Page 7 | AIBU Income Tax rise.

H202too · 2025-10-30T09:56:34+00:00

To be panicking about income tax rise. Things are tight and to loae even £30-60 a month will be difficult. I know people are talking about the mansion tax being a no go. But I would prefer this than taxing the workers as per usual. The tax free rate should be put up. What a mess.

EasternStandard · 30/10/2025 12:22

Dragonscaledaisy · 30/10/2025 12:18

I can't believe anyone would actually fall for the 'tough decision' bull. 😂Reeves is finished after this budget, if not before.

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Although I like this answer too.

AhBiscuits · 30/10/2025 12:22

FilletSteakForBreakfast · 30/10/2025 11:11

I think they are talking about getting rid of the tax free lump sum for pensions or at least changing it. I've read lots of people over 55 are hurrying to take out their tax free lump sums before the rules change.

Could it be that your FIL is doing this year? If so it kind of makes sense actually.

At the moment 25% from your pension is tax free (up to a certain limit)

The other change is pensions never used to be included in estates for IHT. That has been changed and from (I think it's next year) they will now be included in your estate and subject to IHT.

Your FIL actually sounds very switched on and making good decisions (to benefit his family, not the country)

The trouble is the goverment is making pensions less tax efficient which will encourage people to use them less. In turn this makes more people reliant on the goverment and state pension when they retire.

They is also talk of changing the tax relief you get when you make contributions to your pensions.

Lots of changes that will affect us all in the future but perhaps not right now. I think lots of people are not realising this. (in fairness some are too worried about bills today to worry about what happens in retirement)

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Yes, this is what he's doing. He is very switched on financially and has a professional advising him on how he can ensure that as much as possible of his money goes to his sons and not the government.
I'm trying not to get involved, it all makes me feel a bit uncomfortable for some reason.

EasternStandard · 30/10/2025 12:24

EK27 · 30/10/2025 12:14

I just don't agree putting 1p on income tax will "hammer growth", especially in conjunction with everything else government is doing to boost it (planning reform, trade deals etc.) Ultimately the government is spending £70 billion more per year than it brings in, and we spend 10% of GDP on servicing this debt.

The options are to cut spending or raise taxes - it's a political choice and I think the latter is both the fairer and more popular option. (I say this as a higher rate taxpayer btw)

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If it was popular they’d have campaigned on it to win the GE. It’s not. People don’t want higher taxes bar a few on mn.

EK27 · 30/10/2025 12:24

millymollymoomoo · 30/10/2025 12:22

Well apparently I’m not considered a worker as I earn over 46k! I’m pissed off that this govt is coming after everything, income, houses, pensions of people who work bloody hard and are frugal and try to save - and doing bugger all to cut public finding, carbonic sector pensions, reduce waste, improve public sector productivity- just private sector private sector private sector. You have to have strong growing private sector if you want. A decent public one!

and don’t get me started on asylum or benefits or foreign aid.

its a total economic shambles run by utterly incompetent people and envy

Out of interest, and I appreciate this isn't your main point, but how much do you think is spent on foreign aid? The government just cut it again - it's now 0.3% of GDP. I always wonder if people oppose it on principle or just think it's a higher proportion of spend that it is

EK27 · 30/10/2025 12:25

EasternStandard · 30/10/2025 12:24

If it was popular they’d have campaigned on it to win the GE. It’s not. People don’t want higher taxes bar a few on mn.

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I suppose, to clarify, I mean that in a decision between further cuts to public spending, or raising taxes, I think the latter will be more popular. Obviously people would prefer neither to be happening! But that's the fiscal reality.

LadyKenya · 30/10/2025 12:27

cloudtreecarpet · 30/10/2025 10:54

Why are things so tight for everyone right now?
We never question that. Why are supermarkets putting their prices up almost daily but not seeing a dent in their profits or share holder dividends for example?

There is more going on that is causing us all to feel poor than this suggested tax rise.

