Anyone else irritated by the media coverage of budget?

[flymetothemoo]

Clearly, if it was at all possible then Labour would want to spend billions / on public services, fixing everything. The fact that they are having to be so frugal is NOT what they would choose, politically or materially!

Clearly it's the last government's fault we are in this position. And yet Labour are the bad guys, according to the press, and even the BBC and the Guardian are contributing to this stoking of negativity and fear.

What are they supposed to do in terms of the budget?

They must find the money from somewhere. They've promised to protect working people, employees NI, income tax etc. So they have to find it from somewhere. It might be employers, or inheritance tax loopholes, or benefit loopholes.

They are damned if they do and if they don't aren't they?

An income tax rise that EVERYONE pays would have been totally fine. And sown less divisiveness.

There isn't any media coverage of the budget because - last time I checked - there hasn't been a budget. You may as well read the daily horoscope if you want that level of accuracy.

There has been a lot of media speculation - which is pretty partisan and therefore of little use.

However, the good thing is when you have so much noise, it's much much easier to hide anything of significance. Which is quite kind of our media I think. Imagine if they were really doing their job :?

Yep.

It's not speculation. They aren't literally making it up out of nowhere. SPADS are 'suggesting' and leaking possibilities and ideas so that they can see what reaction they get.

It’s baffling this response! “I agree with it but think the threshold should have been moved” but they didn’t move the threshold so you either don’t agree (but can’t bare to say) or you do agree in which case you know full bloody well that there are tens of thousands pensioners living just above the poverty line on a state pension who will find this cut life changing. But that’s ok apparently because some pensioners are also millionaires??! It’s bizarre!

You are beyond naive if you don’t realise that the SPADs are out in force briefing the media to see how it floats. Every govt does this. Every single one.

And lo and behold - a new announcement on a public 'NHS consultation'. Just to soften us up for a punishing budget.

It is called 'budget framing'.

Agree. And not forgetting the actual doom press conference very early on from Starmer to prepare people for ‘pain’

The frothing on MN is irritating too.

Yep.

It goes a bit like this.

Think Tank publishes a document outlining all the possibilities that the Chancellor could do to balance the books. Includes suggestion of adding 50% tax rate on sales of Facebook Market Lights In Decorative Bottle.

Two days later:

Media: "Coming This Autumn! Miserly Chancellor Could TAX Your Hard Earned Cash From Sales Of Facebook Tat!

Two days later:

Mumsnet: AIBU to think 50% tax on Facebook Tat is too much? I know it looks awful, but this seems a little unfair when Janice next door is going on holiday five times a year with her 16 kids and doesn't work.

Repeat ad nauseum.

No frothing - just cold, articulated views.

Nice try though.

I've actually been very cheered by how a lot of mumsnetters have a good grasp of economics and politics.

Well, yes but add the SPADS then thinking hmm maybe that 50% tax won't fly after all, and slowly withdrawing it.

Absolutely this.

You clearly haven't seen some of the threads I have seen!

For example all the frothing about the (imagined) abolition of the single person discount by people who don't understand devolution.

You say you find certain posts ‘irritating’.

Most people avoid irritants if they can.

Clearly, if it was at all possible then Labour would want to spend billions / on public services, fixing everything.

I think that’s a very naive poverty tbh.
Of course the press is after Starmer. Nothing new there.

But I’m struggling to see how their policies has anything to do with what one would call’traditional’ labour.

It would be very quiet on MN if people avoided posting on any thread which irritated them!

Being irritated by threads spreading misinformation, such as in the example I posted, is fairly normal as is wanting to correct the misinformation.

There is nothing that Keir Starmers Labour have said that makes me think they want to 'fix everything'.

Your initial post asserted you found ‘the frothing irritating’.

No context, no contra-argument, no moving the debate forward.

Agree. Combined with unfreezing of the personal allowance. And the mess I went the hasty removal of the WInter fuel allowance creating yet another cliff edge in the tax and benefits system. Hope they can sort these out in the next 5 years.

I was answering the OP's question by saying that I find the frothing on MN irritating too.

I am not sure why you are so, erm, irritated by what I posted. But let's leave it there, shall we?

I’m happy to continue, and I’m genuinely not irritated.

My watch shows my RHR as 61 BPM this morning.

Probably the double espresso.

Lets carry on please.

The budget hasn't happened yet, I'll wait to see what everyone thinks when it does, speculation is just that. But I'm not expecting it to be helpful to me, which I guess is what Labour want people to think so it will be a relief if it's not dire.

@Noname99 is spot on. The government are testing the waters via SPADs floating possible options to the press and judging the reaction.

I am surprised that the government weren't more prepared - I thought they would have had more of a strategic plan. Feels like they are making it up as they go along.