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AIBU?

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Original poster

To worry about the Tory plans after this budget

324 replies

bobbywash · 18/03/2015 15:10

and I accept the election may derail all of this but.....

The chancellor has said an additional 30bn worth of cuts needs to be made in the next parliament for their figures to work.

Now bearing in mind the ring fenced NHS budget and the (wavering) commitment to the education budget and pensions. Where the heck are an additional 30bn of cuts going to come from.

Is there anything left to cut

OP posts:
smellsofelderberries · 18/03/2015 19:10

I completely agree that the NHS needs looking at and people need their expectations adjusted. My DSis is currently here on a 2 year visa and fell seriously ill 3 weeks ago. She has been in hospital for that time and will be there for another month at a minimum, is having daily physio consults, bi-weekly neuro consults, plus has had a few rounds of a very, very expenise drug, all for free. It's amazing, but I can't even begin to comprehend the amount of money that has been spent on her. But at the same time, I also can't comprehend the stress that Americans are put through because of their healthcare system.

peggyundercrackers · 18/03/2015 19:10

Irretating yep that accounted for some of the issues we had when labour left power but doesn't mitigate the rest of the mess...

Dawndonnaagain · 18/03/2015 19:14

If you're in a well-paid job, it's a good idea to carry disability insurance. The state will always pay some multiple of "average" when formulating disability benefits.

  1. Wrong.

  2. Don't indirectly accuse me of being feckless by implying that I didn't have insurances. Or savings before you start.

GoodbyeToAllOfThat · 18/03/2015 19:17

I'm wrong that carrying disability insurance is a good idea if you're in a well-paid job?

And how have I suggested that you're feckless?

Dawndonnaagain · 18/03/2015 19:22

I was in a well paid job, disability insurance was in place. It didn't pay out. Having looked into it, it's often better to put something aside, they frequently use seemingly trivial reasons not to pay out, and as brother is a barrister, trust me, I looked carefully.
As for the other part, I thought you had assumed I didn't have insurance, if that wasn't the case, I apologise.

mariamin · 18/03/2015 19:24

If you are born with medical problems, disability insurance excludes pre existing conditions. So absolutely worthless to me.

CrystalCove · 18/03/2015 19:27

I'll vote for whichever party will benefit me and my family (the Tories in this case). It may sound harsh but I really couldn't give a flying fuck about anyone else. People who I care about come first.

Right...because the people you care about are protected from what everyone else in life faces - uncertainty and change - and will never have the risk of becoming sick, mentally unwell, old, disabled, redundant, poor....Hmm

Justanotherlurker · 18/03/2015 19:29

Gibbering,

Maybe you need to do a little more research, to reduce the deficit will increase the debt in the short term, this is clearly laid out in economics 101 and even the flavour of the month 'kensian' economics, your also ignoring the the matured debts that have been inherited from labour.

I bet your someone who still blames Thatcher for right to buy whilst ignoring labours 13 years in power to correct the issue

Justanotherlurker · 18/03/2015 19:36

Crystal, are you a home owner?

If so are you willing for your house price to fall in value as the root cause of many problems is our chronic houseing situation or are you willing to pay vastly more in taxes which will directly hit you in the pocket and hit the poor substantially more, or is your 'silver bullet' the living wage which will cause inflation so it just kicks the can further down the road and we can forget about it for a few years.

Or is it that those more wealthy than you should pay more be that banks/tax avoiders (which this budget is tackling) as long as you maintain your lifestyle.

mariamin · 18/03/2015 19:37

If you have a disability or serious chronic health problem, you are very unlikely to be able to provide for your own needs financially if you include medical care. Even middle class people in the US rarely get the preventative health care that is routine here for a number of chronic conditions. In many cases this can keep people active and even working, for many additional years.

Our system in Britain is based on spreading the risk across the whole population . So the majority of people only need expensive healthcare when being born, and near the end of their life. For a small part of the population, disabilities or serious chronic health conditions, mean they need expensive healthcare for many years.

Many in this group are either born with these medical problems, such as my friend born with heart problems who is now in her 50's. Or they have industrial accidents or develop illnesses they could never have foreseen such as Multiple Sclerosis or asbestosis, which is a leading cause of disability.

So what do we do? Just leave these people to die? Because we seem to be heading that way.

