To ask what should have been in the budget?

[dollopofsauce]

All I've seen do far, from reading threads on here and watching CNN, is doom and gloom.

So what should Labour have done to swerve the hate? What would have been an acceptable way of raising money to help fund health, social care and education?

Genuine answers, please.

I would have put a penny on income tax, boosted UC for people working 25 hours a week or more, cut it for those not working or working very few hours. Subsidised before and after school clubs for working people to enable them to access a wider variety of jobs

I agree with NMW increase but I would not have increased NI for businesses as this is likely to reduce economic recovery and won't be helpful longer term, if it pushes people out of work it will end up costing us more rather than less. It's an increase of 1.2 billion on the current nhs wage bill.

I would have increased road tax on SUV's and used that to continue bus ticket cap of £2.

Increased tax on smoking

The top of the chancellors list - and what economists are tearing their hair out about - it’s stamp duty. It needs to be ditched. Immediately.

Taxing people who choose to move house is unbelievably stupid. It stops people moving for jobs. It stops people living in properties that suit their circumstances. It’s appallingly bad for growth. If you want a wealth tax up council tax, but stamp duty is a farcical way to raise taxes.

Oh and up the fuel tax. We are supposed to be encouraging people to use their cars less.

Higher education/universities never mentioned.

Nothing for social care really.

There seems to be a lack of sensitivity and an inability to 'read the room'. Watching lunchtime news today, saw Keir and Rachel stepping out of a first class train carriage, having just increased bus fares for the masses...

Why can't they tax junk food? Can you imagine how much money they'd raise from 1p on a chocolate bar or a packet of biscuits/pizza/tub of ice cream etc.

Agree with PP, they should have increased everyone’s tax by a little bit. I would rather lose a bit out of my pocket that I wouldn’t massively notice instead of losing my job because the employer has increased minimum wage (which I don’t argue with but accept it is hard on businesses) and then this extra whammy of increased NI out of their pockets on every employee to contend with. Prices for goods will now go up to a figure that per annum will probably cost me more than a small NI increase on my pay packet would have. And yes, I’m devastated for farmers and food security too. Awful.

I am very glad Labour are putting the money into public services but the only reason I can see they have decided to put all the burden on employers is because of their stupid flashy manifesto pledge. They would have been better saying they had to go back on the manifesto - can’t believe I’m even saying that but I feel so strongly about the increase on employers. I want small-medium businesses with no public share holders to have a lot of money, so they can attract good talent and give them what they deserve in wages and be competitive locally and abroad. This stagnation is killing us.

@username7891 , this is what you said:-
“It's believed that higher wealth taxation could help solve low productivity growth, failing public services and wage stagnation. ”

Totally agree about stamp duty. think you should pay an uplift if you buy a more expensive house, but the first stamp duty you pay should be recognised and written off future transactions. If you need to relocate for work but fork out a years salary in stamp duty to do so it’s insane.

Many people might work reduced hours for a reason for example disability, caring responsibilities or lack of childcare. A bit harsh to punish them for it.

From day one - exactly, what are they thinking?? They are turning businesses into charities instead of powerhouses. I’m working class, I‘ve known what it is to go hungry in the past, and have to scrimp for every penny in my savings account, but none of these policies speak for me. Glad I didn’t vote for them, party of working people my arse. Working people need places to work and promotion opportunities, not dead end jobs because companies can’t grow. I pray what Labour is trying to do here works, has an end date and they can change tack in a couple of years. Austerity, Covid, now this. I’m breaking here. When is anyone actually going to do anything for us? This budget does nothing for me except tell me I’m going to have to stay working in a stressful company because no one else will be hiring.

Hmmm and would he be prepared to pay himself and fellow directors less? Wonder what salary he is on? Pretty hefty I imagine. And nice annual bonuses thrown in too?

I think there is a lot of fuss about this but the reality is in a lot of big businesses the people at the top have been paying themselves more and more and share holders have been creaming off the rest.

This move recognises this and so businesses were targetted rather than making workers pay more in income tax.
Unfortunately many people have become used to earning big salaries and bonuses and don't want that to end so instead will stop taking on more staff.

