What Rachel Reeves does next? Surprised no thread on this yet. It's all over Twitter

[Sharingsomewisdom]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13764547/Rachel-Reeves-mulls-tax-hikes-spending-squeeze-raising-rents-social-housing-Chancellor-sees-Government-borrow-3bn-forecast-month.html

Or am I the only one interested what she is eying next? Any comment on the reasonableness or otherwise of Rachel's next focus?

I wouldn't be using the DM to forecast government policy.

Or X/Twitter

There’s a gap in the finances left by the Tories. Either services get cut further or more money gets raised from somewhere or other. I’m expecting tax rises but I’m also expecting the DM not to have the closest links to really know where she and the rest of the team are planning to raise that money from.

Is The Guardian OK? Or Reuters?

https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/aug/21/social-housing-rents-to-rise-uk-affordable-housebuilding-rachel-reeves

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-borrows-more-than-expected-july-underlining-challenge-reeves-2024-08-21/

I wouldn’t use the DM to line a litter tray.

In fact, I feel like saying to the DM and its Readers what they said for years to remainers. You lost, get over it.

They've inherited a mess from the Tories...

Its not like its all been left tickity boo and shes come in and fucked it all over, her name isn't Liz "lettuce" Truss

I mean, it has to be considered, like anything else. Social housing near me averages £400 a month, private rental averages £1,200.

If you’re on universal credit, you’re eligible for all social housing to be paid regardless of the amount, so she’d have to do the sums carefully - and it’d be a shock for people who pay their own rent, but live in social housing. But a tax increase will be a shock, too.

I’m not sure there’s a single way to raise money that won’t be unwelcome and feel unfair to a group of people.

And yes. The Tories - remember them? The party of prudent financial governance 🙄 - have left a massive hole in the finances.

I live in SH and I think the slight increase in rent is a great idea for funding more social housing.

The money to rebuild the UK has to come from somewhere. There's no magic money tree.🤷‍♀️

To be honest, I'm past caring. If Labour had pulled together back in 2017, we could have saved an awful lot of money and had more to go round now, because as bad as it may nor may not have been, Labour under Corbyn would not have wasted the billions that were trousered under Johnson during Covid.

Reeves is ex BoE and still in thrall to the failed project that is neoliberalism. Unless we bring in a wealth tax on the super rich and stop corporations from all their tax avoidance shenanigans, it's all just Titanic deck chair rearranging.

Given that virtually all English councils will declare bankruptcy in the next few years, increasing social rents to pay for more council housing is like sticking a plaster on an arterial bleed. It needs big, creative ideas, not more of the same tinkering around the edges bollocks.

Who was it in Labour left that infamous note for the then incoming Tories in 2010 saying "Dear New Chancellor, sorry but there's no money left!" Same old same old.

Whilst I agree with most of the above. The shortfall was known about for about 6 months or longer and had been discussed in the heavyweight papers if not "The Sun".
RR & KS knew the problem because the books were open, nothing was concealed. I wish they wouldn't pretend so.

Wasn't there a 'joke note' left on a table a few years ago about there being no money left?

With regards to SH, I agree that rents should rise (a bit) but also really like the Lib Dems recent proposal about making it easier to for LHAs to purchase land with PP at the 'market rate' (they have to pay above that apparently!!) to build more SH.

I would go further - LHAs should be able to compulsorarily purchase all 'landbanked' and partially developed land from the private developers at rates significantly less than market rates to build SH homes.

And the govt should help in every way via the Public Works loan system to make this happen.

Unfortunately modern western economies have become addicted to debt, and I do mean literally addicted. It's so entrenched in all aspects of the financial system that it literally ceases to function properly when we try to wean off it. Hard to know how long we can continue on this path but it will eventually end catastrophically for everyone all over the world with the mother of all financial crashes.

That note was an ongoing joke traditionally left by ALL outgoing chancellors for the next one since pre world war 1 I believe. The Tory press just leapt on it that time for their own ends and it's been quoted ever bloody since.

Still waiting for her to acknowledge that the economy she's inherited is actually in a very good place and the fastest growing in the G7. Odd how little that's being talked about...

I thought she said pre election that she wouldn't raise taxes and she wouldn't increase borrowing?

They had full access 6 months prior to the election. There should have been no surprises!

The budget black hole was known about and discussed by various political commentators well before the election. The question many asked was how did Labour intend to bridge the gap without tax increases or budget cuts.

There are 2 million housing benefit claimants living in social housing, (a further 580,000 in the private rental sector) are Labour going to increase housing benefit payments or will they expect claimants to just find the additional money for rent?
If they are going to increase housing benefit payments then why not just invest that money in building more social housing?

How will above inflation rent rises in 2.58 million homes affect inflation overall?

Exactly people seem to think party's in opposition don't have to the 'books' they do, they can't argue there is surprises there as to argue that means you haven't done your job as a opposition correctly.

It was quite obvious that having promised not to raise taxes during the election, that there would magically be a blackhole once in power which would enable Labour to push through the things they really wanted to do, but didn't dare admit, during the election.

The last Tory government certainly was.😬 Our children will be paying that for years.

Posting links to the Fail won’t get you anywhere, OP.