What do with think will be in Labour’s budget?

[tenpairsofshoes]

They don’t seem to be giving much away but any indication that they might help kickstart the economy or are we just going to get £2 bus fares, £45 off our elec bill a year and petrol prices on google map? None of Labour polices seem to help anyone that is really struggling but isn’t in receipt of UC! I’m speaking as a single mother who is trying to sell a property to move on with my life but can’t. Yes I know I’ve very fortunate to have bricks and mortar but that doesn’t mean I’m loaded (because the property isn’t worth much)! I feel like everyone is expecting the chancellor pull a rabbit out of a hat but I think we’ll all be very disappointed/pissed off!

Governments can’t provide growth. Job creators and wealthy investors provide growth. Growth produces jobs. Jobs provide tax revenue.

I hope they provide businesses with all the tax incentives they need to invest and grow. But they won’t, because their left flank won’t permit that.

Tax and more tax is my guess.

First post nails it.

They could and should support business.

Instead, I suspect they will tax, tax, tax the ‘wealthy’ and then wonder why the pot they are distributing from becomes ever smaller.

‘Wealth redistribution’ is all well and good as a socialist theory, but if you punish the moneymakers you’ll have nothing to distribute.

Labour never get this. Which is why they are hardly ever in power.

If they had any sense they would lower taxes on businesses so we can have a bloody break plan to grow and employ but I doubt it so we will be fall deeper into recession. Seems like just tinkering around the edges and everyone I speak to has had had enough of this current lot, the lies and u-turns are so destabilizing when you are trying to invest and make big decisions.

even outside business like moving and buying homes everyone seems to be on pause, waiting as nothing seems to happen!

How well did your theory work out for the Tories ?

I would have thought 14 years of Torry rule should have seen a UK that was totally booming. A land of milk and honey.

Not sure what the answer is.
Maybe everything needs a reset, but also it all seems so daunting and prices just go up and up. It’s the ordinary people that seem to be suffering the most.
I can’t see the budget doing much to help anyone really. I wish things didn’t look so bleak.

Taxes were not low under the Tories.

Another attempt to fleece hard workers and redistribute it to the benefit brigade . They need to stop taking from people and get businesses growing through incentives and tax reductions.

I know a few people who moan about people being on benefits yet claim them themselves.

I am not sure if that totally works. China, as in the PRC, have near the same income tax rates as the UK, and practically no social security. No NHS either.

China Personal Income Tax Rates (2026) — TaxAtlas

It seems they spend the tax revenue on other things. Infrastructure, state owned companies etc. Things that business benefit from ?

At first sight, that suggests your "no benefits" part works, but I am not sure if both that and "low tax" can be applied at the same time. Private business are not exactly famous for investing in infrastructure that has a wider benefit.

Really interesting replies! Every economic expert I hear talking about the budget says the growing welfare bill needs to be cut! Benefits should be there to prop up people who work but can’t afford to cover all expenses. I know (and I’m sure most people know) someone who takes the piss out of the system. My example - one woman with four kids (one about to pop) she gets CMS for three kids plus benefits for then. She has two kids with a new partner. Neither of them work. Their whole life is funded by the government. The money is not spent on the kids, as they just stay inside on screens all day! But I guarantee Labour won’t do anything about this! This doesn’t make me a monster, I just don’t understand how these people are not allowed to work and get so much from the state.

I don't think you really need economic experts here. To me, pick the country that has everything you want the UK to be, and think about how you think that could be applied.

Because while it is easy to complain about every government, what is not so easy is to find a government anywhere in the world that is doing everything the way you would want it done.

For example, it's easy to find a country where there are no benefits. And if people getting benefits is your number one issue, then I am sure there would be no downsides to the UK copying their model ? Not to you anyway. But do a bit of digging into that model nation, and there might be things that impact you.

There appears to be no perfect economic system.

@RedTagAlani do think there should be a benefits system. But I don’t think it is right that so many of us work really hard and get very little, whilst others abuse the system. There is no reason to have five kids and two adults in the house and neither of them work.

i voted Labour as they did a really great sales pitch that they would actually help working people and by that I thought they would generate growth, to help strengthen the economy. My family is made up of people who run small businesses and again they are struggling more and more every day because of Labour’s policies. So essentially what we now seem to have is a situation where you’re better off if you don’t put anything into the economy! It will create a whole generation of people who will think ‘why bother’! Because genuinely, that’s how I and many others feel right now!

@RedTagAlan , the Conservative Party were in power during Covid and a global economic crash. Notwithstanding the UK has had consistently better economic growth than the EU big three. So Those policies were working whilst trudging through economic treacle. They are the only way to provide the stimulus to the economy which ultimately provides a healthy tax take for the treasury.

And just this morning, I read on BBC that UK is the leader of the G7 for growth, so the gvt must be doing something right.
As for the Budget I am pleased that JH hasn't been drip-feeding. Let's just wait for his Budget - not long now.

So people on benefits is not your one and only issue then ? It is also small business policy. And you are looking at it more from a social engineering point of view?

Quote "There is no reason to have five kids and two adults in the house and neither of them work."

There are plenty of scenarios where this could happen though. Disability being an obvious one. But more your point here, what is the connection to this hypothetical family and your business? That is, if the family lost their benefits, how would that make an economic impact on your business?

What country with what economic system do you think your business would do best in ? What is their economic model ?

This.

And we’re all held to ransom by pensions and benefits.

You’re completely right that most serious economists are in agreement that the welfare bill needs to be cut - as do all mainstream political parties, including Labour. The debate is about how you actually get the bill down because there’s a strong argument that if you do it by cuts alone then you ended up costing the tax payer more money in the long run because if people end up pushed into poverty, that increases pressure on other services and costs the tax payer even more money. So, it’s a balance between targeted cuts and long term investment in services to get people back into work. Hopefully one they get right in the budget!

Most mainstream economists also agree that the pension triple lock needs to be adjusted, because it’s so unaffordable, so I think it’s a good sign that the government have been bold enough to commit to that (despite it being politically tough), because it shows they’re prepared to make tough decisions.

I am genuinely not sure what will be in the budget. I think it’s pretty impressive how leak
proof the treasury have been as too much speculation is really bad for investment and growth. Let’s see!

If you’re too disabled to work you shouldn’t be having kids. Can completely understand if you become disabled after having kids. But people ‘too disabled to work’ who pop them out every couple of years? They’re yanking the lead. Come on now.

@Pearlstillsinging , Starmer and Reeves were not as left fiscally as many in their Party would wish but still we are all feeling the pain because business is depressed and jobs are less available. The EU is stagnating, at least if we had a government who understands about business they would be in a position to take the necessary steps to ensure growth rather than being hamstrung by EU rules. Unfortunately the Labour Party are restricted by an ethos which is at odds with making the decisions necessary to bring that about.

Well someone has to pay for the amount of people needing UC top ups, due to them not being paid enough, from their jobs to support their living needs.

The Tories had Covid to contend with.
If Labour had been in power we would have been 'locked down' harder and longer and we would have been in a worse situation economically.

He majority of UC claimants do not work.

I have no problems with top ups for those who work full time though.

That's the sort of silly post I read regularly from someone who has never run a business.
Try starting a business and come back here and tell me your magic formula to make money out of nothing !

This with bells on !