im still working and will be paying about £640 a month tax

Tax thresholds going up in the Autumn budget has to happen.
It's the last chance saloon for the tories.

An increase in tax thresholds would be very welcome in our household Kev and I would like to see it happen but realistically I think Reform, if they retain their current popularity, will scupper any chance the Tories have and that will make Starmer's victory a certainty, unless they form some sort of right wing pact, which I wouldn't rule out. A bit of brinkmanship at large as usual.
I think it is fair to say that, at the moment, most political discussion is focussed on the survival or not of the Tories. Current opinion dictates that they have no chance so maybe it is about time we focussed on the alternatives and give them a good coat of looking at. After all we are faced with five years of that alternative and have to avoid the possibility of jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.
In true bunker fashion we need answers.

the party that increases or promise to increase tax thresholds and stopping standing charges would get my vote. the woke crap will continue no matter who is in power.

The UKs debt is now more than its GDP, in other words more going out than coming in, no party can promises ‘giveaways’ therefore the idea of the tax threshold being raised is doubtful.

If somehow a party could reduce interest rates to pre Truss levels that might secure younger voters support as it would reduce their mortgage payments but would it invariably cause inflation to increase.

Labour and the Conservatives manifesto will be similar in the respect what ever they give will be taken away elsewhere.

Reform idea on no tax upto £20k sounds good but that has to be funded somehow.

With both Conservative and Labour being centralist instead of squabbling could they not get their heads together and sort the country out between them ?

During the war, the War Csbinet who made every decision always worked on the principle of only acting on all members being in agreement and there were two Labour members and three Tory’s.
It proved a success and prevented any Leader from making unanimous decisions without the approval of the War Cabinet and Churchill in all his negotiations would be in touch with his colleagues before committing himself in talks to get compliance.
This being the only democratic leadership in WW2.
Sadly, I see no Churchill’s in Tory ranks or Atlee’s the Labour ranks, just naive, just out of touch naive opportunists taking us a tomorrow the vast majority don’t want and who listen and appease the the noisy 2% of the population and lecture the other 98% of the population.
Not a pleasant prospect whoever wins, but I want to see Starmer in power to see how he votes with rough seas and his MP’s after recent events, in fact I’m looking forward to it…..the useless Tory’s gone, enter Labour stage left…., feet up,.open the popcorn and enjoy the voyage

all thats true and fine, but it will be us that will have to suffer it all.

No matter who gets in power they will have to turn the screws, there will be freebies, I would like to see a hung Parliament and see what they can do, bunch of university educated politicians fighting out who have only learned about economics from books.

Some very interesting comments, the woman keeps going on about there are some very rich pensioners, yes but the majority worked for it, no one give it to them on a plate, video is about 20 minutes long. missed the link out.
https://youtu.be/WF-QRTPryDE?si=n4r4pEPvGXDd_X4B

at least there are more pensioners about than there was years ago when it seemed only the rich managed to get to that age they could get one. mind you some now had a better chance to become rich ones than others who needed every penny in their working lives to make ends meet and refused a pension scheme because of what it would cost them in their take home pay.

Any insurance or pension scheme is sold on fear factor, what if this that and the other happens apart from car insurance which is mandatory.

I suppose you could loosely call it fear but really it is just concern for the consequences. I know that If I don't sustain myself properly I will probably die but that is common sense. It's common sense to take out most policies. If I hadn't subscribed to my private pensions and had to rely on the state pension I would be struggling so whoever "frightened" me into taking them out I say "God Bless You"

I get my state one in 3 months and I am already pissing it up aga.inst a wall on holiday in Malta
I can recommend good financial planning:)

Too right. The state pension is not a massive amount by any stretch of the imagination but as an add on it is very welcome. I certainly couldn't live on it without cutting everything to the bone. I certainly wouldn't be having foreign holidays if it was all I had to rely on. I would be getting the old tent out again. OOOHHH me back!!!!

Too right. The state pension is not a massive amount by any stretch of the imagination but as an add on it is very welcome. I certainly couldn't live on it without cutting everything to the bone. I certainly wouldn't be having foreign holidays if it was all I had to rely on. I would be getting the old tent out again. OOOHHH me back!!!!

