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.

Inflation has made everything worse for most of us financially.

And that was made worse by bumper pay increases for public sector staff which was funded by higher taxes

I didn't say whether it's true or not, but it would be weird if they said we did warn you but we're going pay you £10 billion anyway. Would set a weird precedent.

@Upstartled but it doesn't say unemployment in that age group is a result of the minimum wage.

I'll ask you again, what do you think these people should be paid?

Whatever they are worth, it's not a maximum.

And that was made worse by bumper pay increases for public sector staff which was funded by higher taxes

But pay for most in both sectors is still below where it should be after the crash. Again we have ageing population which costs how does freezing pay in the NHS for example help things?

Whatever they are worth, it's not a maximum.

But lower than the minimum clearly 😆

"Bumper pay increases for public sector staff"

Such as the train driver and worker who did a fantastic job regarding the Peterborough stabbings? @Cinnamon77 ?

Heroes.

Pay isn’t based on an individual’s response to a rare crime - or the police and armed forces would be paid a heck of a lot more.

At least Reform will abolish inheritance tax, about time too.

Is that sustainable? That will be a loss of £15 billion each year from 2032. How will we absorb that?

I’m better off. In public sector and actually got a decent payrise this year after years of attrition by consecutive, utterly useless Tory governments. I’ve also had great NHS treatment this week - GP same say, physio in 2 days and XRay next day, so that feels like its starting to work better. I understand the NI issue for small businesses, and would have stuck with scrapping winter fuel and the benefits changes, but I don’t quite get the whole gloomfest that Farage et al are spouting.

Good advice, thanks. 3 years, 9 months and 20 days isn’t that long really and I’m pretty sure they’ll run out of other peoples money and excuses well before then if not already. They’ll be gone for good after this at least 🙌

Pathetic ways to live your life. @PeninsulaOfDoom

It does have Donnie Darko vibes when you break it down like that though. Bit menacing.

Well, we can agree on Brexit, certainly. But I don't see a huge difference between VAT on school fees and VAT on other purchases, personally, and I have friends with dc in private schools who are of a similar view. Of course, they aren't jumping up and down for joy about it - I doubt that any of us are that excited about the prospect of paying more tax - but they accept it as part of what goes along with their privilege.

In the same way, I'm not thrilled about having to pay more income tax after the budget, which is looking increasingly likely, but I recognise that I'm in the fortunate position of being able to pay more. I can believe that it's the right thing for the government to do without being pleased about what it means for me personally, iyswim.

but they accept it as part of what goes along with their privilege

LOL. Nobody actually talks like that.

Which is quite reasonable really. Totally out of step with the rest of the world, politics of envy and divisiveness and will truly raise no money at all. Nobody is happy when their costs increase.

On the other side of that, someone I know has been made redundant from her job as a teacher in a private school as a direct result. They deleted her subject to save money. . I've given you that face as you seem to think this issue is funny in some way.

And no, I'm not someone who is subject to this tax.

I know someone who is a governor at a private school as well and that school is going to close - people just don't know it yet. So, an unfortunate situation for those families as well.

I was thinking that. Do they chat about lovely Labour whacking on a few more thousand for no greater good.

So what is the way forward for the greater good for society @EasternStandard ?

At least Reform will abolish inheritance tax, about time too.

So this will massively benefit me but what state will public services be in?

There's not enough support for people who are willing to work.

My parents are lifelong conservative voters (with a small c) and they are going to vote Reform next time round. They both say they think they lived through the best of times.

I think that things will be unbelievably hard over the next 20 years in the UK but will get better again.

We’re in realms of utter comedy fantasy now with the few remaining Labour supporters. It’s like self parody.

The state sector is crying out for teachers, so I'm sure your friend will get another job. Redundancy is hard - it happened to me as a result of Brexit - but it can actually turn out to be a positive sometimes.

And yes, a private school local to me has recently closed. Publicly, they said that it was the result of the VAT, but their audited accounts online told a somewhat different story - they had been running at a loss for years, their reserves were seriously depleted and their pupil numbers had been falling for years. Some organisations just aren't financially viable. I'm sure it was difficult for the families affected, but the other local private schools have seen a boost in their numbers as a consequence.

And you're right, of course, that nobody is happy when their costs increase, but some of us accept that it's right for us to contribute more if we are in the fortunate position of being able to do so.

It's pretty common for me and my friends to chat about politics, and what we think of specific policies. I get that this is alien to some people.

@EngineerIngHappiness why will they get better?