Anyone watching the Budget 2024?

[LadyofRutshire]

I couldn't find a thread on today's budget. Anyone watching live?

What an utterly sweeping generalisation.

Why do you think that?

I most certainly didn't vote for Brexit

No I’m not - and if you think I am you’re part of the problem. You cannot just believe everything you read online and get upset about it. Critical thinking is severely lacking in groups and it shows.

Do. Your. Own. Research.

I'm hoping someone can explain this to me like im 5 years old because I'm an idiot.

My understanding is that NI contributions won't increase for EMPLOYEES, but for EMPLOYERS, correct?
Do I have this right or have I understood this wrong?

If correct, surely this will eventually ruin very small businesses?
Luckily my employers profit is £3.89 million per year so I doubt this will be an issue but those with small members of staff, family owned business...etc, surely it'll increase the closures of high street stores, small businesses...etc

Absolutely agree!

Through their profits or surplus’, obviously 😂

as I said before, if you are a business who can’t swallow this, I’m afraid you were already in financial trouble.

people don’t deserve a business just because they want one. It does have to be financially sustainable, and if they are an employer they have a moral obligation to be financially sustainable

It doesn’t apply to businesses with four or fewer employees.

And higher taxes on low and middle income earners…

You should tell the OBR. They have a completely different view.

Why would it ruin every small business? Do you think none of them break even? Or hold cash surplus’?

@mummymeister 💯 this!
Although someone will be along to say that they can't afford it and farmers shouldn't have any form of profit margin!

Ah thank you! I wasn't aware of that but hoped there'd be some kind of separation of company size.

Yep. The idea is this will bring stability back.

The quality of food in this country is not dire. Yes, there are labour problems because of Brexit. The answer there is not to give up and just not bother to produce our own food. Food miles, food security? The animal welfare in this country is exceptionally high. If we relied on imports instead goodness knows what rubbish we'd end up eating. Our farmers are not all ecowarriors by any means but a lot of them do really useful work to help the environment in the way they farm their land. If farmers walked away from their land it would revert to scrub. The uplands all over the UK would look very different indeed if there were no sheep grazing there. As for walls, dry stone walls are a useful habitat all over the northern half ot the country.

This is so stupid.

Lots of small business have a small turnover- enough to pay salaries and run the business. Do all those employed not “deserve” their job because the business doesn’t have a big surplus?

This just reinforces a silly idea that businesses are making big profits and keeping it all. Lots of businesses tick over and provide stable employment and a small profit, which can then be put back into the business.

I have a friend whose opticians work struggle. My husbands pharma business will probably have to sack someone to pay the NI increase. Neither of these businesses have a right to be one though according to you..

You think it’s funny that people will end up being made redundant?

And no, it won’t just be businesses that are in financial trouble that will make people redundant. It will also be those that want to make sure that they are making a big enough profit.

No the OBR have detailed the impacts of increased employers NI, which we are all aware of.

They haven’t said that otherwise sustainable businesses will go into liquidation because of this.

we know this will end some businesses, businesses which can’t shoulder their macro economic risks. As some ended with the introduction of NMW, and other increases in employers NI etc. but that doesn’t mean those businesses have some god given right to operate when their operating model can’t respond to the environment they operate in.

Why do you think the OBR is wrong @AquaPeer ?

I think it’s funny that you don’t know how businesses fund increased operating costs, yes.

Low and medium earners in Scandinavia pay waaaaay more tax.

Yes but childcare is much cheaper and how much does housing eat into their income?

Of course many of them break even and make profits however from what I've seen online and from small business owners who've posted on this thread, even a tiny increase in anything would cause them unaffordable costs. Hence my questioning.
Our government should be supporting small companies, not causing them to get into debt via loans or shutting down due to bills/tax or general cost

can’t respond to the environment they operate in.

Clearly the environment depends on policy, a gov can make it as hard or as easy to grow as they like

They decrease their operating costs by getting rid of some of their staff. I’ve spent the last couple of years watching it happen in the company that I work for.

A business doesn’t have to be in financial difficulty to find swallowing upwards of £1k per employee difficult, if you are in a labour intensive industry or sector. There are plenty of privately owned business employing between 50 and 250:people that are the backbone of our economy but that don’t make tens of millions in profit. If they’re lucky they making a million or so. So £200k is a big hit. It’s doable of course, and will accelerate automation in retail and hospitality. And it’ll lead to lower payrises for employees. And / or price rises for customers. All of which are acceptable, but it defies logic to claim that that isn’t what will happen.

Farmers are growing Maize at an extraordinary rate, 250,000 hectares, for biofuels & silage, its subsidised soil erosion.

We import well over 50% of what we eat and have done for decades & unless you want nothing but root veg and hyper expensive meats, then we have to import.

Farmers aren't about to all pack up but the idea they are custodians of the land is for the birds, they are in farming for the money and don't care how or what they pollute or poison, so long as there is cash in it.

I am sure there will be no sympathy here but the employment allowance (no employer’s NI) excludes families hiring a nanny - which for 2 under aged 4 children in a city is cheaper than a full time nursery place. Just for privilege of working. Which means the extortionate cost of childcare for small children will increase further. Many nurseries won’t take babies so a nanny can be the only option. Surprised Reeves with children has not changed this to get women working. All childcare obviously paid gross out of net income.