Oh well, at least they've got this year's excuse lined up for them, let me guess last year's was the same?

But @Colourfulduvets whilst what you are saying is true, what @Bestfootfwd said is also true. CEOs will not take a hit if it impacts them or their share prices, they either reduce head count and make people manage with less or if that can't be done they outsource/offshore to make it cheaper

I know.
While I agree with the sentiment behind the idea I don't think it work in practice.

Labour should probably have bitten the bullet and looked at small rises in income tax across the board but then if they had done that they would have been villified for going back on their election promises.

Exactly. All the people delighting over 'employers' paying more, when it's clear to anyone with more than two brain cells that these increases WILL affect their employees.

Did you read the part where the poster said it was going to cost them several million? How many businesses can absorb that sort of figure?

You're confusing huge corporations with small businesses. The two are very, VERY different when it comes to these changes. Your comment perfectly highlights a lot of people's ignorance.

Properly small businesses are not affected.

More moderately sized ones will be affected I accept that and, as I have said, I am not sure the decision was a wise one.

It is driven by the practices of larger businesses though which is the problem.

I'm not sure the decision was a wise one.

Then let me help with any confusion: It wasn't.

@dollopofsauce

1. completely remove the discount on the sale of council houses
2. tie any additional nhs funding to real and tangible productivity improvements ie time taken from referral to appointment
3. charge everyone £10 for any NHS appointment which is then refunded automatically when they attend. No exemptions apply it to everyone.
4. spend all the additional monies allocated to education on setting up special schools and moving those with special needs into them and out of the mainstream school setting.
5. tax heavily those who landbank and not those who actively farm and produce food
6. build govt run nursing homes specifically to move those older people out of hospital to free up beds.
7. change the tax rules in relation to people claiming self employment. if you have someone working for you, even if they are self employed you still have to pay national insurance. no exemptions and will stop large companies exploiting loopholes.
8. qaudruple council tax on all second homes effective immediately.
9. raise passenger duty on all flights to £15 per person per flight.
10. dramatically increase the number of staff dealing with disability allowances particularly those in relation to mental health. too many people who could work either cant get back into work because they need help or are too idle to work and therefore claim mental health as its harder to disprove.
11. tax electric vehicles.
12. Insist that all receipts on council house sales and CIL and any other planning levies are spent on building new council properties that stay as council properties.
13. charge 10 times council tax on properties left empty by those that buy them particularly in London only to leave them not lived in.

....really I could go on and on.

@Colourfulduvets of course small businesses are affected! We pay NI the same as the big companies! We also pay corporation tax, business rates etc we have to find the money from somewhere to pay the extra NI which will be either putting our prices up or smaller payrises (I haven't had a payrise in last 3 years but our employees have)

Pensioners to pay NI, and money used to fund social care to help relieve the pressure on the NHS. I'm a pensioner, and can't see any reason why I shouldn't pay NI, particularly as I use the NHS way more than I used to. There would have to be a threshold, to avoid the need for more pensioners to claim pension credit. Everyone I know, who is retired, agrees with this. I have no idea how much it would raise though.

Well very probably that one, they must be a large business with a great number of employees.

There are plenty of threads and posts all over MN today saying how awful the budget is and how it is the final nail in the coffin etc etc.

Yet as far as I can see, nobody appears to have come up with any viable alternative suggestions of where the necessary billions should come from instead.

Cut tax on business would be one method. Particularly corporation tax. Worked for Ireland.

Raising minimum wage is not enough. The budget should have put in measures to stop 'employers' dodging minimum wage. Like zero hour contracts.

Also as a full time carer, I am annoyed that the BBC keeps running the headline that Carers Allowance has been increased. It's not. It's still the paltry amount it ever was. The increase in earnings allowance will only impact couples who do not receive benefits, not single parents that rely on UC. My CA is deducted pound for pound from UC. So unless I've misunderstood I get a big fat fuck off for at least 35 hours a week care because I am a single parent carer. And then if I work my UC is reduced so I am no better off. Fix that.

And then CA stops altogether when pension age is reached.

All family carers should be paid national minimum wage for 35 hours per week as full time carer to an adult. Work out how much PIP pays and then pay the rest. Carers save the state far more than that.