This may be unpopular - but what about the squeezed middle?

[AndroidUsername]

They are talking about raising taxes on the average person now. Which will really effect lower middle class families who are already feeling the pinch due to increases in cost of food, gas and electic, increasing childcare costs and rent or morgage increases. They are going to increase pensions and benefits with inflation but lots of middle class earners are not having their wages increased with inflation but will now have their taxes increased. What about help for the middle class, especially lower middle class and working class who earn slightly to much to qualify for any help but will now stuggle with all these increases.

tbf a lot of the schemes are far less generous to newer entrants.

They're not what they're used to be but they're still very good, especially civil service.

@ILoveAllRainbowsx that's true but I personally think for newer entrants those pension benefits don't outweigh the lower salaries vs same job in private sector.

Realistically the course is set now, globally and domestically no matter who’s pulling the strings. The priority for me personally is that whoever that is they’re distributing what we do have fairly and investing in the future (energy, education) because any cushions need to be developed, we don’t have any tools or methods to hand to fix any of this.

Hit the 10% not the 90%

The 90% should unite not squabble over the crusts form the rich man's table

38k and still get UC? Surely this can’t be right? Unless they have very high housing (rented) and childcare costs?

a family with an income of 100k could qualify for child benefit, 30 free hours & tax free childcare. The last 2 a 200k income family could get. I don't have an issue with that though.

Thanks. I thought child benefit stopped at 50k, but it is phased out from 50k to 60k. Not sure I would really "count" the second two. Everyone gets free childcare hours in the same way as free school and free NHS. Or indeed free roads and street lighting!

I guess someone of pension age who has private income of over 100k still gets the state pension (but it would be taxed at high rate).

All a bit of a red herring when it comes to defining the "squeezed middle" which was the point of the post referring to those just above the threshold for help though.

Pensioners are the wealthiest demographic. They have made huge gains in their property just by being alive at the right time. They should pay.

@bercan I believe the amount quoted (though of course too many factors to say for definite) is you need a 1/3 more salary in the private sector to make up for the pension. This would be quite easy for me to achieve in the private sector, but then admit the security and flexibility of my role is what keeps me from looking at it purely in terms of figures. Plus my role in the private sector would bore me to tears. They have me by the balls.

everybody always goes "what about the middle earners". What about people on half or less than they earn? The people on benefits? Perspective, people.

I posted this on another thread.

Equal and accessible healthcare is important but not in it's current form in the UK with an increased population, longevity and ever increasing long-term/chronic illness. Cancer rates are going up to.

Social care needs to be addressed massively as 13% of the UK pop is expected to be over 75 by 2043 (24% over 65) so that will affect income taxes, healthcare, housing.

commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9239/#:~:text=The%20proportion%20of%20the%20population,from%202%25%20to%204%25.

@mast0650 I don't understand your point, I was asking the poster to clarify what they meant by help.

Social care needs to be addressed massively as 13% of the UK pop is expected to be over 75 by 2043 (24% over 65) so that will affect income taxes, healthcare, housing.

I actually find it pretty terrifying.

@woff45 yes it depends on individual circumstances. For me private is better.

They have access to benefits. Middle earners do not.

@bercan
Yep and there doesn't seem to be a long-term plan to address this.

As others have said, they didn’t pay enough.

obviously I love my parents and don’t grudge them anything but my dad didn’t start a private/workplace pension until he was about 40 and has retired on way more than I will get, and I’ve been paying into one since I was 22.

The boomer generation may not like to hear it but they’ve had it cushy for decades and not paid anywhere near what they sit with their hands out for now.

You are right, OP. I'm a higher earner but even for me it tips the balance into spending more money on basics and there is less discretionary spending. This means I am spending less on, or cutting out completely, going out, holidays clothes-buying, work on the house, buying smaller Christmas presents and so on.

Spending so much on energy makes the economy unbalanced. If people are not spending money on the above items then this will mean mass redundancy and unemployment, and a full-on depression, never mind a few months of recession.

@DamnUserName21 I read that Cameron's gov had started looking at it but then Brexit happened.
I don't think the public want to hear it though, it's easier to blame "them on the boats" 🙄

everybody always goes "what about the middle earners". What about people on half or less than they earn? The people on benefits? Perspective, people.

Because everyone is talking about lower income people, understandably, of course they should. They have been targeted for additional support and will continue to be so. But the shit has hit the fan so much this isn't just going to impact them, and now the energy price guarantee has been reduced to March and mortgage rates have risen astronomically faster than predicted it means there are going to be thousands of families who wouldn't traditionally be in the "in need" category who are being flung into it. So when terms like "targeted help" get thrown around but you know you're not usually in that category, it's normal to be fearful.

And it's always the middle earners who pay, those who don't contribute for whatever reason aren't affected and the super rich can afford accountants to avoid it, all irresepctive of what party's in power.

We are middle income but only recently and have no buffer and infact debts from before middle income
New car needed soon in order too work as well ( just new to us) we are keeping our heads above water but bit by much
Feels like we were better off when we earnt a little less

I think access to the NHS should be means tested. £15 for a Dr appt if you earn more than £40k.

if you don’t receive any benefits then you can pay up. £40 an x ray, £75 for a scan.

A&E £100 if you wasted their time and could have just gone to a GP.

£500 to give birth in a hospital.

what else. How else can we arbitrarily stuff people over that we deem richer than us?

Just to clarify I am not boomer generation

They paid what they were asked to pay

Whereas I recall companies taking "pension holidays" because they didn't see the need to keep paying their share

I recall the reason for the triple lock - because poverty in the pensioner group was so much greater than any other group

Don't hate the old

Target the bloody rich

We are middle income but only recently and have no buffer and infact debts from before middle income

Very few even on middle income have buffers. Most are still only months away from homelessness if a change in income happens.

I hope everyone pushes both parties to increase minimum wages. Less money in the hands of huge companies and more paid to their employees.