Can someone explain to me why/how the Labour government has directly made them worse off in the last 15 months?

[MotherofAdults]

Can someone explain to me why/how the Labour government has directly made them worse off in the last 15 months? I see this claim a lot on these pages, but I don't understand why. Sorry if I sound stupid, I am just trying to get clear.

I totally understand that the cost of living keeps going up - that inflation keeps rising (3.5-3.8%?) and that mortgage interest remains relatively high, but I don't understand why or how this is the fault of the current government? What have/haven't they done? Are people angry that they haven't curbed inflation? What should they be doing?

If we could avoid mentioning the things that didn't actually happen (eg the Winter Fuel Allowence cuts) and speculation about what the next budget will do (doubling of council tax, rise in minimum wage etc), that would be really helpful. I am looking for actual changes made by this that have directly affected your financial situation since Labour got it.

Any government will struggle to make us richer. We need to start investing in young people for one.

The top 1% of taxpayers pay around 30% of the income tax in the UK. I’m sure the majority would be happy paying less tax. However, what do you think would happen if the top 1% left the UK? Even a relatively small amount leaving would have a huge impact on the tax take. Where would the resulting shortfall be made up from?

And as for the ones who want to move, theu can fill their boots - but they would have to give up their British Citizenship if they dont want to pay tax.

I’ve seen some ridiculous suggestions on Mumsnet, but this one is up there as the more ridiculous. You would take someone’s British passport off them for moving abroad?

You see, I don't remember Reeves saying that last year when she borrowed to the hilt last year saying the capital expenditure it would fund would do just that?

If that were true, how would changes to NI raise any money? The allowance only benefits small companies. All other employers are paying more.

Lol bless you for trying. I had to tell myself to stick to IRL only conversations/debates/learning, I can’t be arsed with online interaction anymore

@Upstartled presumably she had banked on the cuts going through?

The triple lock needs to be paused, but people won't accept it.

The top 1% of taxpayers pay around 30% of the income tax in the UK

@Another76543 the top tax payers are unlikely to be on PAYE...

Thank you.

The cuts on welfare were going to save £5bn and I can't remember wfa savings, was that £1bn. It doesn't touch the sides of this £50bn hole we are about to fill with tax because there was no growth and debt has become exorbitant to service.

@Upstartled as I said growth will be as evasive in the future as it has been since 08 unless we start prioritising the young.

In answer to your question, this government has directly affected me financially by failing to control my corrupt local authority, place it into administration, or launch an official enquiry into where the funding money for the local redevelopment project has gone.

In a nutshell, without giving any more specific local details, this means, in practice and reality not just in theory, that not only am I paying 5% more council tax for abysmal and/or reduced services, but I also have to spend a lot more on petrol because my local market and town centre is all but destroyed and does not provide the amenities I need.

Labour has failed to reverse the terrible Tory decision to loosen oversight of councils. National government must be directly responsible for controlling local authorities effectively, otherwise democracy is undermined and the corrupt local council executives run riot, as has happened in my area.

Rents are ridiculous and the renters' rights bill doesn't go far enough (has it even been passed yet) so l don't feel there are any positive prospects of moving away.

So in summary I am slightly financially worse off, with no confidence that Labour has any grip on the problems or any real understanding of its purpose in government leading me to think I would be better off taking my child elsewhere but unable to afford to do so.

Anyone on £200,000 or less (99.5% of the population) would pay less tax on my initial 60% suggestion.

If they are on more they can pay more, but I would bring in rules which would make it less beneficial for them for example I would introduce the US rule where if you want to retain UK citizenship you pay tax even if you live abroad.

Anyone who chooses not to pay tax in this country can renounce their citizenship and also give up any honors and titles (looking at you Ashcroft and Rothmere - you're not sitting in the Lords if you're not paying tax and Dyson can give up his knighthood )

Any public sector contracts can be prioritised to British owned companies whose leaders pay tax in this country (one of the very few genuine Brexit benefits), and corporation tax can be staggered so that British based / owned companies and those that employ UK citizens rathher than outsourcing can get tax perks not offered to foreign based companies.

We've got to stop bending over backwards for the uber wealthy while they happily pillage this country for everything it has.

We are the 6th largest economy in the world, but far too much of that wealth is concentrated in the top 0.5% and flows out of the UK every single day.

If we look after 99.5% of the country by reducing their tax burden and improving public services and make it harder for the uber wealthy to take without giving back the country would be in a much better place and the economy would grow!

We need to do a lot of things, prioritise the young is one of them, increasing business, enterprise, and productivity too, we need to change the mood of the country - demoralised people don't spend their money, or improve their situation, they just hoard it to keep them safe. We need to cut welfare, as well. There are heaps of things.

Yep this

My comment referred to a poster’s suggestion of changing income tax bands which is why I mentioned income tax. Income tax accounts, by far, for the largest source of tax receipts in the UK. Alienating the 1% of people who pay 30% of that tax is a bad idea.

Labour has failed to reverse the terrible Tory decision to loosen oversight of councils. National government must be directly responsible for controlling local authorities effectively, otherwise democracy is undermined and the corrupt local council executives run riot, as has happened in my area.

We vote for councils. If we hand councils to national governments then we are removing local democracy. The problem is people are so tribal in who they vote for that they fail to vote against corrupt local councils because they ‘have always voted Labour’.

Rents are ridiculous and the renters' rights bill doesn't go far enough

They introduced rent controls in Scotland and, as is generally the case with rent controls, rents went up and number of places available for rent went down.

Though, tbf, there would be even less on PAYE if income tax for that bracket went up.

There's a tax on education?

Why will 10 young people lose their jobs? I don’t understand.
There’s either a job to be done or there isn’t? If there is a job to be done pay someone correctly to do it.
if you can’t do that then you do t have a business?

Are you being deliberately obtuse. Of course I wouldn't take someone's passport off them if they wanted to move abroad. Only if they want to move abroad AND not pay any tax.

The US do it. If you want to remain a US citizen you have to continue to pay tax even if you live outside the US. Why couldn't we do the same?

You wouldn't lose 30% of tax revenue because not everyone would leave (and actually under a.60% higher tax bracket, its only around 0.5% of earners would be affected). You could set the 60% threshold at £265,000 - which is 99.5% of the population and below.

Even fewer would leave if the ability to make money in the UK is easier and more beneficial for those who are based here.

You would increase tax revenue from VAT and increased company profits as people would have more disposable income - and people earning less than £150,000 spend a much higher proportion of their income of day to day costs which would make up some of any shortfall from people leaving and the economy would grow which would make up the rest.

Things like the benefits bill and health services bill would also reduce as improved services meant people were healthier, again, making up some of the shortfall from any loss in tax benefits.

Its about looking at the bigger picture rather than falling for the scare tactics which the uber wealthy like to employ so that they can keep getting rich off the back of the rest of us!

I thought it was just me thinking this OP. The cost of living keeps increasing but this didn't just start last year. I don't know that any government can fix things quickly. Solutions will be painful. Many people are struggling despite working hard but I know plenty who aren't.

LOL. One of the first things Labour did was introduce an education and vocational training tax on children aged 4 -18.

Well of course, who would pay an extra 12k a year and be happy with the govt who made it happen?
Even if you think the change was right, you can’t expect people to not be unhappy about such an extra expense.