To think Labour is not the party of the working people.

[pinkpalmleaves]

I voted for Labour as I believed their election pledge of being a party for the working people but genuinely I can’t think of one thing, since they’ve been in power, that they’ve done to help me (a single working mother on around £42k a year)! I get zero help from UC, these mystical breakfast clubs don’t exist, people aren’t employing people due to their ridiculous NI implications, they aren’t building affordable housing, energy prices are insanely high and all they talk about is grants (which won’t affect me as I live in a flat)! Genuinely I can’t think of one thing that they’ve done to help working people in the middle. Why are Labour sticking their heads in the sand? Why do they refuse to help the squeezed working class? They are stopping this economy from thriving - as
nobody can afford to spend anything extra (treats, holidays, meals out etc etc)!

How can it though? The European economy is not growing. Ours is growing faster. It seems counter intuitive to look to Europe for the solution.

Weapons. That's a good growth market...Weapons and oil. The two big Norwegian money makers...

I don't see any issue with chlorinated chicken. Many people in America eat chicken and are fine. There's no evidence of any ill health effects.

We left the customs union because we wanted to make our own laws, have sovereignty and make our own trade deals. Everyone selling into different markets has to meet the country's regulation. Be it someone selling into EU, US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Again why shouldn't we be allowed to make our OWN trade deals on our terms?

Again why does a little bit of paperwork absolutely ruin an economy massively?

Why does paperwork and registering for VAT bring down an entire economy? Why not improve and streamline processes from our side and ask the EU to do the same?

Isn't the problem more about paying the VAT though? Like, no exemptions on low value items anymore. Paying import VAT, etc.

If we had a version of GLP-1 as Denmark does we’d do well too.

Re the discussion of Brexit, I voted Remain so it wasn’t a factor but the main factor for voters was FOM which meant the red line stuff. So it was more listening to that. And yes ik about numbers since. But it was a factor in the vote.

Well, you'll need to back that assertion with some evidence.... surely you can understand that!

Many go out to work in PT roles, then claiming UC to make ends meet.

How did we manage before all these "free" things?

Quite how anyone can justify someone earning 70,80 or 90k getting free childcare is beyond me.

My point is those calling for Welfare cuts are all very keen to cut the benefits they don't claim, whilst wanting to keep and increase the ones they do get... see the call for Universal Energy Support for the middle and higher earners...

Strange that...

The people who create wealth are those who slog away day after day in jobs like the poverty wages Amazon provides, or people who care for our old and sick ditto, releasing the rest of us to do other work. Or those who were fired and rehired on lower wages. Or were hanging around day after day, terrified they wouldn't get enough hours to pay their bills. Not the billionaires class who attend the occasional board meeting to consider how much more they can squeeze their employees by NOT raising wages for years or by increasing their prices. Who off shore their profits to avoid tax. We need to tax THEM more (they'd barely notice it) those who we subsidise by allowing them to get away with ripping off their employees by paying them much less than the value of the goods they produce AND rip off all of us, the people of the UK, by making US top up the poverty wages they get away with paying.

It's the old but basic question. WHO NEEDS WHO? Could the billionaires make their billions without their employees, innovating, giving them new patents, discovering new ways of producing, new drugs, new ways of working (with the help of the derided Unions btw), slogging away day after day etc etc. No of course not. Does the factory, the insurance company, the office, the hospital etc run while the billionaires are wondering which of the islands they own they need to spend the next months of their endless holidays on? YES of course they do. If we nationalised Water etc tomorrow would we have a worse service than the one the billionaires are running now? NO.

You’ve still not explained what you want. Are you looking for a cash handout? What are the policies / help that you got under the last government that you’d like brought back?

Ha, you must know very little about MP selection processes if you think this is all it takes to get selected as a candidate, then elected as an MP...

@ElizaMulvil you are clearly passionate about worker exploitation and I don't disagree with all of your views, but you are missing a large part of the picture.

Over half of the UK's economy is made up by small and medium entreprises, with not a billionaire in sight. We are small town accountants, plumbers and publicans, freelance creatives, we own garages and cafes, shops, farms and garden centres; most of us are self-employed. Sometimes it feels very precarious.

