Cut benefits before increasing council tax

[Bonde]

https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/reeves-council-tax-hike-5HjdMrJ_2/

As an increase in income tax is now out the window, the government will have to look at other ways to fill the gap by increasing a dozen smaller taxes. One option, I think they will opt for, is to apply a surcharge for homes in bands F,G&H. It would be politically expedient to do so because many people will assume those in such homes are wealthy.

We purchased our band f property earlier this year at £550k. We live in London and didn’t want to uproot our family, and move jobs, so decided to buy our 2.5 bed house.
After mortgage and bills, we have £100 to £200 left over, but some months have nothing. An increase would be so difficult to manage.

Why can’t the government have the courage to cut benefits. You can buy a BMW or Mercedes on the Mobility Scheme! Why?

No.

I did for years until my MH declined suddenly.

Should the Motability scheme be expanded to those who aren't disabled but are on a low income? Motability cars for anyone on UC.

I'm sure that would go down very well.

Does she have any friends, a boyfriend?

I know that feeling. I feel for her. But what's the prognosis? Are you both trying to work on it so she can function in society? You won't be there forever so it would terrify me if my child were this way.

I read a book called 'feel the fear and do it anyway' when I was about 16 and it changed my life. I did things scared, and my whole life changed over time.

Thank you for being educated. You don’t buy a motorbility car. These people don’t see the safety features as a must. I hope they never become disabled and struggle to drive their porches snobby sods

You realise you have to have solid medical evidence right?

I'd love to know the many ways round this criteria please. I'm a wheelchair user and had to go to Tribunal to get higher rate PIP, so I look forward to your reply

Moral of the s

moral Of the story is don’t get a mortgage you can’t afford and don’t bash people who are in serious need. Don’t be bitter cause people with severe needs are entitled to put a large down payment on an up to date car that suits their needs.. helps driving be more safe and comfortable enabling their independence for the sacrifice of their £300 motorbility payment. Stay educated not stupid

I agree. There is also a huge regional variation in how much band F, G & H houses are worth.

There needs to be a national reassessment of council tax bands. A lot has changed since 1991.

Yes it does not happen. Unless you happen to have certified and peer reviewed proof that it does happen? If you do, I think we would all like to see it, but somehow I doubt it. Ableist.

Or don’t listen when Labour say taxes won’t go up. They will.

People used to vehemently deny they had a disability (even when they did) but that has changed.

If there was no monetary benefit in declaring a disability and there was a census would the disablity results be comparable,?

I always try not to get involved in these threads, partly because sometimes it gets upsetting for me.
But yet again.. I’m going to address the Motability stuff.
Lots of pps clarified how Motability ACTUALLY works so I won’t repeat it - but one thing that hasn’t been mentioned is that Rachel Reeves is allegedly looking into the CEO/the failure of the charity to spend its extensive profit as a charity should.
That does NOT mean she’s stopping people accessing particular cars or new cars.
I expect that the cars that can be leased are new - to counter one pp’s comments - for two reasons.

1. It would put Motability out of pocket to lease older vehicles because they’d require more maintenance. For factual information- what Motability does, once the lease (of either 3 or 5 years) expires, the charity takes that car back and sells it. They profit from this. I can give you the figures for the WAV I lease for my DD (a Peugeot Rifter, adapted. I paid the down payment (I don’t recall but £3,000 - £4,000). I paid for the adaptations (another £2,000 but I can’t be certain). My child’s DLA over 5 years gives Motability £20,020 for that WAV (not in dispute £77 per week over five years). They will sell it for around £17,000. So they recoup £37,000 approximately for that WAV (that I paid to have adapted) and a new Peugeot Rifter (before adapting it) would be around £28,000 - that is to the PUBLIC, not the price Motability, a subsidised charity that also gets VAT relief, will pay for it. It’s economic bonus time for Motability and a loss for the end user. I personally hate Motability (not least because contrary to common perception, it is not in the best interests to have a 5 year lease or any lease and to add adaptations). My WAV recently failed its MOT - a 4 year old WAV. I’m not allowed to have it serviced other than at approved garages. I’m not allowed to have changes made without Allied Mobility approval. Allied Mobility who own it wouldn’t pay for the essential repairs, despite that being one of the stated costs of the Motability scheme. That’s obviously not of concern to anyone but me, but it’s illustrative of how it is unwise to use Motability if ANY other option ext.
2. Brand new cars are what Motability purchases to get the VAT relief. So a bonus for them not the end user. If I was feeling generous I’d imagine that Motability was based on giving safe cars to the most vulnerable but my experience with my WAV failing its MOT proves otherwise. Im driving on barely safe brake pads - in a van that could kill a road user at 30 miles an hour easily. As for what’s available on the scheme, the mercs and sports cars - if I were the disabled person and had fuck loads of cash to give as a non-refundable deposit to drive a sports car maybe I would. But I don’t. And most people with a disabled family member actually struggle with income loss.its impossible for me to replace my £50,000 annual salary with £89 a week carer’s allowance.. but that’s no-one else’s problem.

