Why won't any political party focus or help the squeezed middle

[Winterday1991]

Off the back of another thread, has got me thinking about the next general election.

Why is there not a party that will focus on the middle earners in the squeezed south east , where both partners work full time, who are struggling juggling mortgages, cost of childcare and self fund everything and are over threshold for any help or subsidies ie child benefit, cost of living payments, free childcare via universal credit?

We are a middle/highish income family and are just so sick of paying into the system and getting nothing back! The amount of tax we pay is insane, certainly not anywhere near value for money. Labour just seem to want to focus on single parent families and those on universal credit.

Any party who focuses on the middle will surely win the election?

Do they?? I must get on to HMRC then, I work full time and get UC and my income is £2k a month as a single parent.

This is just not true we do not live beyond our means at all. Our house is very modest I can assure you

We are on 25k (including benefits). I think you need to get a bit of perspective.

Yes and I work ft with no uc fir 35k a year and clear just under 2k a month. From which I pay 80% of childcare. You clearly 2k and pay 15% of childcare.

Because they expect us to bend over and get screwed at every turn. Not only should we work to support ourselves and our own families, we are also expected to support everyone else as well and do it with a fucking smile on our face.

Tax is important, it is our civic duty to help those less fortunate and support public services and I am fully on board with that but there is only so much that can be squeezed before you start to think 'fuck it' and wonder if going part time makes sense for the tax cut

This is utter bullshit. My ( single parent, 2 kids) total income from PT work and universal credit is just short of 2k a month. This comment is such an enormous falsehood it needs to be deleted. Put your daily mail down.

What is needed is a government that prioritises running public services well and who invests in them. Everyone benefits then. At the moment these services are being run into the ground by wealthy people who pay private for schools and medical care. The fact the the OP thinks she is best served by the tories is hysterical and is indicative of how bonkers people are.

If you honestly believe you live modestly but are squeezed on 95k per year, with two personal allowances between you, then how exactly do you think those earning much less than you are coping?

What's your joint take home after tax, NI, pension etc?

@Boomboom22 what on earth are you basing that on?!

@Winterday1991 we’re in a similar bracket then, two parent/two child family, on about £90k gross, but 2/3rd income from one parent it’s not evenly split, if that’s relevant (no child benefit etc). In the South East. So I’m coming from the same place you are. Do you realise this income puts us in roughly the top 5-7% of households for income in the U.K? Not the middle by any stretch. Come the new year half our monthly income will be going on mortgage and childcare before anything else, we can save a bit for life events/breakages etc but certainly not the the lifestyle many would imagine, nor what we would have had on this 15 years ok, but it’s ok. We can pay all our bills, we can feed our children, pay for Christmas. A huge amount of this country isn’t managing any of that.

@Winterday1991 you do know that council houses aren't free don't you? At some point you will have an asset, she will have nothing.

Given that the average household income is £38k, on £95k you are very much not the squeezed middle.

The cost of living issue is pretty much all both Labour & the Lib Dems are focused on.

If your house is modest on £95k then how do you think others earning a fraction of that cope?

Ah. So this is one of these threads.

Self respect

Also you will only get that if you have kids. We are a couple with no kids. Can't afford a house but if we got kicked out we would not get any council help, housing or financial.

We wonder why so many kids are born into poverty? Because it is a ticket to get off the street (they may be technically homeless but are least given shelter which the childless aren't)

Because elections are designed to keep the power in power. And keep the money in the hands of the “elite”. There’s a reasons Rupert murdoch and the sun have successfully sided with every single election win since the 60s. It’s all an illusion and nothing to do with 99% of the population who are but cannon fodder

You think you are in need of subsidy with a monthly take home income of somewhere between £5.5 and £6k?

I think you imagine people on benefits are doing better than they really are.

Government top ups I would presume

Our income really does not go that far once tax is taken off, mortgage, childcare bills and household bills are paid for.

And when her kids are adults, she will have to get a job and with no work experience she will only be able to get a very low paid job and will struggle far more than you.

Stop being so bloody short sighted and realise that long term you are in a much better financial position than anyone on UC.

But not for the people who are squeezed. We clear about 3500 max monthly on 60k income as we pay back student loans, tax, ni, pensions.
The goal of labour seems to be to get everyone to have a similar amount of income no matter their job or responsibilities.

95 is not the squeezed middle. 🙈

After tax it is just shy of 6k a month depending on pension contributions.

Oh there's aways one of these tales on these threads!

Yes as she should. But she will still likely get pension credit to top up her pension despite opting out of the social contract to pay in.

There's definitely an issue where there is a tier of people for whom work put in doesn't get incremental benefit.

E.g you could be a lower income family working part time in low responsibility work, fitting this around children, using very little childcare, and receiving various UC top ups.

A teacher married to a nurse, will have "too much" for any top ups but after paying rent & bills, has little more to their name, despite high stress, long working hours etc, seeing less of kids.

There's no real incentive to do these jobs any more.

I don't know what the answer is

You don't get anywhere near that even if you have kids!