CrystalCove · 18/03/2015 19:47

Not sure what your point is Northern...just because Im not voting Tory and voting for the SNP.

worridmum · 18/03/2015 19:53

what really needs to happen is do something about the bloody cost of living back in the 1950 / 1960 rent / morgage payments only took up on avarge 20 - 30% of a avagere working wage compare that to these days where rent / morgage payments makes up to upwards of 90% of the averge persons income (and for the poorest people in soicety over 100% of what they can earn hence the requirements for housing benifet)

Sadly there is no easy answer to fix these problems as we cannot just constantly build new houses due to limited space (we are a island afterall) the best solution would be a mix of building new homes on brownfield sites capping landlords ability to constantly hike rent up or maybe tax BTL propiertoies so they are less desriable investments for proptenaly landlords (or even people with second homes etc) that artifically inflate the cost of houses or even force people that own unoccped property to sell up (its estamted that there is like 20-30% of house that are unoccpped)

which i know is not popular with people but the constant raising of rents is unstainable

mariamin · 18/03/2015 20:12

Rent control would make a massive difference. The cost of buying houses needs to fall.

Justanotherlurker · 18/03/2015 20:17

we cannot just constantly build new houses due to limited space

Whilst I agree with most of your post, you have ignored the mass 'land banking', nimby issue in your post.

We do have land to build on, I presume that if your of the leaning of small island/limited space I guess your for controlled migration, or is this where the waters become muddy?

keepitsimple0 · 18/03/2015 20:27

Why am I paid less because they are related to me?

Your position sounds harsh, but I don't get why you are referring to it as pay rather than support. Many people care for family members and don't get paid for it because, yes, they are family members.

Families, however, where people can't work should get far far more support, and instead of giving out vast amounts of housing benefit like we do there should be a mass building program and getting rid of the vast planning laws. it sucks that students pay high tuition and families that can't work get a pittance because the rent is too damn high.

keepitsimple0 · 18/03/2015 20:29

we cannot just constantly build new houses due to limited space

sure we can. we can certainly build a lot more than we are doing. it isn't the case that we put the last house up and found out it was next to the ocean. there is still a lot of land in this country.

The netherlands is more dense than the UK, and half of country is under water. how do they do it?

Justanotherlurker · 18/03/2015 20:29

I presume you meant me crystal, I have no issue with you voting SNP, just that are you prepared to take a personal loss to yourself financially, either by your house is worth less than you paid for it, you pay increased taxes so it impacts on your take home wage, or willing to pay more for a loaf of bread which doesn't benefit the poor at all, under the guise of protecting the poor/disadvantaged/disabled.

Or are you of the mindset that they should be helped(and rightly so) just as long as it doesn't affect you directly?

CrystalCove · 18/03/2015 20:48

Sorry yes I read your name wrong. Still not sure of your point any why you are asking me those questions and not everyone generally e.g why you think I would be paying increased taxes etc.

GoodbyeToAllOfThat · 18/03/2015 20:54

If you are born with medical problems, disability insurance excludes pre existing conditions. So absolutely worthless to me.

I wish there was an answer for this. Everyone is entitled to an opportunity at taking out a (relatively) cheap insurance policy when they're starting out and locking in 100% income protection.

Dawndonnaagain · 18/03/2015 20:56

Your position sounds harsh, but I don't get why you are referring to it as pay rather than support. Many people care for family members and don't get paid for it because, yes, they are family members.
Because I, along with millions of other carers have no choices. As I said, I had to give up a much loved and well paid job. Had I not, the country would have spent a great deal more on my three children and dh. It is a job looking after three people with disabilities (ds gone to university now). It's a job that pays next to nothing. If I choose to go back to my lecturing, how much do you think it would cost the government to look after the people in my care? I said I had no choices, but actually I did, I could have rung social services and had the children put in care, costing an absolute fortune. Then, when dh got ill, I could have walked away and left him in hospital, but I didn't. I chose to try and continue to juggle. I chose to retire early to look after dh when he could no longer walk, dress himself, get himself to the lavatory or help with our children in any way other than intellectually. I get £61.35 for that. We get a few other benefits too. But adding it up, it doesn't amount to a great deal. So, now add up heating, cooking, feeding, night care, day care for three people. Bearing in mind that each person will probably require three staff, albeit on minimum wage, but at that point, without anything else thrown in, you're already on more than benefits cost.
In what way do you think it fair and right that I should work an 18 hour day for that money?

mariamin · 18/03/2015 20:56

The answer goodbye, is a decent welfare state.

GoodbyeToAllOfThat · 18/03/2015 20:57

Crystal I gather lurker is addressing anyone who wants to maintain or expand the welfare state, not you specifically.

CrystalCove · 18/03/2015 21:00

Thanks, they should have been a bit more specific then.

GoodbyeToAllOfThat · 18/03/2015 21:00

The answer goodbye, is a decent welfare state.

Mariamin I mentioned insurance because someone said that they had been a high-earner prior to a catastrophic health issue in their family that prevented them from working. If you want to protect a high income, the only solution is insurance.

mariamin · 18/03/2015 21:06

Yes fair point. I have just known that I can never get any kind of disability or health insurance. Even travel insurance is extortionate.