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Right.

KateMiskin · 30/10/2025 12:28

Biker47 · 30/10/2025 11:39

That's a strange point to try and make, I pay 5 times the income tax and national insurance contributions of someone on full time minimum wage, that money comes off my wage slip, to then be funnelled to the person on minimum wage in the forms of working tax credits and other forms of benefits I am ineligible to receive, so how exactly am I being subsidised?

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Exactly. How are we being subsidised? You need net contributors to pay the taxes.
I am not voting Reform. They won't fix anything. But as I said, some of us will simply work less. Since we are leeches being subsidised by the less well paid, it shouldn't matter if we work less.

TakeMeDancing · 30/10/2025 12:29

Genevieva · 30/10/2025 11:57

My son’s sixth form college has had to increase class sizes due to a cut in government funding, not an increase.

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Exactly. Where’s all this magic VAT revenue that we were promised? We plebs were meant to be subsidised by the elites, no? (FYI, the elite family on my street who send their DCs to private school—the parents are both state school teachers.)

Motheranddaughter · 30/10/2025 12:31

No one ever wants to pay more tax
But what is the alternative?

caringcarer · 30/10/2025 12:31

Cinnamon77 · 30/10/2025 12:14

If you're not on X then here

Well we all know she's a liar. Her fictitious CV fabrications showed us that.

TakeMeDancing · 30/10/2025 12:33

Bluegrassdfly · 30/10/2025 12:02

The Labour budget was ‘fully funded’ on the basis of what the Tory’s were stating the financial position was pre-election. They get in, they open the books, guess what, the Tory’s had been talking shite for ages and there was a massive (£22bn IIRC) black hole in the nations finances which RR had to plug in her first budget.

Where Labour get less sympathy is that it was perfectly clear to anyone with a brain that the Tory numbers before the last budget were bunkum, with the Director of the IFS saying at the time that he’d eat his hat if Labour didn’t get in and say ‘oh my goodness there’s a totally unforeseen black hole, who knew!’

Labour’s plans were based on the presumption the Tories weren’t lying, even though Labour knew full well the Tories were lying. Both parties are to blame.

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The OBR said that the numbers Labour were quoting were wrong. They said this plainly before the election. There was no “surprise”.

TakeMeDancing · 30/10/2025 12:38

“I voted for higher taxes—but I didn’t mean for me! I meant higher taxes for those people over there!” D’oh.

MidnightPatrol · 30/10/2025 12:38

N96 · 30/10/2025 12:19

Pensioners were born in the1940s and 1950s in a very different financial landscape than now. Many worked in basic low paid jobs, afforded no access to employers pensions and even if they were aware of private pension schemes were too busy trying to put food on the table to even consider this an option.
Women stayed at home to raise children as there was no system of childcare available. When children went to school they went into part time work again mostly in low paid jobs as women's place in the employment field again was very different to today.
They now live on basic state pension in a world where, as people are highlighting, living costs are rising significantly.
To say that on average pensioners are better off than workers???

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Missing the bit here where you justify that a pensioner pays a lower rate of tax than a worker on the same income…?

Pension schemes for today’s ‘boomers’ were far better than anything offered to equivalent workers today - that’s half the problem the country faces, meeting these huge pension liabilities.

Yes, pensioners are now on average better off than working families - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/pensions/pensioners-better-off-working-families-more-money/

Some pensioners are poor, many are not - why should they be paying a lower rate of tax on their income than workers? It makes no sense at all.

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https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/pensions/pensioners-better-off-working-families-more-money

Allergictoironing · 30/10/2025 12:40

Another 1% on income tax will tip me over the edge from just about coping to not coping.

