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Post by willien on Jul 30, 2024 11:19:37 GMT
Creeping tax rises begun under the tories most noticeably the freezing of income tax allowance and slashing of bank interest and share dividends allowance at a time of high inflation particularly. Similarly reducing NI (which gave nothing back to pensioners) while claiming that with the triple lock the Tory barstewards were looking after pensioners.
I have no problem with making the winter fuel allowance means tested.
I am sure other tax rises are on their way. I hope they are brought in openly and not in the sneeky underhand way the Tories prefer.
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Post by mick on Jul 30, 2024 13:12:56 GMT
Sometimes the cost of administrating means testing outweighs the cost of making a benefit universal. I've never understood why people are obsessed with tax cuts. They're usually the same people who moan about the standard of education, healthcare, etc.. If you want good public services and infrastructure you have to have a fair taxation system. Unfortunately we target the needy with cuts to their income, so those that can afford it get bribed with tax cuts. True about the cost of means testing but in this case it ought to be simple. If you receive the right benefit than yes, otherwise no. Hopefully it's just a flag on some computer record. As others have said that introduces the cliff edge issue. I saw an interview on TV last night with a woman who had been earning just a whisker over the limit for carers allowance. She declared it but received no 'warning' so she didn't realize. Now DWP are demanding repayment of the lot. Iniquitous!
None of my acquaintances are obsessed with tax cuts - it seems to me to be the politicians and not the public. About the nearest I've got to such a conversation is the perennial, I'm taxed when I earn it, I'm taxed when I spend it and taxed when I save it then taxed when I leave it!
I also have pensioner acquaintances at opposite ends of the financial spectrum. One has (believe it or not) become almost accidentally extremely well off. The loss of £200 won't even be noticed. OTOH there's a little old lady that I help (not with money) who is 'rich' in the sense that her tiny bungalow is worth lots but her income is miserable and she will greatly miss the 200 (probably) . Before you ask questions I can't answer her son looks after her finances so I don't know about benefits.
Mick
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Post by don on Jul 30, 2024 19:42:15 GMT
Sometimes the cost of administrating means testing outweighs the cost of making a benefit universal. I've never understood why people are obsessed with tax cuts. They're usually the same people who moan about the standard of education, healthcare, etc.. If you want good public services and infrastructure you have to have a fair taxation system. Unfortunately we target the needy with cuts to their income, so those that can afford it get bribed with tax cuts. I agree wholeheartedly. We can’t pay for public services without taxation and I think we should pay more not less. |
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Post by Ivor E Tower on Jul 30, 2024 21:07:41 GMT
I think we're all doomed. It seems that tax rises are inevitable yet we are already paying more tax than at almost any time in history. I'm in my 60's, been caught out once by the rise in age at which you can start to draw the state pension and wonder if I will ever be able to afford to retire. My wife fell into the "unlucky" group of women who suddenly found that they had to work 5 more years to get their pension; she got IIRC under a year's warning of that 5 year increase and we had already made plans to "preserve" finances which were thrown into disarray by her being cheated out of 5 years of her retirement.
Surely any caring government would try to cut taxes and be wiser with its spending than the governments we have had over the past 30 or-so years... but sadly it appears not.
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Post by lesleysm2 on Jul 30, 2024 22:52:54 GMT
. My wife fell into the "unlucky" group of women who suddenly found that they had to work 5 more years to get their pension; she got IIRC under a year's warning of that 5 year increase I am in the same boat as your wife. Luckily I was able to keep working but I do know a good few ladies of a certain age who really did get screwed by the change although apparently at some point we're all going to get some sort of compensation like up to £3k in the worse affected cases |
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Post by lesleysm2 on Jul 30, 2024 22:57:56 GMT
I don't understand this- so unless you get pension credit you don't get the winter fuel payment? But pension credit is aimed at bringing those who do not have NI etc in line with the basic state pension, which isn't means tested but at the end of the day a person on pension credit and a person on basic state pension get the same income so does this mean the person on the basic state pension doesn't get the winter fuel payment even though their income may be the same as the person on pension credit?
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Post by geoffr on Jul 31, 2024 6:14:28 GMT
I don't understand this- so unless you get pension credit you don't get the winter fuel payment? But pension credit is aimed at bringing those who do not have NI etc in line with the basic state pension, which isn't means tested but at the end of the day a person on pension credit and a person on basic state pension get the same income so does this mean the person on the basic state pension doesn't get the winter fuel payment even though their income may be the same as the person on pension credit? Quite possibly. The law of unintended consequences at work. |
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Post by zou on Jul 31, 2024 6:35:55 GMT
I don't understand this- so unless you get pension credit you don't get the winter fuel payment? But pension credit is aimed at bringing those who do not have NI etc in line with the basic state pension, which isn't means tested but at the end of the day a person on pension credit and a person on basic state pension get the same income so does this mean the person on the basic state pension doesn't get the winter fuel payment even though their income may be the same as the person on pension credit? Quite possibly. The law of unintended consequences at work. "Unintended", lol. |
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Post by spinno on Jul 31, 2024 6:42:46 GMT
I don't understand this- so unless you get pension credit you don't get the winter fuel payment? But pension credit is aimed at bringing those who do not have NI etc in line with the basic state pension, which isn't means tested but at the end of the day a person on pension credit and a person on basic state pension get the same income so does this mean the person on the basic state pension doesn't get the winter fuel payment even though their income may be the same as the person on pension credit? You may get pension credit if you get less than a full state pension. Pension credit is a top up not a replacement |
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Post by spinno on Jul 31, 2024 6:44:38 GMT
Quite possibly. The law of unintended consequences at work. "Unintended", lol. Triple lock anybody? Fixed personal allowance anybody? But not Khasi Kwarthead |
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Post by JohnY on Jul 31, 2024 7:20:23 GMT
Free prescriptions for pensioners is to go next.
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Post by kate on Jul 31, 2024 7:30:47 GMT
Free prescriptions for pensioners is to go next. Free euthenasia? That'll do the trick. |
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Post by spinno on Jul 31, 2024 7:54:03 GMT
Free prescriptions for pensioners is to go next. Free euthenasia? That'll do the trick. You'll have to wait your turn |
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Post by willien on Jul 31, 2024 10:53:25 GMT
Free prescriptions for pensioners is to go next. Has this been announced or is it the speculation of the Oracle of Dalesies? |
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Post by zou on Jul 31, 2024 11:10:16 GMT
Free prescriptions for pensioners is to go next. Has this been announced or is it the speculation of the Oracle of Dalesies? To be fair, the accurate way of doing this is to check what promises Starmer made ahead of election and assume they will be lies. |
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