What do you hope for in the budget?

JANH

I would like to see our own people given social housing before immigrants.
We need a policy to stop so many small boats crossing over the Channel, more policing isn’t the answer - a deterrent like Rwanda was.
I wish people would learn to save and not waste money on nails/hair/make-up especially when they are asking for advice on how to manage money
If people cannot afford children, they are ways and means of stopping a pregnancy, the state should not have to pay for them. There should be no need for Breakfast clubs - how much does a piece of toast and a boiled egg cost per day - just an example.
Why did the Labour government pay most of the requested pay claims, taking us more into debt.

I'm not sure how the budget can deal with any of that.

How could nail varnish and make-up be rationed or sold only to those who are good at managing money?

What would you do with 'unaffordable' children if the state doesn't help them? Workhouses? Forced adoption? How can the budget help with those? I agree that there should be no need for breakfast clubs though - a rise in the minimum wage and better targeted childcare might help with that, and those things could come up in the budget.

Are you happy to have workers remain on low wages, even when they are highly qualified with responsible jobs and long hours? Won't that mean that fewer people will want to drive trains or work nights in hospitals dealing with death and disease? I'm happy that trains will run on time and that doctors should be less likely to leave the NHS.

Maisie, I am sick of hearing about the black hole. I wish they would use a more precise term, so we know what they are talking about. These metaphorical words for political concepts are insulting. Why not use 'deficit', or 'overspend', or '£12Billion that is unaccounted for'? Even 'missing' would be marginally more useful.

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

maddyfour

growstuff
I love your bluntness. But you’re right, I will indeed be dead if, and when, any inheritance tax might be paid on my estate
However, since the money/estate will be mine, I will regard it as me paying any tax owing, dead or not. My children would not be paying anything if it were not for me having the money in the first place. Anyway, it’s just semantics, and I do not want to pay a single penny out of my estate to the government. I’ve paid tax all my life; I shall ensure there will be none to be paid when I’m dead!

I'm gonna spend, spend, spend!
In fact, I've already started 😂

Doodledog

growstuff

Doodledog Council Tax does get paid into a central fund and paid back to councils using a formula based on need. The formula is incredibly complicated. Historically, it's favoured poorer councils but the formula has changed, so wealthier councils are catching up. Not only that, but councils can raise their own income from (for example) parking charges (which is why some Central London councils have low Council Tax) and building new housing.

Oh, I didn't realise that. I thought they all charged different rates depending on what they need to do, which depends on how many disadvantaged people live in them.

I was advocating a fixed charge, though - not a variable one that depends on where you live, so that areas where there is (for example) less need for funded care, and more people paying CT for higher band houses can contribute towards those where the opposite is true.

That's how it's supposed to work in theory. I only know because I know the Finance Director for my local district council, who once tried to explain it to me. I live in a wealthy area and we get back much less from the government than we contribute (which is fair IMO). The system is one of the justifications for building hundreds of new houses because the council receives government grants for them. Councils are now allowed to invest in property. People with higher band houses do contribute to areas where there is less potential for raising money, although the Conservatives tweaked the formula, so this is less true. Council Tax is a weird tax because it's a clumsy form of wealth tax (with many anomalies).

Allira

maddyfour

growstuff
I love your bluntness. But you’re right, I will indeed be dead if, and when, any inheritance tax might be paid on my estate
However, since the money/estate will be mine, I will regard it as me paying any tax owing, dead or not. My children would not be paying anything if it were not for me having the money in the first place. Anyway, it’s just semantics, and I do not want to pay a single penny out of my estate to the government. I’ve paid tax all my life; I shall ensure there will be none to be paid when I’m dead!

I'm gonna spend, spend, spend!
In fact, I've already started 😂

Good for you!

David49

Dickens

I think the whole council tax system needs a radical overhaul.

... some interesting ideas there, Doodledog

It needs changing radically forget banding change to to a % of house value right up the scale, if it was 1% a £500k house would pay £5000 a year , a £5m house £50,000.