As I have my own (mortgaged) house and no children, I can't receive any UC at all except the basic jobseekers if I was out of work. My salary as a local government employee is about £1000 a year more than minimum wage despite handling thousands in public money every week in a quite stressful and varied job, which has increased significantly in variety and volume over the last year or so due to the financial state of most local government bodies including the one I work for. No foreign holidays (or holidays at all to be fair), a 15 year old car, I don't drink or smoke, I don't go out to the cinema or for meals or even have takeaways. My only indulgence is my 2 cats.

So where am I going to cut back on my spending to pay any more income tax?

dressinggowns · 30/10/2025 12:41

Many worked in basic low paid jobs, afforded no access to employers pensions and even if they were aware of private pension schemes were too busy trying to put food on the table to even consider this an option.

@N96 this isn't true. Pensioners are in the "wealthy" bracket today because so many do have private pensions, that are far more generous than today's offering.

Redrosesposies · 30/10/2025 12:41

MidnightPatrol · 30/10/2025 11:01

Part of the issue the UK has is actually that most workers aren’t paying anywhere near enough tax. The tax free allowance plus the 20% rate mean a fairly low rate for those earning average wages and below.

Everyone needs to pay a little more - you can’t just keep targeting the same small group of people, whose tax burden has already grown massively over the past decade. And - just endlessly targeting the top 5-10% of earners doesn’t actually raise much - as there isn’t as many of them!

I like the idea of reducing NI but increasing tax - it’s absurd pensioners pay a far lower rate, when on average they are better off than workers…!

I looked it up yesterday. The average income in the UK for a single pensioner is around £14.5k and around £25k for pensioner couples.
That's all income not just State Pension and means that there are an awful lot more people on less than that average figure than there are bragging about how they give their winter fuel allowance to charity.....

dressinggowns · 30/10/2025 12:42

To say that on average pensioners are better off than workers???

They are!!! Which shows how batshit things are

spoonbillstretford · 30/10/2025 12:42

I really hate these scaremongering threads about the budget and wonder where they are coming from. There are several a day.

Moan about things after the Budget by all means, when we actually know, and stop speculating. Yes, YABU.

How have you felt about income tax rises in the last 14 years when the Tories didn't put the rates up according to salary increases and so everyone is paying more income tax than they ever have?

dressinggowns · 30/10/2025 12:43

Some pensioners are poor, many are not - why should they be paying a lower rate of tax on their income than workers? It makes no sense at all.

Will anyone answer the question?

Hons123 · 30/10/2025 12:44

tupils · 30/10/2025 10:21

If things are so tight for you I imagine you can’t pay for private healthcare?
If you have children, I guess they go to local schools?
You probably don’t have your own security team?
If so, surely improved public services are in your best interests?
You will be a net beneficiary, not a net contributor.

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Spot on.

Feminaperfecta · 30/10/2025 12:46

Very worried here. We just don't have the stretch in our budget. 3 small children, 2 still at nursery is really making things tight. This could break us.

ShesTheAlbatross · 30/10/2025 12:47

EasternStandard · 30/10/2025 11:42

I bet we don’t have more money left though. Plus we’re at highest taxes for 70 odd years

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Overall, yes.

The average earner has the lowest effective tax rate since 1975 (as stated by Hunt in 2024, and agreed with by the IFS, and it hasn’t gone up since then).

Bluegrassdfly · 30/10/2025 12:48

Redrosesposies · 30/10/2025 12:41

I looked it up yesterday. The average income in the UK for a single pensioner is around £14.5k and around £25k for pensioner couples.
That's all income not just State Pension and means that there are an awful lot more people on less than that average figure than there are bragging about how they give their winter fuel allowance to charity.....

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Yes but the vast majority have no housing costs. It’s housing costs that hammer those younger.

Aintnosunshinenowitsgone · 30/10/2025 12:49

Tax. Always better when someone else pays.

dressinggowns · 30/10/2025 12:51

I looked it up yesterday. The average income in the UK for a single pensioner is around £14.5k and around £25k for pensioner couples.

It's about disposable income...

It’s housing costs that hammer those younger.

yep