A summary of Starmer’s first 6 months.

But have people forgotten the Assisted Dying Bill? That was a major thing.

All the fuss made about it at the time, and now nobody has even made mention to it.

I can't bear Keir Starmer and will never vote for Labour while he is in power - he and his entire party are such hypocrites.

But for the Assisted Dying Bill, I will be eternally grateful.

Mention of it, not to it.

GrannyGravy13

PoliticsNerd anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble.

It will mean closures and unemployment.

To you that is what it means GrannyGravy13, but I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses. The other that it can encourage "businesses to adapt and innovate rather than passively maintain existing structures" as I explained.

A simple stream of invective such "anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble." doesn't allow for any upside to the policies. Do you really think all policies are so one dimensional?

PoliticsNerd

GrannyGravy13

PoliticsNerd anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble.

It will mean closures and unemployment.

To you that is what it means GrannyGravy13, but I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses. The other that it can encourage "businesses to adapt and innovate rather than passively maintain existing structures" as I explained.

A simple stream of invective such "anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble." doesn't allow for any upside to the policies. Do you really think all policies are so one dimensional?

We have a family owned SME

We are in contact with many many small to medium businesses owners, day in and day out.

IHT along with the increase in NI and the lowering of the level on which payment starts will not bring any benefits to the majority of businesses.

I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses

And does that worry you at all, PoliticsNerd?
Or do you think this is a fair tax? Along with the burden of increased NIC on small businesses, farms, care homes, hospices?

They can't move overseas as big businesses which evade tax threaten to do.
Easy targets, all of them

You really are entitled to that opinion GrannyGravy13 and from where you stand I am not surprised that you hold it.

I am simply suggesting that things look different from a different perspective and, as we all know by now, two opposing perspectives can both be true at the same time.

How magnanimous 🙂

Would someone do a list of the 'achievements' of the Truss government, please?

Grantanow

Would someone do a list of the 'achievements' of the Truss government, please?

Well, we can't make a summary of the first six months!

I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses. The other that it can encourage "businesses to adapt and innovate rather than passively maintain existing structures" as I explained.

Sounds like tosh to me PoliticsNerd.
Adapt and innovate?
ie ‘stop giving out jobs’. How would that promise growth?

Sounds like tosh to me PoliticsNerd
Yes.

Any small business or farm which hasn't adapted and innovated over the years will probably have ceased to exist by now!

With the greatest of respect, PoliticsNerd, your ‘different perspective’ indicates to me that you are living in cloud cuckoo land.

Allira

^I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses^

And does that worry you at all, PoliticsNerd?
Or do you think this is a fair tax? Along with the burden of increased NIC on small businesses, farms, care homes, hospices?

They can't move overseas as big businesses which evade tax threaten to do.
Easy targets, all of them

Allira, I watched my parents lose their business because of a change in the law so I certainly feel sympathetic.

As I acknowledged, there are two sides to this. Introduced by the Thatcher government in 1984 it was always a rich man's charter rather than one for farmers. It misplaces the help. Do I hope transitional help can be given. Yes. But then it already has been .

Allira

^Sounds like tosh to me PoliticsNerd^
Yes.

Any small business or farm which hasn't adapted and innovated over the years will probably have ceased to exist by now!

How condescending!

Our business has been going for approaching 50 years.

Barleyfields

With the greatest of respect, PoliticsNerd, your ‘different perspective’ indicates to me that you are living in cloud cuckoo land.

Absolute 👍🏻

SPADland perhaps?

PoliticsNerd

GrannyGravy13

PoliticsNerd anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble.

It will mean closures and unemployment.

To you that is what it means GrannyGravy13, but I see two sides to the new taxes. One is the burden it places on farms and small businesses. The other that it can encourage "businesses to adapt and innovate rather than passively maintain existing structures" as I explained.

A simple stream of invective such "anyone who thinks that IHT on small family businesses is a good thing needs to give their head a wobble." doesn't allow for any upside to the policies. Do you really think all policies are so one dimensional?

PoliticsNerd
I’d like to see you telling farmers that load of twaddle to their faces.It’s a burden pure and simple.

Allira

SPADland perhaps?

It sure sounded like a pamphlet from a gov dept.

