October budget going to be painful

[increasinglyconcerned]

Here we go..... I knew it. Labour were promising not to hike our taxes in the election campaign and here we are.... apparently they discovered £22 billion black hole in his first weeks in the role and it's not his fault.

Let me guess, those of us who earn six figures and already pay 45% will pay EVEN more and take home even less. It's the hard workers who will take the brunt. What's the point in working anymore!

I earn a little over £120k and I'm taxed the same as those earrings £500k.

Before people jump in saying they don't feel sorry for me, I work full time to support my family, as of January I will have 2 DCs in nursery, plus my mortgage and get ZERO free hours childcare, whilst they keep promising free childcare but I just pay more for everyone else to benefit.

I cannot afford to pay more taxes to fix this country and especially when so many people are getting a free ride and not paying their way, ranging from millionaires with tax havens to those claiming benefits dishonestly.

What exactly do people want this government or any government to do? Is there really a solution that doesn't upset somebody?

Actually there is, @Youcantcallacatspider; there could be a serious drive not to squander the money governments already take on pointless initiatives, massively overpriced contracts which don't stand a hope of delivering and all the rest

Admittedly even that would upset those who know that getting a publicly funded deal is tantamount to a blank cheque, but the real reason it doesn't happen is that there's just no real accountability for those tasked with organising them

‘A choice’? Yeah a choice defined by having less
opportunities than someone who manages to earn 120k! Not everyone has the privilege of higher education, or people willing to support them through that.

as for part time, have you spoken to any TAs recently? 😂😂😂

It's not only people in highly paid jobs that work hard. What about nurses,careers, cleaners?

Unfortunately this is what people voted for so we have to put up with it.

Labour have a general tendancy to spend money on vanity projects (e.g. Sure start) and punish those who have done well or even remotely well in life to pay for them.

We already pay a huge amount of tax and I fully expect that to increase never mind the extra tax we'll most likely have to pay through our company (potentially have to put prices up and make a redundancy if it's too swinging but that's life)

I don't like it but I've never liked or trusted Labour. I don't vote Tory either as I think there's plenty wrong with them... but it is what it is.

No doubt lots of people who best deserve a boot up the arse and being pushed into a job will do well out of it BUT so I hope will people like carers and the disabled among others who I do think have been treated badly over the years. Unfortunately, I suspect they will yet again fall through the cracks but I really hope not

It isn't part time. My husband works five days a week, full school days as a TA.

I kind of wonder if anyone can afford kids at this rate.

8 .30-3 ISH, term time only is definitely part time!

Plenty of Teaching Assistants actively choose to take on this role because it has family friendly hours and avoids the (insane) responsibility that a teacher has. I have known a number of teacher step down into a TA role when they have been burnt out as teachers. You can't really argue that a TA should be paid the same or even close to what a teacher is being paid given the extra hours, qualifications and responsibilities involved with being a teacher. TAs aren't lounging around but neither are they often pushing themselves to maximise their career potential.

In Northern Ireland no-one gets free childcare, although we pay the same tax rates as England and Wales, and somehow people still feel it's worthwhile going to work!

@increasinglyconcerned - haven’t read whole thread but I suspect you’ll get a flaming.

Nevertheless, I partly agree with you. I disagree on the thinking that we don’t need to raise more money, because we do and it needs to come from somewhere. However, it cannot keep coming from the same group of people.

EVERYONE needs to pay more including the low paid. I do not want to be shaken down to pay for the poorest. This is not how to grow an economy. The money raised should be put into infrastructure development projects to create jobs and expand the tax base.

Once we’ve expanded the tax base whilst in parallel restructuring the operating model for public services, we can then invest in increasing pay for public servants who will then have more money to spend again increasing the tax receipt.

I know this is the Tories fault we’re in this mess, but Labour must know that its lazy and a disincentive to keep shaking down the same higher earners on PAYE.

You'd benefit from reading up on the Swedish tax system then, because you've obviously got no idea. Lower and middle earners are taxed more over there, VAT is higher, child benefit is universal, unemployment benefit is linked to income. People like the OP would be better off under such a system. But that's not what you're advocating for, just the opposite.

Give over with the welfare baby comment.

I don't see an issue if she wants to stay at home or working very part time (maybe due to the expense of childcare or the lack of the availability of it) as at some point she will be working. I work part time to fit around my husband but as it is due to the lack of childcare I can only work a couple of shifts a week so need a top up. I am kind of getting to the point where actually I don't really care what people like you might think. I will probably be working until I die anyway so I will make the most of having my children with me. 👍

NHS workers are getting a pay rise in October backdated to April. So it's not a grim month for everyone🤷‍♀️

Well no I don't think they should be paid the same but I calculated working full time at Tesco on MW probably gets you the same wage as a TA which is not right. I hope the wage will be increased a bit more.You can't deny it isn't an easy job though.