Allocate it however you want but fairly.

So a pensioner living in a one bedroom flat worth say £400,000 would pay 4 times as much as a pensioner living in a flat worth £100,000 elsewhere in the country? Despite them both having the same pension income? House value has no direct correlation to income and ability to pay. A local income tax would be far fairer, then every adult pays a fair share, just like general income tax.

mabon1

People I know are living on benefits, they can afford things I am unable to buy as I am a pensioner, a wrong.

I can sympathise with how you feel as a pensioner, but what a lot of people don't realise when they see people on benefits buying the odd treat such as coffee out or having their nails done, is that this is all they have. They usually don't have any security, or money to save for emergencies. It's a very different, insecure way of living.
Of course there are still quite a few people around who think that if you're on benefits you should have absolutely nothing.

Good idea about free breakfast for children. They’re only trialling it in a small number of schools.
Questions I’m looking forwards to hearing answers
1. Will it really be available to all primary children?
3. Will it cover the cost of staffing?
The implication in the text says it will, where it says
It will also mean parents have the choice of an earlier start to the working day, with Labour saying this will help *families to get on, not just get by.* implies that it will.

A huge saving for parents wanting preschool care.

I suspect it won’t mean that it covers the cost of preschool care from 7.30 am, but rather just half an hour before school starts i.e. for us 8.45am.
So free childcare in the breakfast club for half an hour from 8.15.
Still not a bad idea.

2. Breakfast food.
Will it take into account children’s preferences and parent views on their children’s dietary needs for breakfast?
What sort of food will be on the menu?
We are told that carbs cause a high, then an energy drop, so protein content?

It’s a step in the right direction, and I like the way they plan to fund it.

'We’ll fund clubs by clamping down on tax dodgers and save hardworking parents over £400 every year.

What about the parents we’ve heard about on GN, accused of not being hardworking?

I also think it's a good idea to offer breakfast to children, but I'd widen this to include schoolchildren of all ages.
I've worked in educational settings where all students (and staff) ate a free breakfast and lunch together. It was just cereal and toast for breakfast and then tuna or cheese sandwiches or jackets with salad, but attendance was good and students were more settled. Many were so grateful for this too. I've seen a lot of hungry children unable to concentrate, over the years.

Maisie, I am sick of hearing about the black hole. I wish they would use a more precise term, so we know what they are talking about. These metaphorical words for political concepts are insulting. Why not use 'deficit', or 'overspend', or '£12Billion that is unaccounted for'? Even 'missing' would be marginally more useful.

Well, DD. I've looked into this. Apparently it's the projected overspend in this financial year.

However, some £9billion is for the settlement of the doctors' pay award and there's a projected spend of £8billion 'from reserves' Reserves seem to be a contingency fund for unexpected expenditure. But as there doesn't seem to be a figure for how much this fund is actually allocated in the budget I find it hard to work out if the £8billion is an 'overspend' or just what has been taken from the unspecified 'reserve.

The £22billion looks a bit like a fudge to me...

Surely if a parent stays home to look after children, they would be freeing up nursery places for others or at least reducing the burden on tax payers for the government contribution to child care costs. Also jobs for those who are unemployed yet able to work may well help reduce unemployment figures. There is an economic thought that by reducing the number of people able to be employed demand on recruitment can increase the wages of this who do work thus one parent may be able to support the family. Of course this theory is based on there
being two parents. Nursery places would be easier for single parents and would be earning the higher wage. All great in theory, an awful lot of parents would just not want to be at home with children.

I wouldn't notice if free bus passes were withdrawn as there is no bus service unless I drive 3 miles, then pay for parking to catch a bus.

4allweknow

I wouldn't notice if free bus passes were withdrawn as there is no bus service unless I drive 3 miles, then pay for parking to catch a bus.

Well, I'd certainly notice it.

