New NI tax. How are people meant to afford this?

[OnTheBrink1]

We bought our house just before covid, got a mortgage that pushed us quite a bit but worked it all out and it’s been doable since then. We needed to push the mortgage quite a bit because we were upsizing to get an extra bedroom for the kids and a downstairs loo and in our area and from what we had before it was a jump.
Been managing since then but no progression opportunities in DH job during the last 18 months due to covid it seems as recruitment was largely paused.
However, now we will now have to pay an extra almost £900 per year on this new tax. £73 I make it.
We don’t have any benefits of any kind.
It’s going to be quite a struggle to afford the mortgage and still maintain the car (which is old but we need for work and kids stuff) plus all the usual bills and food. Kids are between 8-12 and need bus passes, constant uniform and all manner of expenses of course.
I mean we will struggle by but it’s going to be tough to afford that extra £73 a month when we had all the mortgage planned.
Just don’t get how they can bring it in so soon when it’s such an increase. How are others in a more difficult position going to afford this? People will be loosing their houses surely?

Another excellent programme run by these NHS “pen pushers”. Again making impact and I believe initiatives like this will revolutionise healthcare. Much better spending money on this than funding an extra 50 nurses.

www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-at-home/

Oh and just to make us all feel better, apparently this is unlikely to be the last tax hike.

Selling out the voters is no way to win the next election, but maybe Boris has sized up Starmer's utter incompetence and realised he can do whatever he pleases. The politics in this country is on its knees, and crying out for a new generation of fresh thinkers and new policies.

When the news of the tax increase to support social care and the NHS was announced, I was very pleased, and somewhat shocked that a Conservative leader should propose this. I have a simple mind, and I assumed that whilst the tax increase would be painful, the money would be going to improve the NHS AND social care.

However, like so many things, it was too good to be true. Any revenue from the tax rise will be going to try to reduce the huge backlog of treatment that has built up in health service. Nothing will be given to social care, despite Mr Johnson saying that health and social care work together.

People who say this tax is unfair because it makes the younger people pay for the care of the elderly, need to think again. Nothing is going to social care for at least three years, and even then, given the fact that both sectors are reeling from the effect of the pandemic and the exodus of workers after Brexit, it is likely that the NHS will still be the priority because nothing will have changed, despite billions being poured into the service.

This tax is going to be nothing more than money thrown into the flames, unless it results in the training and recruitment of nurses and care staff, the promotion of GP surgeries that actually see the patients before they need treatment, and the equal prioritisation of health and social care .

I Furthermore, i previous generations, the old and disabled were placed in hospitals. If social care crumbles, this is likely to happen again, and any 'investment' in the NHS will be worthless.

Mr Johnson, is, I am afraid, once again, trying to please the people by using public support for the NHS to push through a controversial action.

(apologies for the typos)

@BlueFairiesinthesky nice to see interesting, factual posts and not knee jerk armchair criticism!

I feel for you, OP. Similar drop here, but a single parent. I cannot quite understand the gloating about rich fat cats like us having to pay for this. I won't benefit from the improvement in public services, not being entitled to public funds, and I have two of my own parents to fully fund in another country where there's zero social support. On a budget like everyone else.

Of course I won't starve, but that's my usual charity money gone, genuinely hope it makes everyone happier.

We'll cover it by either getting rid of our cleaner, or taking DD out of wraparound care when she reaches Y6 next year and ask her to get herself home.

I earn well, but DH lost his job 2 years ago and now earns 20% of his previous salary in a NMW job. We're fortunate in that we have the luxury of a cleaner which we can cut back on, (rather than food or electricity), but it's obviously not so fortunate for our cleaner, or potentially wraparound club. I imagine there will be others doing similar things. Increasing tax when trying to stimulate economic growth doesn't work, people will have no choice but to cut back on spending.

We may well need these so called ' pen pushers ' but do they need to earn six figure salaries paid for by the poor ?

@lollipoprainbow

I'm working poor and a single mum and I'm now expected to pay towards people being able to inherit. It's a a double kick in the teeth as it's come too late for my darling mum who has had to use all her savings for a dementia care home. Sickening.

Out of interest how do you think the inheritance situation is better? How are you paying towards it? My mum still has to pay for care. When she goes into a rest home, she will have to sell her house to pay the fees. She has a reduced amount of savings she is allowed to keep before the state starts to pay. So I'm interested on your statement that you're paying towards my inheritance. How?

What is actually mindboggling to me is the amount of people on 50k+ plus a year claiming it will make them not be able to make some bills...

@zenthoughtsonlythanks
"I imagine big names that donate to the party will start peeling off having realised there is no longer a conservative party to support!!"

Wait a minute, this thread is full of people furious that he's done this to make his fat cat friends richer. Now you're saying he's done this to make his fat cat friends poorer. Which is it?

@Annoyedanddissapointed

What is actually mindboggling to me is the amount of people on 50k+ plus a year claiming it will make them not be able to make some bills...

Imagine that their childcare is £2K/month out of £3.1K take home. You know, childcare they have to have in order to bring in that £50K. Easier to imagine now?

