To agree with increasing tax and more benefit cuts to pay for defence

[Viviennemary]

I was surprised to hear that Labour is to spend more on defence. We really do need to with the threats from Russia and run down of weapon stocks because they have been given to Ukraine. All of Europe needs to wake up. But I think they realise this.

Yes
Thats the revision made by Labour
Im aware

We can't have it all. Higher taxes means less money to spend and invest. Cuts need to be made somewhere.

I saw that!
Also on another thread was someone suggesting that all disabled people who are not working should be made to walk 4 miles each day to increase their fitness so they can get work. Even people in wheelchairs or those who use mobility scooters

I always wonder if the people who are against disability benefit think they are immune from becoming disabled themselves. Because things can happen in a second that can change your life for ever

Some have said they are prepared and have insurance etc.

You are confusing the WFA with the cold weather payment. The WFA is not weather dependent. The cold weather payment is and the qualifying rules haven't changed.

We are currently spending more on interest payments than on our defence budget. We have a highly dependent population, something like 50% of people take out more than they put in. It is not sustainable when the government has other things it should be doing.

That's great if your born healthy but an insurance company wouldn't touch me. I worked full time for years paying tax until my disability became to much where I could no longer work full time and needed extra help. Surely it's for things like this why we pay tax

But many severely disabled people will not score 4 points in a single activity and will go from enhanced PIP to no PIP and their carers will lose carers allowance. You seem to think that severely disabled people will keep their pip under all circumstances. this won't be the case esp for those with learning difficulties who need a 'lighter' level support across all areas. It's incredibly hard to score 4 points and not getting them doesn't mean someone is not severely disabled.

WFA is also still paid to the poorest pensioners and pensioners still receive their pension. If you wanna draw parallels, losing PIP is rather akin to losing the state pension. You are clearly not affected by the PIP changes..

Yes people take out more than they put in because they are not net contributers and they can't actually help that.
We all need the low paid people for the country to run.

Exactly this people who think severely disabled people won't be effected need to actually read the pip descriptors. You don't even get 4 points for being unable to wash the bottom half of your body, or being unable to cook a meal if you can chuck a ready meal in a microwave you can apparently work a 50 hr week.

But many severely disabled people will not score 4 points in a single activity and will go from enhanced PIP to no PIP and their carers will lose carers allowance

Exactly. Who will have to provide the carer when informal, unpaid carers can no longer afford to do so?

The state. Which would cost billions.

Thanks
I wasn’t aware of the difference in that respect.
So perhaps the winter fuel allowance should have been paid monthly. Or maybe it wasn’t because it’s more expensive to do so. Who knows tbh it’s irrelevant.
The point is a lot of people relied on it to heat their homes and now it’s gone. Taken away in a flash.

Yes, excellent post.

Anyone I speak to hasn't really contemplated this too much which I find strange. But you are right, it's a wheel of lunacy with spokes of insanity across multiple areas.

Why are you citing a dubious survey of 129 people from 2017?

The "facts" you have quoted are wrong or outdated (or both). Someone earning £145k would lose their entire personal allowance for starters, then there's the fact that HR tax (of 40%) becomes payable at just over £50k, not to mention the additional rate (of 45%) that kicks in at £125k. (Great effort apart from that!)

Clever accountants can't really do much for people on PAYE with high salaries so - unsurprisingly - they are the ones the government comes after, time and time again.

ONS data consistently shows that cash benefits significantly reduce income inequality (and every pound paid out in benefits has been paid in tax by someone). It is a redistributive system.

many disabled people are actually fine and won't need a carer really according to many here. problem solved (not).

The countries with some of the highest levels of taxation and State provision on the planet, are also those with the highest standards of living and personal happiness on the planet.

It's understandable why UK residents constantly complain about tax, but what isn't so easy to understand is why there is an automatic assumption that Tax = bad, and why not many people appear to question why we're paying more and more Taxes yet provision and happiness is continuing to decline.

Yeah, I saw that comment. People have no idea.

The recruiting crisis is solvable. I'm an American and a U.S. Army veteran. We had a similar problem a few years ago. We solved it by improving pay, benefits, living conditions and career opportunities within the military.

https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2025/06/03/army-hits-recruiting-goal-of-61000-soldiers-4-months-early/

Young people need to see the military as an attractive career option. They will join if you make it so and emphasize its national service aspect.

Edited to add that you're correct, the BA is almost absurdly small at 73k active duty members. Keep in mind that only about 30% of that number are front line soldiers.

The wfa parallel ( did I bring it up first I can’t remember ) is purely on non consultation and the fact it was taken from many who only have the full pension to live on and maybe a small private pension. Not enough to heat a property after increased rises. Yet others on pension credit do receive it and in doing so actually end up financially better off than many on full pension with nothing more.
This is the problem with not doing proper consultation
Something Labour do again and again.

However
The changes to the Welfare benefits have gone through a lengthy consultation over a long period of time. In doing this I’m hoping they don’t have such adverse affects on people that the wfa has.

Both have been devised to save money to increase public spending elsewhere and make the benefits bill sustainable into the future. Given the predictions to the yearly bill it’s hardly surprising something had to be done.
It was Labours policy before they were elected to ‘Make Work Pay’ which the majority voted for

Who do you want to pay more tax?

OP I am in agreement with you on this. I respect Keir Starmer for taking this politically difficult but necessary stance.

As a top rate tax payer, defence is the one thing I will gladly pay more tax for to counter the threat from Putin. Not giving the threat equal if not higher focus than on domestic issues is short sighted ostrich thinking.

I am completely against benefit cuts for the most vulnerable in society ie the poor, sick and disabled. However we do need to raise taxes. The country is fucked. We have little to no services, everything is falling apart, and we have no money. The only way to sort this mess (and pay for better defence as the world is getting increasingly unstable) is to raise taxes.

This should start with the super rich as the biggest issue (and the biggest cause of the cost of living crisis) is the ever widening wealth gap. We are heading back towards Victorian era levels of wealth gap if we continue on this road.

However
The changes to the Welfare benefits have gone through a lengthy consultation over a long period of time. In doing this I’m hoping they don’t have such adverse affects on people that the wfa has.

no, the effects of losing PIP and carers allowance will not be the same. It will ve far more devastating than losing 300 per annum. Not being able to heat their home will be the smallest problem of severely disabled people and their carers once the won't be able to afford a home (and other essentials) anymore.

And I can guarantee that assessors will be incentivised to not give those 4 points.