Goodness - golden boy Sunak now less popular than Starmer!

I’m glad we’ve never rented out our little place in Malaga over the years Dinahmo. Sounds a complication I’m glad we’ve avoided.

It's not peoples wealth, really.
It's the ways and means they find to ensure they get to keep it, whilst denying others the basics of life.

Weren’t those ‘Panama Papers’ supposed to have embarrassed the wealthy elites? It was all over the newspapers pre-Covid but everything then went very quiet regards off-shore shenanigans. Conveniently for some eh?

Katie59

Sunak is certainly smart, but his family connections will dog him for sure, there will always be those who will sneer at his wealth.
I don’t really see a long political career for him, certainly not
PM.

I think that for many people it's not 'sneering at his wealth', or even being envious of his wealth, but questioning why money, which is basically just a medium of exchange, should be distributed so unevenly in society.

What is the point of sitting on more money than one could possibly use in a lifetime (and that is a key point, use ) when there are people struggling, even dying, for lack of it?

Is money a public good or is it a commodity to be hoarded for no other purpose than to possess it?

Urmstongran

Weren’t those ‘Panama Papers’ supposed to have embarrassed the wealthy elites? It was all over the newspapers pre-Covid but everything then went very quiet regards off-shore shenanigans. Conveniently for some eh?

Nothing embarrasses the wealthy elites.

I think that the disclosure of the Panama papers should have made it clear to people that the wealthy elites aren't the slightest bit interested in the wellbeing of anyone but themselves. And made them stop and think before voting to keep them in power...

I do not expect a nation to have to have financial equality across its citizens but it would be so much nicer if the " have a lots" ensured there was nobody less than a "have enough".

Just seen a message from a friend living on what was a " have about enough" fixed income that her combined fuel bill has increased by £101 a month. No increase in pension. ?

It’s high time ‘non domiciled’ was a lot more strictly defined. And made far more stringent.

Another non-dom issue that really irked me was loaded tax exile Lewis Hamilton* getting a knighthood. IMO honours simply should not be awarded to people with loadsamoney who choose to dodge U.K. tax.

*If he had ceased to be non dom at the time then I withdraw that, but AFAIK he hadn’t.

Pantglas2

Of course I understand people wanting to better themselves DaisyAnne - it’s the hypocrisy I can’t get my head around!

The tories I know who bought their council houses and traded up etc aren’t the ones moaning that their kids can’t get social housing and the Labour devotees are!

It’s all very well saying more houses should’ve been built with the proceeds but because of the discounts given to long standing tenants they couldn’t have replaced more than 10% of housing stock.

So we are where we are because folks looked after their own interest - Thatcher was right if she said there’s no such thing as society, after all!

I don't see the people buying council houses as hypocritical. We often have the same argument about those who want better schools for all but send their child to a fee paying school.

My view is that I don't like children starving but I wouldn't starve mine just to prove the point. My family will always come first even though, that includes appreciating that, at times, the country must come first for my family to thrive.

The houses should not have been offered for discounted sale. As they were I don't see why people should not buy them. If you, or the buyer don't want a small government market economy which will always make choices like this then work towards changing the government.

Hair shirts do not change goverments.

I bought my council property because the mortgage was smaller than the rent, and seeing as I was barely scraping by, I needed to cut costs.

“The houses should not have been offered for discounted sale. As they were I don't see why people should not buy them. If you, or the buyer don't want a small government market economy which will always make choices like this then work towards changing the government. “

I’m glad we agree with the first sentence above DaisyAnne and I’m not sure how changing Thatcher for Blair made any difference as he continued the policy and with his majority could’ve stopped it stone dead!

So many people put their own interests first on this one without thinking how it would affect future generations - it was plain as day there’d be a massive price to pay for low earners stuck in expensive private rentals.

Apologies to OP for going off on a tangent...

Witzend

It’s high time ‘non domiciled’ was a lot more strictly defined. And made far more stringent.

Another non-dom issue that really irked me was loaded tax exile Lewis Hamilton* getting a knighthood. IMO honours simply should not be awarded to people with loadsamoney who choose to dodge U.K. tax.

*If he had ceased to be non dom at the time then I withdraw that, but AFAIK he hadn’t.

It's more likely that he's non resident which means that he has to be out side the UK for a specified number of days - 183 days.

For those who would like to know more, here's a link to HMRC's residence and domicile manual. If you skim through it you will be better informed.

www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-domicile-and-remittance-basis/rdrm13200

I thought you lived in Wales Pantglas2? The right to buy council houses here has been abolished.

Casdon

I thought you lived in Wales Pantglas2? The right to buy council houses here has been abolished.