It's not a breeze to get to 100k.

I understand you are trying to make a point about opportunities, but there are a lot of people who do not make the best choices for their lives and so when you do become successful it feels like you are paying to subsidise poor choices.

My husband has a who barely works. He's had multiple job opportunities, been given all the handouts, had multiple chances to improve his situation but he just doesn't. He's lazy. He met a single mum with a council flat and they've had two further kids while on the dole. Now he's just been given a 200k off the shelf new build from the council.

In the same time my husband, who met this guy when they were both working minimum wage, and I have done multiple degrees and gone from a 30k combined income to 120k. That's been through sheer bloody hard work and sacrifice.

So yeah, I look at them and I feel incandescent with rage.

Of course it's "right".

It has to be done.

Otherwise your grandchildren will be living in a country where there's no healthcare because everyone has moved abroad where they're paid better and work with people who are happier. It's already happening.

Most current teenagers are looking to move abroad because they want a better life.

This country has become a shithole of drug users trying to escape their own lives because they have no hope. Where people steal food and cleaning products to order and sell them on doorsteps to people. And people stab strangers because of underfunded mental health and police services.

It's not all about you. You voted for a government that lined their own pockets and took out £40m helicopter contracts to ferry the already billionaire PM around. Maybe you need to accept that a massive, unnecessary and unsustainable gravy train for 0.0001% of the population was going to have severe repercussions at some point. If you want to be mad about anything, be mad they pissed away all your tax money on dodgy PPE contracts for their mates whose companies had nothing to do with PPE, that you voted in a PM who knew fuck all about economics and increased prices for everyone in every way. You didn't benefit from those in any way, and neither did the country. At least this way the country benefits.

You're a mug for thinking people bleeding the country dry for their own personal gain was somehow better than everyone spending money to actually repair the damage and get us back on our feet. But blaming the people who are trying to help and not the ones who put us all in this position is a joke.

They look after your kids. They should be paid more. You think £1600 a month is enough?

Why not wait and see OP? It isn't October yet. I suppose be glad you aren't going to be choosing between eating or heating at that point.

I'm old so have worked in many different jobs. The hardest were as a carer in the community ( where the pay barely off set the wear and tear on my car ) and in a call centre. In both jobs I had no spare income ,no holidays ,precarious housing and life was a struggle. Trying to better myself and to provide for my children I later worked a factory. in childcare and later still in the NHS.
For a few years I had a reasonable income . No luxuries because I was single ( a house costs just as much to heat for 1 person) but I had an interesting and worth while career. I never had the chance to pay into a pension and I'm now probably one of the poorest pensioners - just not quite poor enough. Please don't equate earnings with " hard work" ,the hardest job I ever had was caring for the elderly and disabled. I felt there was little respect for my role and no progression. And yet we may all need care ,may become very old ,become disabled or our families may. I dread the winter and do become quite angry when I am told of all the benefits I receive ( I dont)
But I do not begrudge anything to anyone. I just hope that this government sorts out social care,childcare and the NHS. Education too. I can kind of see where the OP is coming from .it must seem that there is no point in trying . But we need to remember the many people who work in hard ,low paid physically demanding jobs and who will never own a house and who will have to struggle through to retire at (?) 70+.They must feel there is no point and will probably never have the potential that others have. That's hard work !

those who are deemed “in need” reap all the benefits

I think those days are long gone.

I may as well save the £4k a month/£48k a year on nursery and claim benefits. After all I won't end up with much less.

Go on then. See if you’d be happier.

I'm sick of it, I'm sick of working and having nothing to show for it at the end of the month.

I'm sick of governments blowing our money on shite and then we're the ones punished by taking even more of our money.

I'm so bloody angry!

@Bumpitybumper
I was a teacher, a successful teacher.
After a cancer 1, I struggled and stepped down to TA. Now on cancer 3, incurable. Not maximising my career potential? If I have tried. Being dealt a shite hand of health cards, does not make it easy!

It may not be easy but lots of people still want to do it for a reason. The hours are attractive and there are a significant number of women in particular that want to work with children but can't balance the responsibilities of being a teacher with family life.

Lots of people would find working FT at Tesco less attractive. It can be harder to juggle this effectively with school holidays etc and it could be viewed as less rewarding. It's also more public facing with adults than a TA and you have to deal with difficult customers etc. I know TAs can deal with difficult parents but they often have a teacher alongside them and it's in a safer environment.

If a TA and Tesco worker were paid the same then I would choose to be the former.