Labour planning to freeze tax thresholds longer

[Overthebow]

In the news today that they’re considering freezing the income tax thresholds past 2028. AIBU to think this is absolutely a tax rise for workers? I can’t believe they’d do this, they’ve been frozen for so long already.

The Tories pledged not to raise tax rates in 2019 and then froze the thresholds in 2022. Setting it to ‘end’ in 2028 was timed exactly to make it another government’s problem. And a problem it is.

The thing is though we were expecting the freeze to end in 2028. If Labour extend it it will be a tax rise in their election term.

Yes I think he does mean working class rather than all workers but that wasn’t clear in his pledges as he just used the work workers which as you say means anyone who works. Regardless, this tax rise will affected all workers.

The Tories were all about tax cuts and yet they did this too. It's a 'stealth tax rise' so of course Labour will do it, they need to raise money somehow.

There is all kinds of eccomics thought and one is if you give people more money they spend abd save more.

Raising thresholds helps poorest in society. Surely it's the workers on lowest pay that need more money in their pockets??

What the fuck is this government on?. It's almost hilarious? The unions are out raged.

It is absolutely a tax rise on working people.

Funny how when the last government did it it was a "stealth tax" but now it's not. I get that the Tories set it to end in 2028 - but Labour are in government in 2024, with a huge majority - they have the ability to scrap it right away if they want to, but no, they choose to break their manifesto promises and increase taxation for working people. No surprise there of course, they always intended to.

I agree they always intended to. I would have respected them a lot more if they had just owned it in the run up to the election.

I just wish they were more transparent about it rather than all the euphemisms. “Working people” … “workers”.

I work bloody hard, generally doing around a 60 hour week. But I am also very well paid for it so I suspect I am not one of the people he means.

I’m pretty much OK with that. Other people also work that hard and don’t get paid so much. I am mostly OK that taxes should hit me harder than them. But don’t pretend it is because they are “workers” and I am not.

workers is someone who works and it is opposed to someone who has an income from not actually working. So people who have a passive income

It doesn't matter a jot who is in power - left or right - it's the middle that get fucked every single time, and I'm just sick of it. Earn an average, middling income and you'll get squeezed from both ends no matter what.

They said they were committed to following the Tories' fiscal rules. Starmer & his shadow cabinet were packed with members of Labour Together (formerly Blue Labour). I'm not sure why anyone expected anything different?

They could end it in 2025 if they wanted to, but they have chosen not to

4% of your income still goes in NI contributions regardless of whether you earn £98k or £30k

id rather see income tax and NI contributions merged

The frozen personal allowance also applies to people of pension age, who may have a small personal pension. Very soon it will bring the state pension into the taxed bracket too.

I hate the phrase " hard working families". It excludes so many people, and hints that if you aren't working hard, you deserve to be poor.

care to show this?

I also think this is what is meant by worker. Nothing to do with working class stuff.

“Asked what he meant by working people, Sir Keir told LBC on Tuesday: "People who earn their living, rely on our [public] services and don't really have the ability to write a cheque when they get into trouble."
Ms Reeves was asked to clarify that position, telling Sky News' Breakfast with Kay Burley on Wednesday: "Working people are people who go out to work and work for their incomes.
"Sort of by definition, really, working people are those people who go out and work and earn their money through hard work."
Asked if that also meant people who cannot write a cheque if they get into trouble, she said: "Some people, who go out to work haven't been able to build up savings.“
"Many other people who go out to work, have had to run down their savings.
"But there are people who do have savings, who have been able to save up and those are working people as well."”

So, somewhat hedging their bets with the definition.

(source)

I wonder where you all think they are supposed to get the money to do the things they need to do, like you know health, education, public services, etc..
Whatever they do, there will be threads like this popping up all over the place, shouting them down.
Maybe you are all happy that our services are shot to pieces?

I think in this context it just means people of working age and/or people on a PAYE salary. It's sometimes used as a euphemism for working class but that doesn't make sense when freezing tax threshold affects higher rate taxpayers (or those approaching the 50k threshold) more.

Returning to the OP, even more ridiculous would be for them to reduce higher rate tax relief on pension contributions and claim that doesn't count as increasing income tax! (Just to explain before I get jumped on, reducing the relief would lead to income tax on salary sacrifice pension contributions, ie people being taxed a % of something they have not (yet) received)

Presume you supported tax TH freezes when sunak implemented them? but now they are wrong....

Freezing them is stupid who ever does them, it helps remove incentives to work and sucks money from the local economy.

But its also unlikely Labour will extend the freeze, it wont bring them in any more money as they are already frozen for the next 4 years... but will gain them more criticism.....

It’s all speculation u til the budget comes out. Why do people continue to post these threads winding everybody up about something that has not happened and may not happen at all. Labour ‘considering’ this - says who?