I do Casdon but the right to buy here wasn’t abolished until 2019...too little, too late methinks!

Not sure of the position in the rest of UK - perhaps other posters know?

Thatcher wasn't bothered about those consequences, though, was she?

All she wanted was to reduce investment in public services and get more tory voters.

Selling off council housing meant lower council tax (or was it still 'the rates' at that time?) because the councils wouldn't have to pay out on maintenance and administration costs involved (did she forget about lost rental revenue?) Which would make voters grateful..

She also reckoned that houseowners were more likely to vote tory.

As for the rest, well, that was their own fault for not working hard to better themselves...

Many of the former council houses were sold at a profit to landlords. Former council housing is now expensive private rental property... Fun, isn't it?

Told you we agreed on something Maizie ??

MissAdventure

Well, it may have been an idea to build some more when they sold them off...

That was part of the original deal, if I remember, Councils were not allowed to use the revenue to build more houses.

MaizieD

Thatcher wasn't bothered about those consequences, though, was she?

All she wanted was to reduce investment in public services and get more tory voters.

Selling off council housing meant lower council tax (or was it still 'the rates' at that time?) because the councils wouldn't have to pay out on maintenance and administration costs involved (did she forget about lost rental revenue?) Which would make voters grateful..

She also reckoned that houseowners were more likely to vote tory.

As for the rest, well, that was their own fault for not working hard to better themselves...

Many of the former council houses were sold at a profit to landlords. Former council housing is now expensive private rental property... Fun, isn't it?

I have a theory about that Rents must have given some councils quite a large income, especially the large cities. Removing that income left them more vulnerable to cuts in the money they receive from the government. Just think how powerful a council with a large housing stock, all paying rent, would be today.

I’m wondering if some of this is being instigated by some Conservatives themselves as part of Operation save big dog given that Sunak was becoming a danger to Johnson?

Pantglas2

Casdon

I thought you lived in Wales Pantglas2? The right to buy council houses here has been abolished.

I do Casdon but the right to buy here wasn’t abolished until 2019...too little, too late methinks!

Not sure of the position in the rest of UK - perhaps other posters know?

Too late I agree, but at least it’s happening now. Having faced up to the issues, councils in Wales are also building new council homes in some areas, I’d be interested to know if that’s happening elsewhere as well.

Pantglas2

“The houses should not have been offered for discounted sale. As they were I don't see why people should not buy them. If you, or the buyer don't want a small government market economy which will always make choices like this then work towards changing the government. “

I’m glad we agree with the first sentence above DaisyAnne and I’m not sure how changing Thatcher for Blair made any difference as he continued the policy and with his majority could’ve stopped it stone dead!

So many people put their own interests first on this one without thinking how it would affect future generations - it was plain as day there’d be a massive price to pay for low earners stuck in expensive private rentals.

Apologies to OP for going off on a tangent...

Everyone bar a saint (and I've always thought they would be impossible to live with) puts their interests first in the long run. Or are you saying you don't Pantglas?

Equally your way of fighting for the future is not everyone else's way. Yours is not necessarily right ... or wrong. It is your way. Others see things differently and fight in their way for what they think will affect future generations. It sounds as if you think only your view of the future can be right. Being open-minded about the future seems to me a better way of actually achieving something useful.

I didn't know that, Petera.
Well, perhaps some other scheme to help people have a home, then?

I'm sure the original intention wasnt to allow ex council properties to be owned and let out by people who were never tenants in the first place.

MissAdventure

I didn't know that, Petera.
Well, perhaps some other scheme to help people have a home, then?

I'm sure the original intention wasnt to allow ex council properties to be owned and let out by people who were never tenants in the first place.

Once the houses were in private hands the new owners (i.e former council tenants) were free to do whatever they liked with them Including selling them on at a profit.

Thatcher didn't really care, so long as it brought her party more voters.

Silly me, trisher; you're right about loss of rental income = increased dependency on central government. The tories really, really, hate ordinary people and democracy don't they?

I wonder if Rishi might resign.

I don't think Right to Buy was a problem. It worked well for many council tenants. The problem started with not replacing the properties sold off with more social housing.

Hence the shortage today - not dealt with by either Labour or Tory governments.

That original decision was down to Thatcher - councils weren't allowed to replace their housing stock.

DaisyAnne some people do try to live by principles, e.g. not buying a council property when offered one at reduced rates, not sending child to private school, not choosing to pay for private health care even though we could have done so. Not trying to say I have lived a perfect life ..far from it & I have benefitted from financial schemes, e.g. 100% low interest mortgage in exchange for working in a certain area for a number of years. But there are loads of people who do do their best to put principles before personal gain.