Rishi Sunak considers benefits freeze and public sector pay freeze to pay for Covid crisis.

[HeIenaDove]

www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/rishi-sunak-considers-freezing-benefits-22712652?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar

Rishi Sunak has looked at a freeze on benefits and public sector pay to fight the spiralling cost of the coronavirus crisis, it is reported today.

Sources failed to rule out the crushing blow to millions of workers and the poorest - just a few years after long austerity freezes finally ended.

The Chancellor is also said to be trying to persuade Boris Johnson to suspend the "triple lock" on pensions, reports the Mail on Sunday - amid fears it will artificially rise due to the economic turmoil.

A Treasury source downplayed the reports, emphasising that the government previously said there would be no return to austerity.

However, the department failed to rule out the claims, saying it would not comment on future tax or spending decisions

NI needs to be put on ALL income, not just wages. Better still, scrap it and add it to income tax.

Middle aged workers are paying IT, NIC, student loans, workplace pensions, etc., but pensioners earning the same only pay IT.

Why is there no NIC on working age people earning from property letting, dividends, foreign income, trust funds etc?

Workers are already taxed too much - the burden needs to be aimed at those not currently suffering similar levels of deductions on the same level of income.

Am sure that who ever is robbed it will not be Boris or any of his mates !! They will not be stressing how to pay their bills!

@PinkMacaron

I'm unclear how the lockdown fans thought this was going to be paid for. It's going to be pay cuts, tax hikes, benefit freezes and slashed public services all the way. Austerity with knobs on.

It's particularly disgusting to pretend doing nothing helps those most financially vulnerable. It's been widely reported how they are more at risk from Covid. They live in overcrowded housing, are less likely to be able to wfh, generally have poorer health (because of poverty). It's the failure to deal with Covid, halt and contain the spread that will cause economic devastation. It's precisely because of the economy that we need to get on top of Covid. That means not letting it run unchecked through the population.

The Bank of England has warned of the economic consequences of allowing Covid cases to keep increasing.

That said, of course a lockdown is only worthwhile, will only help the economy by stemming the spread, if it's a proper lockdown. Including border restrictions to continue after lockdown eases. Otherwise it's pointless and yes an economic drain. Before anyone mentions food and other imports/exports, border restrictions should of course allow essential travel, which includes freight and asylum. With proper quarantine where necessary. If that's the only travel it's easy to keep track of and manage.

Post of mine from last month from another thread.

I wear one but hate it. Im really starting to resent it though because some of the ones ive seen on here who are really gung ho about masks and banging on about how we are all in it together have spent the past ten years voting for the opposite. Along comes Covid and their want for individualism goes out of the window.
Having seen their attitudes to single parents, disabled people , social housing tenants over the years i cant help getting a distinct whiff of people in these groups being expected to wear masks to protect their "betters"

One of the most gung ho about it was absolutely incredulous when i suggested low income families should get them for free.

"You think people should get them for free?! she replied. Yep all in this together eh! hmm

Tells you all you need to know.
People were being told to make masks out of old socks.

Meanwhile the construction industry are allowed to carry on as normal ( we are about to enter WEEK ELEVEN of a roof renewal and its been hell as well as including a visit from the fire brigade but fuck us eh, we are only tenants) and the workmen have a tiny site office on our estate No masks in sight.

So yes i wear a mask But am really starting to resent it when i know others wouldnt give me the steam off their piss if i was sat homeless in the street yet want me to wear a mask to protect others

I'm private sector and taken a ten% cut. I'm just grateful to have my job.

Did anyone really think that the public sector wouldn’t get a pay freeze as a result of all the spending throughout the COVID pandemic? Seriously, people, did no-one see that coming? You did realise the govt would have to get the money for furloughs etc somewhere, yes?

YY @NewAutumnName It really shows up the "all in this together" rhetoric for what it is.

I’m private sector in an industry relatively unaffected by Covid as much as that is really possible. Pay freezes and promotion bans already in place. Could be worse!

