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.

@Wellingtonspie NHS dentistry was only free for first few years of NHS. Has been a co-pay model since the 1950s. Most Patients pay a contribution to their NHS care, otherwise it’s billions of tax pounds which would need to be found.

edit- most patients co-pay, lots get free care or help with fees

https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/

The conservatives kept getting in for 10 years because they claimed to be responsibly rescuing us from the ‘Labour’ black hole through austerity. Instead they left an even bigger mess. They also decimated (mainly non-conservative) councils from day one. Whatever happened it’s the conservatives legacy.

Hopefully, with better financial management things can slowly improve over time.

But the bus fare cap only came in in England in 2022 because of the COL crisis and was always going to be temporary and end this year. Scotland and Wales never even had a cap introduced.

They've ruled out scrapping the single person council tax being scrapped

'@vangelicalAboutButteredToast · Today 16:06

I think everyone needs to assume they’ll be at least a couple of hundred pounds a month poorer at the end of this budget.'

The problem is many people don't have a couple of hundred pounds to cut out of their monthly budget. Especially if yet again utility bills are rising.

'@PandoraSox
But the bus fare cap only came in in England in 2022 because of the COL crisis and was always going to be temporary and end this year. Scotland and Wales never even had a cap introduced.'

And the COL crisis has not gone anywhere. It had got worse.

If that is true, she should be forced to account for it.
What a prophet George Orwell was when he wrote, 'Animal Farm.'

It's a waste of time worrying about it when Trump is going to get in, cut Ukraine funding, leave NATO and we'll be at full scale war with Russia without their help.

You should be building a bunker or looking at property abroad, not worrying about Keir Starmer.

Aw, you spoilt the fun with facts!

It’s even finding an nhs dentist tbh which was actually where I went wrong. I was thinking of the private fees to even get looked at which can hinder a lot of people.so yes the small fee for a check up but make sure every single person has access to it.

They are far left. Nothing moderate about them.

Apart from their abilities!

Were you asleep during the expenses scandal?

The OP is a little dramatic.

But what are we expecting?

Raising employer NI contributions. Not really sure how I feel about this one. I have really read up on how it will impact small/medium/large employers.

Increase in borrowing. I don't see what other option they had. I'm all for a small increase to hopefully stimulate the economy.

Changes to inheritance tax. Good, it only applies to a tiny proportion of the population and most of the wealth has not been earned.

Increase the budget for education. Brilliant. The children in this country are our future and I'd rather prioritise investing in them. I do think we need a big rethink on early years education.

Increase in spending for the NHS. Thepay rises were overdue. As a PP has said, I agree that the whole service needs restructuring.

Changes to the discounts available for buying a council house. Hopefully, i would scrap them altogether.

Changes to ISA allowance. This one would hit us as a family but it is incredibly generous.

Removing the tax exemption for private schools. I don't agree with this one. I think it's an easy win with many voters. I do worry about the implications of targeting one type of education and not others.

Freeze on tax thresholds. Were any of us expecting different!

Change in pension tax. Rumours about limiting the amount you get as a tax free lump. Not sure how I feel about this, it would complete screw people over. * *

Changes to CGT. Another one which could have implications for us. Again I think it's fair even if it screws us over.

What else have I missed?

MPs have to account for all their expenses claims. Have you been asleep since the scandal in 2009. If you want to see what she claimed for it’s all in the public domain.

My SH rent is already nearly £900 a month. I'm on a swapper site and people with newer tenancies are paying up to £1200 a month, I've seen the odd one even higher. It's getting ridiculous.

The money it would cost to means test would mostly be a waste. Very few people will earn enough to pay more than those kind of sums. And the higher the rents keep going, the more people end up claiming part of their housing costs on UC instead of paying it all themselves from their wages.

Social housing won't actually be social housing for much longer the way things are going. It will only be for the unemployed. Then what incentive is there for them to get a job?

Firstly absolutely not- no way will this happen and secondly this years social housing rent increase has already been decided, announced and applied

As a young person. THANK YOU

What did she claim for? Hair dye? Shapeless jackets? How did she run up that bill?

This trend of accusing anyone who has any issues with labour of being tories is incredibly tedious.

I think we can all admit that the tories have screwed us all into the ground, while still acknowledging that labour are no better than them. And they’re not. Already they’ve been at the centre of donations, one of their MP’s suspended for punching someone to the ground, Keir Starmer is the one whipping up a frenzy by telling the media how dreadful this is all going to be.

I didn’t vote for either of them, and the reality is that the majority of people who did, voted for them to get the tories out.

The @the tories did x@ is going to have a short shelf life. Labour bankrupted the country last time they were in power, but that didn’t stop us from taking issue with the tories and Austerity.

There basically isn’t a leader among the lot of them, and we need to acknowledge that the only people’s interests any government have in mind is their own.

I haven't seen any gloating.

They have an unenviable task.

People always moan about the budget, I've heard it all my life and I'm nearly 75. However life goes on, we manage.

I've never before come across anyone being scared of an upcoming budget.

What was upsetting in October last year was the huge increase in mortgages (a couple I know, early thirties, faced an increase of about £1,000 per month), and in fuel bills.

It's easier for me as a retired person, I realise that, but I never found budgets any more daunting than any other day of the year and I had plenty of periods where I was hard up when younger, not well off now.

Universal free pensions for the over 60s .. my husband is 61, we have no mortgage, his Pension is £24k a year .. I earn £70k - why is he getting free prescriptions? My sister has £200k in the bank, and a big fat person .. free prescriptions- that needs sorting out

We really do need to look into rents as a whole. Private rents are totally out of control.

People bleat move cheaper. Ok so now the job tends to pay less. Move smaller. Ok but so is everyone else. Even in social housing. Try finding a one bedroom to rent.

HMOs are a tricky subject as it is. They remove family sized homes for what used to be whole house rents for just a room.

Labour bankrupted the country last time they were in power, but that didn’t stop us from taking issue with the tories and Austerity

No Labour didn't bankrupt us.

@AlbionLass
One of the least satisfactory aspects of all this is the way Rachel Reeves and her colleagues seem to be enjoying all this. They are gloating.

That is such a daft thing to say.