If we don't work, we don't get paid: my window cleaner told me this week that he has worked for 14 days since Christmas. Next door neighbour is a gardener: he's said the same. We don't qualify for most benefits, I got 12 weeks SMP, and nobody paid contributions into my pension -- only me. If I'm feeling the pinch and cancel getting my eyebrows done, only my self-employed beauty therapist and her family will suffer. HMRC will still want their share.

The self-employed and small businesses don't have much of a collective voice because we are all too different. But all governments hate us, because we don't fit a cookie-cutter mould and 'one-size fits all' rulebooks don't. If the tax demands are too high, we retire early, or work fewer hours or, if we are young enough and have an in-demand skill (in construction or engineering) we leave, often for Australia or Canada where we'll contribute to growth elsewhere.

The stupidity of politicians defies belief.

Why do those on 70k,80k,90k not get a benefit they pay for via taxes and others receive? Why is there a cliff edge that makes them worse off?

I think Labour have given more though about appeasing their middle class city voters more in recent years as they need their votes

While historically Labour were considered that party that put the needs for those on low incomes centrally to their policies this is less so now

Its unfortunate but a balancing act to get the chance to be in power, but one that has at times back fired for them

Billionaires pay people and provide the necessary equipment and capital and structures to make the employees labour actually have meaning. They set up, run business that give us the goods and services we need, and employ lots of people.

And pay the people who do the actual work that makes that possible as little as they can get away with. Meanwhile the taxpayer subsidies them with in work benefits.

Do you think everyone is on minimum wage?

Many people are working in these companies are on well paid high paying careers.

I think the extent to the entire % of a company's workforce on UC top ups is often overstated.

Roughly only 3 million workers in the UK claim UC out of around 30 million workers, so just 10%!

Many of those will be working part time, hence being eligible for UC, i.e. for many, a CHOICE to be part time.

I don't see the scale of low pay epidemic that you seem to think exists!

I do no think that covers those who just get housing benefit

So if you add up the numbers of those claiming HB and UC the results are higher (though HB is included in UC its still I believe from the local authority budget)

The rents in cities are so high now that even above average earners are very often entitled to some form of government top up. If I didn't have an extra income (small amount) that would include myself and I earn an above average wage but my rent is 2/3's of my wage and that isn't unusual

Its such a mess we are in, the top ups have saved people form poverty, allowed businesses to grow but also allowed wages to stagnate and landlords to be able to dictate the rental market because they know the money shall be paid

As of August 2025, approximately 1.885 million people in the UK claim Housing Benefit. This constitutes roughly 2.8% of the total UK population.

I am not a high earner but I also work for my money. Is that not normal?

Yes but that is those just claiming housing benefit not on UC, many on UC have the housing benefit included

the average wage especially in the larger cities is not covering living costs and hasn't for a number of years.

🙄
versus passive income, inherited wealth

What about all the green levies?

Green levy is around 8%. It’s used to pay for renewable energy sources, meaning we can end our heavy reliance on expensive, imported gas.

@noworklifebalance would you like to define passive wealth, please?

I only ask because you would probably consider me as passive wealth; after 35 years it looks quite similar.

I'm 70. I started my pension when I went freelance in 1990. I borrowed £7500 as cashflow against my next three months work, and I worked like a dog for the next 10 years. All the hours, up at 2:30am for a breakfast meeting 250 miles away. I did it.

But one of my commissions introduced me to the idea of SIPPs, then very new, so I looked at it. We bought an industrial shed, nothing fancy or smart but on the junction of two major arterial roads. Twenty-five years later, that building is paying £40k pa into my pension every year. There have been lean years, like when we lost the tenant to COVID. In a year we were £50k down in lost rent. The next year we spent £30k renovating before we found a new tenant. Commercial property can be profitable, but it can also cost big time. Like all investments, one needs to understand and accept the risks. There is no guarantee, and you are on your own.

I have not inherited anything beyond £400, the price of a nice garden table 30 years ago. Still have it.

We have property and investments and rental income.... We earned the money to buy it