On the other hand, I wouldn't notice any change to inheritance tax.

"All great in theory, an awful lot of parents would just not want to be at home with children."

Exactly! Especially it's usually the woman who stays at home, thus jeopardising her own career and pension contributions.

Oh well I have just spent the day with my grandchildren and it was tremendous fun. I do wonder where the joy has gone in life.

Raise the threshold for applying for Motorbility from 65 to 70.
DH became semi paraplegic at 67. Have had to fund car, hoist, wheelchair, mobility scooter ourselves. Thank goodness for Blue Badge & Attendance Allowance.

I'm not sure I understand this. Why would you want to raise the age?

I’d notice if bus passes were withdrawn. It would seriously affect several of my neighbours and affect me occasionally,
but then should I feel guilty that I’m not contributing to local council funding by not paying parking fees?

growstuff

Allira

maddyfour

growstuff
I love your bluntness. But you’re right, I will indeed be dead if, and when, any inheritance tax might be paid on my estate
However, since the money/estate will be mine, I will regard it as me paying any tax owing, dead or not. My children would not be paying anything if it were not for me having the money in the first place. Anyway, it’s just semantics, and I do not want to pay a single penny out of my estate to the government. I’ve paid tax all my life; I shall ensure there will be none to be paid when I’m dead!

I'm gonna spend, spend, spend!
In fact, I've already started 😂

Good for you!

It sounds more exciting than it is - the house needs redecorating inside and out.

Maybe not that exciting, but there's no reason you should live in a house which needs decorating if you've got the money now to pay for it. I don't see why you wouldn't spend it.

I'd like to see the income tax threshold raised to at least £15,000 or £20,000. This will help all ages not just Pensioners.

I like to see greater subsidies for university places for people with two working parents. I'd like to see mickey mouse university courses to have no subsidy. I'd like to see that anyone getting free or heavily subsidised University Courses have to work in the Country that paid for them for at least 10 years before they are allowed to take those skills out of the country.

I 'd like to see less money sent overseas for at least 10 years and that money spent of NHS both physical and mental.

I'd like to see the Green initiative slowed down to something more sensible and obtainable without costing hardship to working people.

I'd like to see those pensioners that have saved and invested for their old age allowed to help their adult children financially without the 7 Year Rule kicking in.

These are quite personal I suppose but I really think they are important for all the working people and some of those that can only work part time due to various personal reasons.

As a matter of interest, what's your rationale for giving the children of two working parents bigger university subsidies?

How would you decide what a "Mickey Mouse course" is?

The return of the winter fuel allowance.

Dinahmo

Maggiemaybe

Would it be better if police officers, teachers and doctors were spending their time doing admin? There has to be admin, who sorts out payroll, who answers the phones, who orders the stationery, who negotiates the electricity/gas deal for the year? I'd much rather someone good at admin was doing it and the reality is they will be doing it cheaper than using the police officer/teacher/doctor.

Well said, theworriedwell. The thing about admin is that if it’s done well it just rattles on in the background, and the people doing it aren’t appreciated by the public in general, sometimes not even by the people they’re supporting. The fact is that the frontline staff couldn’t do their jobs without the admin team.

I have a client, a former police inspector, now retired. He now works for the police in a desk job. (Lower salary). Maybe more retirees should do that - very useful with all the trawling through paperwork that they sometimes have to do for a case.

Depends really. Was he the best person for the job? If there is a suitable candidate who isn't a retired police officer should they be overlooked so someone with a good pension can earn a bit more?

I think it will vary with the role. I speak as someone who did a police admin job for 20 years and married to a retired chief inspector.

growstuff

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

I thought they were mainly to allow parents to get to work on time. If you start work at 9 am and your child goes into school at 8.50 am it might be impossible to get to work. Not like back in the day when my sons and their friends would be in the playground at 8 am playing football, they aren't allowed through the gate early now, well at least at my local school where parents do pay for their children to attend.