Tax increases imminent

[Iwishicouldflyhigh]

Heavy hints that taxes will rise in the next Budget after the recent climb down (as the ‘taxes won’t rise again’ was based on a 5 billion saving in benefits).

I can’t lie, I’m so pissed off about this. I don’t think anyone wants to see someone who is genuinely unable to work to be further penalised, but we all know there are thousands of people who could work but don’t.

this country is going to absolute shit . We pay more and more for less and less.

Everyone contributes based on what they spend. We already heavily tax income. Absolutely sick of the number of freeloaders in this country who want other people to support their lives so they can sit on their arses playing Xbox all day. It is absolutely disgusting the lack of self respect people have..

The government raises about £1.2trillion each year in taxation. If I could see tangible change then I actually wouldn’t mind paying some additional tax but the reality is, nothing ever seems to change. It just seems to decline further.

For me, the NHS needs fearless, radical reform. If it were a business, we would not keep pumping money into the black hole of nothingness, we’d restructure and make it fit for today’s population requirements.

We also need to have a honest conversation about migration (both legal and illegal) without shutting it down with cries of ‘racist’ or ‘bigot’. We are a teeny island nation with limited resources and we need tough conversations.

PIP should be means tested.

State Pension which many have paid into already should NOT be means tested. But they could reform it for future generations and give them the option of paying in or paying into a private pension instead.

We should also do a forensic review of foreign aid. I believe we should provide emergency aid only in times of humanitarian crisis. We should not be propping up other failing governments by sending regular streams of cash for long term projects which don’t show any benefit. Prime example - Nigeria, one of the most oil-rich country on earth where billions has been lost to corruption. Yet in 2023-2024, we sent around £72million and this year, we’re planning to send £117million. How lovely for them!

But as I said, if I saw things changing, I’d be totally behind a tax increase but I can pretty much guarantee in a year or two, nothing will have changed.

I am most certainly not taking that home on UC nor do I think anyone else is! I am grateful they are bringing that in as it will really help. Shame it is next September. At least it means some of the working poor get help.

I’m in Scotland and a higher rate tax payer. Things are far from perfect but I can get a same day appointment with the GP, the last time I had to go to minor injuries I was seen, assessed and treated within an hour of arriving - A&E waits are longer, 4 hours with my DD.

My DS high school has subject specialists from all exam years, and has decent additional support services. There are issues with presumption of mainstreaming which isn’t working.

Social care is tough and people are left at home for too long with minimal support. Too many initiatives to try and sort things out, with no coherent thinking. There’s too much money spent on think tanks and endless government consultations that go nowhere and the Scottish government are too keen to push overreaching legislation that predictably ends up in court.

Child disability payments have lifted many children out of poverty, and I think that will bring wider benefit in time.

It’s a mixed bag, but some of that is about a government that have been in power too long and are ideologically stuck. Let’s see what next years election brings.

Thanks for replying.

No, we would be one of only two developed countries and only a handful of countries overall that didn't have universal health care.

If you think joining the likes of Afghanistan, Nigeria, Yemen, South Africa, Iran, Pakistan and the US would make us stronger, I have a bridge to sell you.

Same posters day after day on these kind of threads.

Well that ship has sailed hasn’t it….

The only people receiving UC on 60k wages would either have pretty high childcare costs, high rent or disabled children.

It's just human nature through isn't it. People who don't pay for the tax increases want them, people that will pay for them don't. It is always easier to spend other peoples money.

Labour's problems would be solved if income tax rates in England were the same rate as in Scotland.

England
Higher rate 40% £50,271 to £125,140
Additional rate 45% over £125,140

Scotland
Higher rate 42% £43,663 to £75,000
Advanced rate 45% £75,001 to £125,140
Top rate 48% Over £125,140

Exactly !

So okay to means test benefits for children but not okay to do the same with pensions?

I think the ship was sunk.

In a lot of countries that have 'free healthcare', you still have to pay for it. E.g. Sweden - have always had to pay an amount each time you see a doctor there (but it's capped for those with chronic illnesses).

It's not sustainable for an organisation such as the NHS - one of the largest employers IN THE WORLD - to be 'free' (of course we pay via tax). Introduce a small charge per visit - would also mean people actually turn up for their appointments and not cancelling at the last minute.

You do know that many PIP recipients work and so pay taxes, don’t you? And often, if it wasn’t for receiving PIP, many would not be able to work?

Some might not be able to afford even a very small fee.

Add in that in Scotland we’re still paying NI between £43,663 and £50k, so an affective 52% marginal tax. The lower tax rates are also staged which bring in slightly more from lower earners.

I actually don’t mind paying tax as it stands, but really don’t want another increase.

Having a small fee for the NHS is a stupid idea - someone has to administer all those fee payments, which would likely cost significantly more than the amount the fees would bring in.

We do however have by far the most expensive energy bills and Council Tax!

Great, so all the people on middle incomes who are paying for the people who don't work should also lose the state pension we're expecting and have paid thousands and thousands of pounds of national insurance contributions for.

1p on VAT ... everybody pays then not just those earning over the tax limit.

I'd cut benefits too. Loads of people not working who could and people getting disability benefits who don't deserve it. To clarify, people who genuinely need support need more support, others need no support.

A lot of mothers (including myself) would love to be at home with their kids. However we now live in a 2 person earner economy to survive. A lot of us feel forced to go back at a year and would rather the German model where our job is held open for 3 years.

We apparently need to import millions of people as our native birth rate is low. 1/3 of mothers last year were foreign. So you either import or you make natives having kids an attractive option.

I don’t disagree with you on those points, but putting up VAT is not the way to go.

Honestly, what needs to happen (if people want the services/investment they demand) is that income tax needs to go up for everyone - including Basic Rate taxpayers.

The simple fact is that is where the biggest impact will be gained. I pulled up the numbers on the Government website as follows:

2024/25 Tax Year
Basic Rate Taxpayers - 30,400,000
High Rate - 7,080,000
Additional Rate - 1,230,000

If they put 1p on the basic rate they’d raise over £5billion per year, but just putting it on higher rate payers would only raise around £1.5billion (figures based on government figures from 2022 so figures likely higher now).

The answer on all these sorts of threads is that success or financial prudence should be punished not rewarded…