Is The IMF taking Over perhaps just what the country needs

[WaitingInForMyFoodShopping]

Ok bear with me. This sounds like an idiotic thing to say because if the IMF are involved it means the country is officially in a mess and the IMF will slash spending and enforce their own budgets and rules. So anyone on benefits might lose them, NHS funding will likely go down, same for the police force etc

It just occurred to me today that the country is in a complete mess and there isn't really any end in sight.

Headlines today - I didn't read the detail but I am just getting more angry, helpless feeling and frustrated and want 'somebody' who has some balls to step in and say enough. Things change from today. Todays headlines are rising taxes, 1/10 high school kids on benefits, families of migrants can claim benefits from day 1 even if they don't speak english.

Now i will caveat this by saying the housing market does need sorted but lets be honest that's not what they are trying to do here - it's just about raising taxes. I also say there is another articles claiming ' a crackdown on bring families into Britain' - something that made me snort with derision giving the whole small boats/protests going on just now.

I mean lets just get to the point. Does ANYONE think RR/KS are able to fix this mess. I know they didn't cause it. I know they have been in office less than a year but if we give them another year are they able to fix it. I personally don't think so. It is going to need someone very tough to brave the mess and take it in hand (Maggie Thatcher where are you now).
So what are we left with - voting Reform - which I have joked about doing but i don't actually think that is the way to go. That's borne out of desperation. So who is going to fix it then.

AIBU to think a complete reset, painful as it will be by the IMF is just what the country needs?

House prices drop unexpectedly amid property tax fears - latest updates

The ‘ludicrous’ migrant family rule pushing councils to breaking point

One in 10 secondary schoolchildren on disability benefits

It tells me exactly what it says ie majority of UK polled think that country is in a worse state than it was a year ago.
82% think UK is in a bad state. How the hell can you try to spin that as a positive?

There's a huge increase in the number of people who think it will get worse compared to this time last year. Last year 40% Vs this year 60% . So 1 year of a Labour government and now 20% more people think that there's worse to come

Markets also don't like 'phase 2'

Agree. If I ever feel like faltering about this Government, I come onto threads like this one and my faith is restored. Keep up the good work everyone!

That’s good. They need some in that small percentage.

I’m not spinning it as a positive. In May 2024 80% of the people thought the country was in a poor state, last month 82% of people did. It’s not exactly a vast increase, is it? If you were focusing on the decrease in optimism about the future you might have a point.

It's 1% who think UK is in a much better place than last year.
Less than 0.5% who think it will get much better in next year.

They need some faith from somewhere!

I know. I can read bar charts too. It’s not a niche skill.

You’re projecting again because of the lense you view politics through. It’s really not a surprise that Labour found a black hole to justify heavy taxation and transfer more control to the state in line with their ideology, it’s not a surprise they then found another black hole to justify heavy taxation and transfer even more power to the state. There will be another black hole in January 2026 and another one found in June and this will continue for the next 4 years.

The faithful will provide.

Ideological faith seems to be what it comes down to, keep believing.

How is your faith restored?

The IMF have no business being involved in British affairs. Reeves will go and that’ll be that. Come next election, Labour will suffer and we’ll get a new administration to screw us over. As unqualified as Reform are, I’m tempted to give them a shot as they can’t be any worse than this lot.

The truth is, it's taken 14 of declining living standards to crystallise them into a political movement i.e. Reform and with the help of the right wing media, the ramping up of this fear (just like this thread) makes people afraid and seek out simplistic solutions from populist, authoritarian politicians.

It powered Brexit, so can't be all bad.

The reality is no-one on this thread knows what will happen if the IMF have to bail us out.

However as a condition of helping they will impose changes to bring us back to a sustainable position where we start to repay our debt rather than adding to it each month.

This will almost certainly involve cuts to areas like benefits, the NHS and the retirement age. I mean how could it not?
The current spending is getting us into a lot of trouble - it has to be changed and I think everyone will be impacted.

As to the exact areas which will be hit the hardest nobody can say for sure. However based on all the outcry about welfare state and PIP which has dominated the news I would think these areas will definately get hit. I would also expect some changes to immigrants based on the current protests/spending on them. I also think things like housing benefit will be cut but I could be wrong of course.

For me who gets no benefits but was planning on the state pension I am already anticipating the age going up to 70 before I get it.
It may turn out to be worse than that and then i will need to think again how I will manage. For example if they remove the triple lock. Worst case scenario they stop it all together.

I am planning on needing to pay for some of my own medical care as the NHS is phased out or becomes private. I am trying to get my health in tip top condition just now to avoid huge bills.

I have a 3 bed house. I would hate lodgers but it's an option if things get really bad. So is downsizing to free up cash.

I think it would be wise for people to start mentally preparing that life is quite likely going to get more difficult and we will need to be more self sufficient.
Nobody wants to do this. Denial is a lovely comforting place to be. That won't stop the changes coming though. Sorry!

I honestly think it's very unhelpful to say 'oh course benefits won't be cut'

The reality is no-one on this thread knows what will happen if the IMF have to bail us out.

The chances of which are the same as being struck by an asteroid.

Why so certain?

More Irony.

Don't small asteroids hit earth quite frequently?

Just googled it and it appears so. Large ones with devastating consequences are rare but not so much the small ones.

Perhaps they meant that.

Just for some balance as I have been accused of getting all my information from the telegraph (I don't)

Here is todays Guardian.
Pressure rises on Reeves as government borrowing costs hit 27-year high | Economics | The Guardian

And the dinosaurs didn't have the IMF to bail them out - so sad 😢

That’s problematic for Labour.

Because (unlike an asteroid) there would be warnings. When they stepped in in 1976 (because Labour had inherited the mother of all debts from the previous Tory government) it was flagged up for months before hand. By a jubilant press who were really upset that the Tories lost the October 1974 election when Ted Heath famously asked the country "Who's in charge".

Of course part of the debt spiral was driven by energy prices spiking after a foreign war.

As they say, history may not repeat itself, but it rhymes.

I can also assure all posters that no matter what they read (or think they read) there will not be conscription in the next 10 years.

I never was one for diaries, but I'm quite happy to go through all and every headline and find out the predecessor and where the sky didn't fall in.

Have we had "the army is being put on standby" yet ? That's a perennial favourite.

Oh look, more 'fear' politics. 14 years of austerity has ensured that life for many is already very "difficult".

I really CBA to work out the difference between and asteroid and a meteoroid. Let alone meteors.

For the pedants or the avoidance of doubt, my analogy referred to "Fucking big rock that will wipe out life (we we know it) on earth"