estate, such as equipment, farm shops, or non-farming activities, may not qualify. Business Relief can fill this gap by offering up to 100% relief on non-agricultural business assets that are still crucial to the farm’s operations. To qualify, the business must be actively trading for at least two years.
5. Plan with Gifting and Trusts
6. Gifting the farm to your heirs is an effective way to reduce inheritance tax, provided you survive for seven years after the gift is made. However, gifting isn’t always straightforward, particularly when the farm is still in use by the owner. Establishing trusts can offer more flexibility. Trusts can shelter assets from inheritance tax while still allowing for some degree of control or income during the owner’s lifetime.
7. Ensure Active Farming Use
8. If the farm ceases to be used for agricultural purposes, it risks losing eligibility for Agricultural Property Relief. Keeping the land farmed is essential, even if it’s leased to tenants. The active use of the land not only keeps it eligible for APR but also protects its value from falling under inheritance tax scrutiny.
9. Seek Professional Advice for Complex Estates
10. Inheritance tax laws can be intricate, especially when it comes to farms. Complex ownership structures, diversified farming operations, or large estates often require tailored solutions to minimise tax liability. A professional adviser can help you navigate the various reliefs, ensure compliance, and develop a long-term plan that reduces the tax burden on your heirs.

At £10k per acre, you don't need to own a huge amount of land to fall foul of this rule. Most farmers locally don't have huge amounts of costly equipment because it's mostly livestock, and they buy contractors in to do the other work.

Money will need to be saved and taxes raised. Farmers will still pay less inheritance tax than everyone else. Pip needs to be abolished and replaced with a more sensible benefit. The benefit bill is astronomical. And still very possible to be getting sums in benefit far higher than the average wage.

I totally support the big idea behind changing IHT on farm land to defeat the ultra rich tax dodgers. I know a handful. But it is likely to wallop a lot of real farmers too. Good clever farmers in particular, and I am not sure we can afford to lose them in the mangle of tax law.

Well as the requirement for Farmers to pay inheritance tax only kicks in at £3m which is considerably more than Joe Public, and that even then they get more time to pay it than the rest of us. I think I can sleep easy on that score. Didn't see tractors in Whitehall when something affects the general public other than them. Biggest tax dodgers of them all.

Erm, yes it is, as has been pointed out many times on this thread. If you deferred taking it (and a small percentage increase was added on) and/or were a member of the SERPS pension scheme, then your state pension will be over the personal allowance and HMRC will chase you for the appropriate income tax.

What a strange way of looking at it. That's arguing semantics.

The state pension counts as earnings, therefore it's taxable. As you say, tax is paid if one exceeds the tax threshold in any tax year. Many pensioners do, but that's irrelvant to the absolute status of the pension as taxable income.

It's NOT exempt from tax, as for example gambling winnings are.

My statistical skills are not wonderful enough to calculate precise figures. But the UK has started to lose net tax contributors faster than it is replacing them. Which I think is a problem for the future.

I don't disagree with @ploppydoppy that the really big numbers of people are the mainstream middle ranking either. But they are starting to feel very pressured, and not all of them are going to take the pain quietly.