Nervous/anxious/scared about the Autumn budget 2024

[Cartwrightandson]

I know that we don't know any details. We have read or heard bits that might be incorrect or just plain wrong. I also know we won't know anything until Wednesday when Rachel Reeves publishes/announces the contents of the budget...

But what we do know...it's the first labour budget for over 14 years, we've had a conservative government, austerity, brexit, covid and cost of living/interest rate increase meaning our economy is not in a good place.

Our services/infrastructure haven't had much needed investment for a long time.
Councils are practically bankrupt, some already are. Schools, housing, NHS, social care and economy are all struggling..to remedy this requires money and this will need to come from higher taxes.

There's a 19 billion pound black hole and Labour have already removed the winter fuel allowance, showing they are willing do things that are unpopular or possibly controversial..the Labour manifesto said it wouldn't increase taxes, but now they are saying they have to.

They've already allocated money for Ukraine, teachers, train drivers, junior doctors, NHS staff ect

Keir said people who don't 'work' for their income (shares/savings/landlord income) aren't classed as working people and will be taxed..

Basically this budget is going to need to raise taxes to pay for investment in services. That much we do know. But where the cuts and the tax increase will be is unknown. I don't think anyone will be 'better off'...

Possibilities.. (note these are not absolute, I could be very wrong)

Inheritance tax changes
Fuel duty increase
Income tax increase
Social housing rent increase
Benefit cuts
No free universal prescription for over 60s
Change to tax free allowance
Removal of help to buy, right to buy and alterations to stamp duty
Pension age to increase
State pension to decrease?
Tuition fees to increase
Tax free pension allowance to be reduced
Isa/bond/shares/investments taxed

Who really knows...but I think the labour comms are possibly leaking information so that we are being drip fed so when the budget does happen we already know and are braced/prepared for it.

Or what is being leaked about the budget is really bad but when the budget happens we are relieved it wasn't as bad the leaks hinted at. But it is still painful but we are more accepting because it's not as bad as it could have been...if that makes sense.

You keep quoting that everywhere. It’s an opinion. I accept the person expressing it is in a good position to have such an opinion, but there’s no certainty there. It’s the same thing that was said when the NMW first came in, but the world didn’t end.

I have visions of an arena with benefit claimants being made to fight each other to the death for food tokens, whilst the MN benefit bashers watch, cheering and making bets.

And you keep repeating ordinary people are unaffected.

Who said the 'world would end'? He clearly says lower wages and a tax on working people.

I don’t keep repeating that. I didn’t even say it in the post you are referring to.
We don’t know what will happen yet, but what we do know is cutting taxes and austerity haven’t worked

Taxes have to come from somewhere. Only not the rich. Not the businesses. Not the poor. Not the squeezed middle.

Im prepared to not moan and take some of the hit required to get us back to a functioning country. The proof will be in how it’s spent going forwards, not that taxes are being taken in the first place. I’d much rather the Tories hadnt reduced NI when they did (stupid policy) and ploughed that money into public services but bribery was all they had at that point.

Labour and the other parties voted against NI increase when Sunak introduced it

On the rest it comes down to growth. And if it is slows too much things will get more problematic for them, and us

They voted against NI increase for employees, yes?

I thought of this thread when I saw that! Mixed feelings, makes me distrust our VC more, who the message came from. It's a pissy amount too, neither here nor there, so seems a bit half arsed.