Inflation and interest rates

[Sallywallywoowoo]

The BOE keep raising rates to curb inflation. I understand that is the only thing that the BOE can actually do and so they've got no choice. But isn't there anything else the govt can do? It's genuinely scary seeing articles on the BBC how 1 million mortgage holders will see their payments increase by £500pm by 2026. Literally nobody I know could afford that. And it doesn't even include renters in that number. Presumably loads of them are in the same boat or worse. If their LL mortgage costs go up, then so will their rents.
It seems to me the financial burden could be spread more fairly. Anyone who owns outright isn't feeling the pain. And for the most part that group is likely to be the ones who could most afford it. Especially if they have a load of savings that they're now getting a nice high rate of interest on. Surely things COULD be done differently if the will was there?

Brexit was entirely different. It was a binary choice. Our electoral system doesn’t work like that. If we only had two parties and proportional representation you’d be right.

@Blossomtoes

So what's the point in voting at all? If no one has any power to influence policy, why bother voting?

And Brexit didn't have an impact on the situation we're in now?

It’s a good question. I vote become women died for my right to do so, not because I have any illusion that it makes any difference. As Ken Livingstone said “If voting changed anything they’d make it illegal”.

@wutheringkites

The reasoning they often give is that they had hard times too or that things will be made right through inheritance, but I think that attitude stinks and just further entrenched inequality, which harms us all.

Fully agree. I really hate the "you'll get it all when I die" mantra so often trotted out by the older generation to their struggling children, grandchildren, nieces/nephews, cousins, etc. It's really akin to the way your grandma or aunt used to have all her "best" in a cupboard, never seeing the light of day, i.e. best tablecloth, best china, etc., or even worse, those that had a "front room" that no one was ever allowed in. Just what the hell is the point?

It's not being "grabby" that the younger generation need help, or even an acknowledgement that they've been screwed over. And all this crap about mobile phone contracts and netflix subscriptions - the chasm between spending on a few regular subscriptions and house prices means that even if they cancelled some of their monthly direct debits, they'd still never even be close to owning their own home - they'd be long dead by the time they'd saved enough from saving £50 per month for the deposit!

We inherited from my mother when we were in our late 40s and we'd long gone through our "struggling" years of running an ancient car, no holidays, saving like mad for a deposit, no meals out, and starting our own business at the same time as finding out we were pregnant, living on a year's interest free credit card! It came too late to help us, and we didn't want to spend it on something we really didn't need like a bigger house or new cars, so we "ring fenced" it for our son so that he can benefit from it - he doesn't know how much is there so doesn't have any kind of entitled attitude, but our plan is to "match" his spending/saving on things to improve his life, such as a flat deposit, buying a decent/safe car, buying a decent laptop for studying/WFH, furniture for a flat, etc - NOT discretionary spending such as hobbies, holidays, takeaways, etc. So, yes, he's "lucky" in getting a leg up, but we really don't want him to struggle and potentially make poor life choices basically waiting for us to die to get our inheritance - the youngsters need help today, not in decades to come when we're dead!

And yes, re another poster's views on voting, I WILL be voting for whichever party has genuine plans to help younger generations, rather than self interest as someone pretty close to being a pensioner. We're alright and don't need more help, like huge numbers of pensioners who've benefitted from house price increases, good healthcare/education in the past, etc, local decent job opportunities. The younger generations don't have that - they need as much help as they can get. Whatever colour rosette will get our vote if they stop pandering to pensioners and start helping the younger generation of workers!

None of the major parties are going to piss the pensioners off because there are more of them than any other demographic and they actually bother to turn up and vote.

I do feel sorry for the way the young are overlooked but they really don't help themselves by not engaging. If you do not engage you will pay the price for that.

Yes but in fairness if I think of where I live in 2011 you could have bought a house on our street for around £150k, by 2017 (around when we moved here) it was more like £280k and today it’s more like £430k. Even taking inflation into account buying here now costs double what it did 12 years ago. That’s a significant advantage we both have over someone who bought just coming out of the pandemic

Which party is that that is going to reduce the support that pensioners get?

@Badbadbunny your post is so refreshing to read. It almost restores my faith in people in this country.
Honestly. Every single person who has argued with my post has assumed that I'm young or just after an easy ride because I feel like renters / people with new mortgages/ the young need more help, and the older generation on the whole don't.
As it happens I'm older too. I'm 46 so Gen X. I don't need help with my mortgage, we've got savings. We're doing OK. But a lot of people aren't.
But suggesting that help should be channeled towards the younger generation, and not towards the older ones - who are the richest cohort there has ever been (!) And also the only group to get anywhere near as much in the way of universal benefits Is slammed as being agist on MN.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66199622

One in 20 adults reported running out of food and being unable to afford more as prices soared, according to an official survey.
Single parents were particularly vulnerable, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey suggested, as more than a quarter found themselves in such a scenario.
Certain groups of people are hit harder by the rising cost of living.

The ONS said renters were most likely to be stretched by housing costs.

Some 43% of tenants said they were finding it difficult to afford the rent between February and May, the ONS said. That compares with 28% of mortgage holders struggling with repayments.

Renters really do seem to be struggling.