As to the other people saying how stupid people are for voting Labour or laughing about “Labour (how very droll and let’s forget Boris Johnson lying to the Queen)- a few weeks ago it was posts non-stop about how unfair income tax rises would be - now apparently that’s not happening it’s how unfair council tax rises (also not yet happened) is.

I wish I could cross post this post with the one about the cost of care for “looked after” children yesterday… The Reddit posters haven’t got a hold of that one yet I guess. I’d love to see how people feel about funding DLA or PIP in comparison to those costs.

I’d also love to know what Reddit thinks about the Reform council busy closing care homes at the minute. ..,? Thoughts?

Out with the ill and elderly and disabled. Down with that sort of stuff, eh?

I used to think the worst part of being a parent to a profoundly disabled child was not having support in place for her - now I have the added joy of getting tuts when I get out of the driver’s side of my WAV by people who shut up when DD emerges from the rear in her wheelchair. I was directly challenged by some cunt woman who stuck her face into my car to ask if I had a “disabled badge” because quite “they” did (her family with no evidence of mobility issues) - I somewhat enjoyed her face when I opened the back door and told her to ask my daughter for her badge but not to expect a response because she can’t talk.

People without the need for Motability should be fucking glad they don’t YET have that need - good luck finding AND funding an adapted car without Motability (hint:it’s very tough). Let’s hope there’s no sudden accidents or illnesses that cause deterioration over time or babies born with profound disabilities.. it doesn’t just happen to the lager swilling, fag smoking, wannabe swindlers…

Do you see her not working at any point? Or does she in some way

This!! I don’t listen much cause the country’s screwed anyway no matter who’s in charge

Honestly, the only way this or any government can win is not to increase any taxes and still pay every benefit going.

If they went with an income tax increase, there'd be complaints. There already have been. When they increase inheritance taxes people complain. Let's face it, there's no tax increase that isn't going to be complained about.

When are people going to stop seeing things like disability benefits as paying for someone else?

What you pay for, what we all pay for is a safety net. Because one day, it could be any of us. We are all one car crash away from needing a mobility car, one doctor's visit away from a serious illness.

I can sell a £500,000 house and move somewhere cheaper if I have to. No, it's not 'as easy as that' before someone says it, but it's a damn sight easier than being disabled to the level that qualifies for motability, whether it's mental health related or not.

Elsewhere on this site, I'll read posts from people decrying the state of Education, poor SEN support, problems getting treatment on the NHS...It all costs money, but none of us wants to pay for it. Every Single announced tax change from private schools, to inheritance tax, to income tax will see a complaint on here.

Everyone wants benefits cut apart from the ones they think should be increased, like childcare, because they need it. If THEY needed a motability car, they'd be the first in the queue to moan about not getting it.

There but for the grace, and all that...

PARKLIFE

Exactly this i worked full time and paid tax for over 20 years before I unfortunately needed pip. It can happen to anyone at anytime. Just like we all pay NI as you don't know when you might suddenly need to use the nhs. Your whole life can change in a split second when you least expect it.

You cannot "buy" anything on the motability scheme. You lease a car using the 300 odd quid mobility element of PIP for 3 years. If you want a top of the range car to lease you have to pay 1000s of pounds of your own money as an upfront payment. My son's motability car would cost about the same if he were to lease it privately, the only plus point is it's paid directly by PIP and he didn't have to get credit checked like a normal car lease

Id be all for a charity subsidised car lease scheme for those on a low income - they'd have to fund the payments from whatever income they have.

However I think the motability charity would struggle to stretch to that and more importantly the car sales and car lease industry would be absolutely furious about it as it'd drop their profits massively.

Where I live in London, properties over £315k are band H and have to pay over £3k CT and almost £1k to the GLA. Total bill just over £4k. Not a bargain.

I wouldn't be against that.

I am knackered. No time to feel anything to be honest….

@WiddlinDiddlin
And Motability exists and gets its subsidies because it’s specifically for disabled people.
So it would never expand to cover low income families.
Of course the whingers about why do THEY (the disabled) get new cars wouldn’t be willing to swap out £4000 a year of Universal Credit or State Pension or Pension Credit with a non-refundable down payment of £4000 - £8000 for a NEW Mercedes car BEFORE adding the £4,000 a year costs (before fuel) or of course larger amounts of non-refundable deposits for an adapted vehicle..
The reason… it’s not cost effective.
If an average family of 4 receives UC (with no disability for any family members and leaving out rent costs or savings) receives £4000 a year of UC I doubt they’d be queuing up to swap that for a brand new car they’d give back after 3-5 years.
Just a guess though.
And those who CAN afford to lease or buy new cars.. already do!