AIBU to want spending cuts rather than more tax rises?

[PinkFruitbat]

The foundations are being laid for more tax rises in the October Budget.

https://www.ft.com/content/6d43b599-3d7c-471c-88c2-0f056475a840?syn-25a6b1a6=1

AIBU to ask for savings in spending to help balance the budget rather than more taxes.

With welfare spending at nearly £1bn each day, when is enough, enough?

This illustrates the problem of having the NHS on a pedestal though - no, it's not "fucking disrespectful" to criticise an government entity, it needs to not be treated like the state religion.

I would also increase fines greatly for speeding, parking violations and running red lights. Install cameras and make people behave better

What do you mean by ‘start taxing the rich’?

100% agree. It’s such nonsense that the nhs is some special thing. It’s really not.

Count yourself lucky then because the reality myself and my family have experienced within the NHS is shocking incompetency and bloat with even the very basic tenants of dignity
Patient centered care hygiene and respect are not there.

And certainly not disrespectful when the incompetancy and bloat has put loved ones lives at risk and caused longer term problems and all the rest like a lack of respect and dignity .

Inheritance tax should be 0% imo. People have every right to entrust their wealth and whatever to their descendants.

A lot of our wealth is in India and we'll be moving back soon as there's 0% IHT and we'll be able to give everything to our kids and not to the welfare state

Why should inheritance be taxed more? It’s not always about ‘being born to the right family’. Inheritance that is left is usually either property that has already been taxed or money earned and then saved which again would have already been taxed. Why should people be double taxed?

The rich pay enough. Large businesses pay enough. Most of the tax gap is illegal avoidance and it's done by mostly small self employed traders and SMEs

I agree. It’s horrendous to work really hard for family and not be able to pass it on without a huge chunk being taken. At that point the govt seem like highway bandits.

Moving to single-tier local government will dramatically reduce the number of councillors in shire county areas.

My county has 5 district/borough councils with 30-40 councillors each, say, 175 councillors in total, plus 50 on the county council, so approx 225 in total. The new unitary council will only have 95 councillors.

Not a 25% decrease in wages, a 25% decrease in staff. The problem with 5% cuts is that departments try to just salami slice and the savings never happen. A full 25% cuts would force a proper think about which teams and people are actually necessary rather than just nice to have. There are so, so many people in the civil service doing unnecessary work. I know quite a few of them myself, lovely, intelligent, skilled, well meaning people but frankly the country could live without the jobs they are doing.

I don’t understand - you think treatment outcomes will improve with less staff? And less time for training and development?

@Coconutter24 IHT is not double taxation. The dead don't pay tax.

VAT, stamp duty now there ARE double taxation.

What do you count as unnecessary work?

Someone earns money, they are taxed, they save over a certain amount to pass on to their family that money is taxed again. The money has then been double taxed.
Why do you think VAT is double taxed?

Given how much worse it is now than 10 years ago despite NHS spending increasing from £185 billion in 2015 to £345 billion now.. maybe?

And if not, then at least lower taxes would leave us some of our own money to cover the health care we're having to pay for ourselves already, since the NHS isn't working.

I have worked in the public sector most of my career. Never met a full time diversity officer. We have HR people who have diversity duties as part of their wider role and the Public Sector Equality Duty means a lot of us have to spend some of our time considering compliance with the EA 2010 But the idea there is millions to be made sacking "diversity officers" is frankly insane

Most PIP claimants have to renew their PIP every 3 years and also have a review during the term of the award. This includes a new assessment and pre-Covid these were always in person.

Ten-year awards are possible, but vanishingly rare: I never came across one and I worked in welfare rights long before PIP was even a thing. We could, of course, give indefinite awards to the people with conditions that will never change, like my friend's son with severe cerebral palsy, or a member of another forum I'm on whose legs will never grow back.

Reviews and renewals of those with permanent disabilities is a waste of money in itself.

You don't say. If only they knew that and demonstrated more neutrality.

Of course you can, and you can specify whether the money you donate goes towards paying down the national debt or to general expenditure https://www.gov.uk/guidance/voluntary-payments-donations-to-government

@Coconutter24 ok let me explain it simply. You amass assets, some of which will have been paid for out of taxed income (ie savings or paying a mortgage in a property). You die. You pay no more tax, because you are dead and dead people do not pay tax. Your estate pays the tax. We tax individuals and entities in this country not families. Although TBH most people did not "earn" their entire property value - house price inflation driven by government policy did that for them and they definitely did not pay tax on that.

With VAT you earn money, you pay tax on it, you use your post tax income to buy goods and services in which you pay VAT. Ergo double taxation.

Presumably you understand that the dead used to be not dead when they made the money?

Oh give over. The Tories fucked the country over for 15 years and you make it sound like they didn't, and wouldn't again if given the keys to the gun cabinet!

Good start from KB my arse. She'd be the utter end of Britain, given half a chance.

You might want a clinic to run some tests on your memory.

Labour are running out of road. You can’t keep hiking taxes and borrowing more.