This year's new council tax rate

[JohnD]

The chancellor is considering a cut in National Insurance, rather than income tax in the Budget, the BBC understands.

Cuts would mean more cuts to public services.

I haven't heard the public clamouring for fewer GPs, more potholes, longer hospital waiting times, a worse clogged justice system, more unresponsive police force, lower state pensions, more schools falling down, aircraft carriers that can't get beyond the Isle of Wight, nuclear subs that can't fire missiles, worse social care, disabled people dying in their homes, or fewer immigration and customs officers.

What do we want to cut?

Perhaps @motorbiking has some suggestions.

 

[johnny2007]

A leading think tank has warned the government should not cut taxes in the upcoming Budget, unless it can spell out how it will afford them.

Simple: stop giving money to foreign countries.
We're in a mess here, so let's fix our country first, then help others if there's spare cash.

 

[Brigadier]

let's fix our country first,

A lovely thought.

"Where there's a will,....." as the saying goes.

It's the "will" that's lacking though.

 

[Mottie]

Cuts would mean more cuts to public services.

I haven't heard the public clamouring for fewer GPs, more potholes, longer hospital waiting times, a worse clogged justice system, more unresponsive police force, lower state pensions, more schools falling down, aircraft carriers that can't get beyond the Isle of Wight, nuclear subs that can't fire missiles, worse social care, disabled people dying in their homes, or fewer immigration and customs officers.

What do we want to cut?

Perhaps @motorbiking has some suggestions.

How about an internet user forum name licence fee? You’d need to apply and show ID for each one. Do you think some of the anonimati would drop off this forum if that happened?

 

[carmanmemoranda]

How about an internet user forum name licence fee? You’d need to apply and show ID for each one. Do you think some of the anonimati would drop off this forum if that happened?

Interesting.

How much do you think that would have to cost to be able to be financed?

 

[Mottie]

Interesting.

How much do you think that would have to cost to be able to be financed?

Dunno. Put it the hands of the forum owners - just like business owners collect tax for vat. Government agency can go on to a site, pick a user name at random and then go to the forum owner and say “What ID did you accept from carmenmemoranda to allow him in this forum” Owner gives info, govt, check it out and if ID is false, site owner fined and forum shut down. Easy!

 

[johnny2007]

Dunno. Put it the hands of the forum owners - just like business owners collect tax for vat. Government agency can go on to a site, pick a user name at random and then go to the forum owner and say “What ID did you accept from carmenmemoranda to allow him in this forum” Owner gives info, govt, check it out and if ID is false, site owner fined and forum shut down. Easy!

And what would be the point of all of that?

 

[Mottie]

And what would be the point of all of that?

Raise money from those that have the time to go onto forums. Weed out the trolls and identify scammers. I’d happily pay.

 

[johnny2007]

Raise money from those that have the time to go onto forums. Weed out the trolls and identify scammers. I’d happily pay.

But a forum is only a virtual chit chat room.
If they start taxing that we might as well lay in a coffin and wait to die.
I understand forum owners make money with advertising, but that's for hmrc to deal with.
Personally I don't want to be taxed to talk shyt on a forum.
And getting all members identified would be a totally pointless exercise.

 

[JohnD]

In other news,

"Jeremy Hunt pulls £200mn from councils after clawing back house sale funds
Chancellor not extending letting English local authorities keep 100% of proceeds from Right to Buy"

"Jeremy Hunt has wound down a scheme that delivered an extra £200mn a year for social housing in England, in a controversial move that will further squeeze the finances of cash-strapped local councils.

The chancellor’s decision to end a policy of letting local authorities keep 100 per cent of the revenues from sales of council homes was taken as part of the deliberations for his Budget on Wednesday.

Local government and Whitehall insiders said the change was made despite representations from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to extend the two-year policy that was due to expire in April.

Whitehall insiders said internal calculations submitted to the Treasury showed that the policy delivered £180mn-£200mn a year to local housing budgets.

Hunt’s Budget maintained a tight grip on public spending to help finance a £10bn a year cut in national insurance contributions. The UK fiscal watchdog forecast real public spending per head would be flat for the rest of the decade."


FT.com

Stand by for more potholes and less housing

 

[JohnD]

"The end of the policy will heap further financial stress on local councils, which are already reeling from more than a decade of cuts, with core spending power in 2024-25 cut by more than 23 per cent, in real terms, compared to 2010-11, according to the Local Government Association.

In recent weeks bankrupt councils, including Birmingham and Nottingham, have announced deep cuts to services such as parks, youth support and social care, as they struggle to balance their books.

Two-thirds of councils surveyed by the LGA in January 2024 said they expected communities would see cutbacks this year, including waste collection, road repairs, libraries and leisure services."

 

[Murdochcat]

"The end of the policy will heap further financial stress on local councils, which are already reeling from more than a decade of cuts, with core spending power in 2024-25 cut by more than 23 per cent, in real terms, compared to 2010-11, according to the Local Government Association.

In recent weeks bankrupt councils, including Birmingham and Nottingham, have announced deep cuts to services such as parks, youth support and social care, as they struggle to balance their books.

Two-thirds of councils surveyed by the LGA in January 2024 said they expected communities would see cutbacks this year, including waste collection, road repairs, libraries and leisure services."

You keep on about this type of issue so got much more tax and NI are you happy to pay?

 

[denso13]

You keep on about this type of issue so got much more tax and NI are you happy to pay?

Without knowing what I'd be getting for my money, I'm not willing to pay any more at all. Even then, red bus promises are often broken.

 

[Notch7]

You keep on about this type of issue so got much more tax and NI are you happy to pay?

You are asking the wrong question. We already pay much more tax.

The question is where the fork is it going?

Let’s look where we are:


Taxes are the highest they’ve been for 70 years
Public services are the worst they’ve ever been
The rich are far richer now than they used to be
The middle and bottom are poorer than they used to be.

So taxes are higher and the wealthy are more wealthy…..could that be a clue?






Around £100b spaffed up the wall on brexit
Around £5b on bogus PPE contracts
Around £500m spaffed up the wall on Rwanda scheme
Around £15b a year on housing benefit….that ends in the hands of private businesses

And then there’s the economy that has stagnated for 14 years

 

[Fred Blogs]

That's the point.

We all want services but not to have to pay for them.

I've never known so many councils to be in so much financial trouble. It has to be more than just local issues causing it.

Do you actually live in this country? Surely if you did then you would know that most of the problems that councils are facing, apart from the want of all politicians to line their pockets, is that the scammers that call themselves a government withdrew funding from local councils and told them to make their own money.