@the80sweregreat

We may well need these so called ' pen pushers ' but do they need to earn six figure salaries paid for by the poor ?

Pay peanuts, you get monkeys. We need the best possible people to manage the biggest employer in Europe.

Imagine that their childcare is £2K/month out of £3.1K take home. You know, childcare they have to have in order to bring in that £50K. Easier to imagine now?

Nah. Still a budgeting issue overall. Seriously. If someone is on 50k plus and £50+ a month (depending on the wage) means they can't afford some bills, it's ridiculous

Oh, so when people discover that this money is to employ more managers , they are meant to be happy about it ?

porridge I don't think Boris has done this to make his fat cat friends richer per se, I think he has done this to consolidate his main voting base - baby boomers.
He has done this to plug a gaping hole after the pandemic, and he has done this to park his tanks on the labour lawn by investing so heavily in the NHS (leaving Starmer nowhere to hide) The consequences however to the party and its principles, values and policies are in tatters.

@Annoyedanddissapointed
When you chant about £50K earners, you may want to consider net pay. Once you consider mortgages, abs otter usual bills then that does not leave a lot. An extra taxation is always going to hurt!

@the80sweregreat

So the vast majority of the senior manager “pen pushers” in NHS England will be on 8C (£63k-73k). Below them are many more project managers, administration staff/ PMO roles on varying salaries below this. At the top of these teams is maybe 1 or 2 staff on Band 9 (from £93k).

I haven’t come into contact with any non-clinical managers who would be higher than Band 9. You can easily tell what salary range people are on by job title as it’s hierarchical.

The leaders in the upper echelons of the NHS will be earning £200k plus but great responsibility and huge budgets/risks to manage. You need to appreciate that the NHS is one of the world 10 largest employers! It needs to be lead by competent people with the salary to match.

The only people I’ve come into contact with who probably earn £200k plus are national clinical leaders, such as the lead for obesity and diabetes. But they’re qualified doctors with a lot of experience, often have academic professorships, and could earn far more in private sector- or by going to the US/ Middle East. So their salary is very justified given the expertise and need for their skills.

Also Boris is probably hedging that many of his younger voters will be happy to still receive the much anticipated inheritance in tact, with mother safely squirrelled away in a paid for state funded nursing home. It will be a win win for some. Sadly on the backs of the young, poor and many over stretched middle class families, they have been thrown under the bus for the boomers once again.

[quote portico]@Annoyedanddissapointed
When you chant about £50K earners, you may want to consider net pay. Once you consider mortgages, abs otter usual bills then that does not leave a lot. An extra taxation is always going to hurt![/quote]
My income as a single parent including working tax credit is less than £20k and I pay a mortgage and bills. If I can manage so can someone on £50k.

[quote portico]@Annoyedanddissapointed
When you chant about £50K earners, you may want to consider net pay. Once you consider mortgages, abs otter usual bills then that does not leave a lot. An extra taxation is always going to hurt![/quote]
While extra 50 a month is obviously annoying and would logically mean something like 50 less into savings, it shouldn't put earners at that level into a position they claim they will have to cancel x and y... Which I've seen on MN and online sonce the news came out. How can people not find that weird, I will never know

@Annoyedanddissapointed

Nah. Still a budgeting issue overall. Seriously. If someone is on 50k plus and £50+ a month (depending on the wage) means they can't afford some bills, it's ridiculous

But the same could be said for someone on 16-17k...that they should be able to afford 15quid!? It's all relative no??

Nah. Still a budgeting issue overall. Seriously. If someone is on 50k plus and £50+ a month (depending on the wage) means they can't afford some bills, it's ridiculous
This is a very narrow minded statement. Everything depends on circumstances, and when you are living on £1.1K month after childcare - for rent, bills, food - yes, £50/month is a material amount that can push you over the line.

Just to enlighten people who may not realise the mortgage burden on people who have bought houses more recently....

We live in small ex council, 3 bed semi. All original - no extension. Not in London but in the South. It is not fancy, the area still has lots of council tenants. We were lucky in that we purchased over 5 years ago, had a 30% deposit and remortgaged recently so got a much better rate.

We still pay £1050 mortgage per month. My friend is renting a very similar property and it costs £1700-1900. We’re one of the lucky ones.

Now do you see what strain people are under? The reality is people have been forced to stretch themselves. I have some sympathy with posters saying the OP should not have stretched for a downstairs toilet and extra bedroom. I do agree- id love these too but can’t stretch to afford it without putting us at risk in the face of rising living costs/ interest rates.

Rising prices does mean cutting charity giving, removing child from after school club and drama - hurting the people who run these clubs. We’re also looking at reducing our ISA savings, which is ironically for our retirement!

My income as a single parent including working tax credit is less than £20k and I pay a mortgage and bills. If I can manage so can someone on £50k.
How much is your childcare out of that £20K? I am also a single parent on a fat paycheck, and mine was £30K net until very recently. Not a Norland nanny, just two full time places in an ofsted "good" nursery chain.