@HeIenaDove
If you think telling public sector workers or pensioners they won't be getting pay rises at a time when those in the private sector are facing pay cuts or redundancies isn't an example of everyone being in it together I don't know what is.
It's hardly along the same lines as the Bank of England planning on introducing negative interest rates that means peoples savings towards a house deposit will reduce each month while happily charging recent graduates over 6% in interest on student loans.

Oh ffs!

Not surprised but really fucking angry

Why should it be the poorest and arguably those MOST affected by cv that are having to pay for it? Why the fuck isn't everyone?!

Absolutely sickening but I HOPE the "Rishi seems like such a nice young man" brigade now have the scales wrenched from their eyes!!

Benefits freezes are ideological not economic sense. Same shit different day. yep

I’m in the private sector, but not an area directly affected by Covid by any means. Every company I know of has made redundancies already, some as much as 40%.

My own business has only let go of 10% (thankfully) but next year is looking grim. Senior staff have all taken 35% pay cuts.

Tax revenues have plummeted. If people didn’t see that this would affect the public sector that’s only because they have their heads so far in the sand it’s not even funny.

@RepeatSwan

Presumably they'll follow the same failed economic route after this economic crisis as they did after 2010. Plenty of people will say 'its the only way' whilst Europe does it differently - and will probably get out of recession faster than us again.

Benefits freezes are ideological not economic sense. Same shit different day.

Well said. The sooner people realise that running the economy is nothing like running a home and forget the damage that the propaganda around austerity caused the better.

@Graphista

Oh ffs!

Not surprised but really fucking angry

Why should it be the poorest and arguably those MOST affected by cv that are having to pay for it? Why the fuck isn't everyone?!

Absolutely sickening but I HOPE the "Rishi seems like such a nice young man" brigade now have the scales wrenched from their eyes!!

Benefits freezes are ideological not economic sense. Same shit different day. yep

Don’t panic yet. It’s a news story from one paper, and not a good one, wait to see what Sunak actually proposes. This is click bait and it’s working.

Do you think anyone in their right mind ever, apart from the public school set, will ever vote Tory again? They are a disgrace. I wish we could revolt against this shameful excuse for a government

We need to find the money from somewhere and plenty in the private sector won’t get a payrise either.

Payrises are nice but there are other more important thongs for money to be spent on at the moment.

If people think businesses and salaries aren’t being hit hard outside safer public sector jobs think again. Many will be vastly cut back in losing jobs plus pay freezes.

Given the massive debt we're racking up, it'll be both, not one or the other.

So when do you think this government will change the law on the loopholes allowing large corporations and the wealthy to offshore and avoid paying the correct amount of tax?

I won't be holding my breath it will be any time soon. But yet first job done, recoup from the most vulnerable.

What did people think was going to happen? Lockdown absolutely decimated the economy which obviously results in unemployment and lower tax take. All at the time the government faces unprecedented costs for healthcare.

This is why we simply cannot afford another lockdown if we actually want to have public services in future.

Benefits freeze doesn't surprise me. No doubt there's going to be cuts following. And a surprise money pot to bribe someone. Etc etc..

Do you think anyone in their right mind ever, apart from the public school set, will ever vote Tory again? They are a disgrace. I wish we could revolt against this shameful excuse for a government

Sadly I think once Murdoch has tied this all around Boris Johnson and threw him over board, started to sell the idea it wasn't the tories that got it wrong it was just boris Johnson that was incompetent, yes, I sadly think people will suck it up and vote for them again.

So making sure that no-one has any money to spend to restart the economy is the way forward then?

So making sure that no-one has any money to spend to restart the economy is the way forward then?

The point is that there is no money, because tax revenue from the private sector has plummeted. You can’t lock the place down and expect no economic consequences.

Not really a surprise, this has to be paid for somehow. any private sector companies have already announced pay freezes so why would public sector be any different? Fully expecting taxes to rise too.

And ban on evictions runs out today.

this has to be paid for somehow
Tax rises make more sense than taking from people who don't have enough to live on. Benefits are already below subsistence level for many people.

The welfare state, and various charitable schemes before it, largely didn't come about out of concern for the poor.
It was fear of violent revolution and civil unrest. High crime rates too. That's the risk when you have a society with large numbers of desperate destitute people.