I am not sure I agree with Friedgreentomatoes's analysis of Labour's actions as being "socialist". I think Corbyn's proposed policies could have been described as such but the current government's actions are pretty tame. As, I imagine, with most people, I agree with some of their actions but not all. Having said that, the total chaos that the Conservatives left us with would make it very difficult to make decisions that would wholly please anybody.

Inheritance tax on farms seems fair to me. Most people whose assets are above a certain level are liable to inheritance tax. In the case of farmers, the Office for Fiscal Studies says that currently the average tax relief saved is £300,000 per estate, with some benefiting from business relief also. 7% of claims accounted for 40% of the total value of agricultural relief. There is still 100% tax relief for the first £1million, plus £325,000 and £175,000 if the farm is bequeathed to a direct descendant. If passed on by a couple, there could be up to £3million pounds of relief.

Views differ as to whether private schools should pay VAT or not on fees, but my opinion is that it is a fair measure. Everybody, even the very poorest, has to pay VAT on virtually all goods and services, so why should private education be excluded?

As for the right to buy council houses, most housing experts are of the view that this policy has been a major contributor to the housing crisis we are now experiencing. Well built council homes, which, in the 1950s/60s were available to many people on moderate wages, are now virtually impossible for people to access. While government received the heavily discounted money for the homes it sold, it lost the accruing value - both social and financial - of these well built homes. This necessitated the payment of housing benefit which now continues to line the pockets of private owners, many of whom have substantial housing portfolios. In addition, the money received from the sales was not used to build further homes, ensuring a continuing reliance on private rental providers.

I would imagine many people who are not aligned to socialist ideas might find hereditary peerages unacceptable in this day and age, particularly given the very favourable allowances that are applicable, with very little oversight re attendance and participation.

I would also imagine you don't have to have socialist views to think that the scams and exploitation of the secondary ticket market should be properly regulated.

Is confining the Winter Fuel Allowance to the poorest a socialist measure? Many people in the Labour party are unhappy about it. My own opinion is that this benefit should not be available to those who are comfortably off.

People seem to be very confused in their thinking - including people in the Labour Party. Many did not agree with Corbyn's socialist agenda but, on the other hand, they do not like many of the measures put forward by the new Labour government. They want the huge financial deficit to be sorted out, they want the justice system, the transport and roads system, the education system, the NHS, and countless other disasters left by the previous government to be put in order straight away. But they don't want any increases at all in taxes, or any measures brought in that might affect their own income.

As for trying to "create a world where everyone is equal" - good luck with that! At the moment we have families who are paying extortionate rents, nursery fees, energy and transports costs, etc, etc. Even with both parents now working, life is a continuing struggle for many. Essential services are on their knees and only those that can afford to go privately can feel unworried about their, and their children's, futures.

Allira I think my post up thread is unclear, I meant that PoliticsNerd was condescending not you.

Sorry 😔

Inheritance tax on farms seems fair to me

Anyone who says that will be 😥 and 😡 when the supermarket shelves are empty.
And/or complaining about the air miles of food from overseas, the quality of imported beef etc.

GrannyGravy13

Allira I think my post up thread is unclear, I meant that PoliticsNerd was condescending not you.

Sorry 😔

🙂

It's ok, I understood.

IHT on farms only seems fair to those who have little or no contact with farmers. I live in a farming area and I see the reality. The widower up the road who expected his sons to inherit the modest family farm for example. He and generations of himself family have lived in the farmhouse and worked the land. They are by no means well off. He is in his 70s and ailing and any attempt to pass the farm on to his sons now would fail to exempt it from IHT because he won’t live long enough for that. He says he hopes he will die before the law changes. He is distressed and I would not be surprised if he were to become yet another farming suicide - the industry has a high suicide rate without this latest blow. How can all this possibly be fair?

Of course for ‘family farm’ you can substitute any family business.

Obviously farmers and the owners of family businesses are not the ‘working people’ who Starmer and Reeves constantly bang on about, but seem to have great difficulty in successfully defining.

Thank you Eleothan for an excellent post.

Barleyfields I am not a Labour supporter, I was willing to give them a chance.

Unfortunately in their first six months they have done nothing for small businesses (the backbone of the UK), farmers (who put the food on our tables) pensioners who have worked all their lives.