Does anybody actually live on state pensions only? Do you not get pension credits,council tax and rent allowances on top of a large number who get disability payments.

Oh there’s plenty who do sadly, some people never had the opportunity or cash to afford one.
I get a bit pissed off when you tell people you have a private pension they seem to forget you had to pay into it, you don’t get them for nowt..,except my French pension…’pour services rendus’.

C,mon Johnjo tell us why these people get disability payments.

OhDear!

I've just read an article that says the country can't continue afford to give the state pension to everyone who reaches state pension age & that it should be means tested.
Looks like I might not get mine if that's the case, does that mean I can get all my NI contributions I have paid since I was 18 back? No I thought not

i do only because her in the kitchen has a good private pension from rotary international. if i was on my own i,d be getting what you say but without disability payments. thats a completely different ball game as it aint just old gits that get them. there would be far more in the pot anyway if we hadn,t the dinghy d ivers to support or millions splashed on foreign aid that would not be splashed on us. don,t start me off on child allowance either when every bugger gets something but many do not need it.

Good point. When I entered the job market at 16 I was due to retire at 65. The government owes me £10k........barstewards.

governments either national or local are all alike. they cry the poor tale but will find money quite easy for projects most people feel are a complete waste.

The only way that could happen is if they means tested it like benefits, it’s not a benefit in general people have contributed too, it’s 50% of the living wage. The best anyone can do is move their savings some where if over £6k and claim Pension Credit which entitles you other benefits.
Maybe if the triple lock was removed and tax threshold raised it wouldn’t cause an upcry taking pensioners out of paying tax ?

When I retired at 56 I got bored so went back to work…then I thought you utter feckwit and the rest is mischief.

I started work 1 month after I was 16 and retired by default at 68 when the owner of the business came in on FRIDAY January 13th (first time I had seen him since before Christmas) and said he was closing the Company. This was all done and dusted by the following Tuesday, otherwise I probably stupidly would still be working at 75!

nothing wrong in working till you die if you enjoy it. having to work longer when you were ticking the days off to freedom certainly is,nt. if it wasn,t for my dog, bingo calling and doing quizes and pools i might be as pissed off more than when i worked. think some need training for retirement as much as training for work.

In retirement the following 2 rules apply;

Rule 1 - Do as the wife says

Rule 2 - As above

I know people in their 70s still working not for the money, for me they can’t have much of a home, but if they are happy so be it. I retired at 62 not voluntary, it wasn’t planned, there simply at the time wasn’t any work available for people of my age. I applied for dole money, I thought I have paid into the system therefore I should receive some thing back,the condition was I had to apply for 14 jobs a fortnight, so that was a no no. I have never missed not working waking up at 6 every morning hearing the wind and rain hammering down. I was involved in supervision latterly, Health and Safety become a nightmare, I am not saying it wasn’t warranted but it was over the top, on my last project any one found not fully kitted up was suspended on no pay, even taking your gloves off was an ‘offence’ try connecting wires or putting 6 mm nuts on bolts on wearing gloves.

You sound hen pecked, maybe you should have carried on working.

Good idea, you can sleep safely then before she falls asleep.

We've got things arse about tit imo. We force people to work till their older yet allow young uns to leave education and not do work.
Surely it'd be better if everyone leaving education had to take a job then more people could retire earlier having contributed to the taxman and society for years. Plus working should be an essential life skill for most.

Great idea but you need to convince employers to train the young people up first, company I served my time with had a similar number of apprentices as they had tradesmen, after a couple of years you were expected to read drawings and work on your own.

Stop their benefits, we had to interview about ten years ago for tradesman in the building trades for a project and at the end of the process we were approached to give one bloke a chance as they needed to get him 8nto work….turned out any job he was sent on he caused chaos, a liability, so stop his benefits, butZInbet they didn’t..and there’s the problem.
We had one lad on early shift who was always late so we decided to put him on late shift……..permanently, guess what, he was still late.

Plenty of work in the communities, hospitality, should be either work or national service just to instil a sense of duty to do their bit rather than the expectation of something for nothing.

When Labour get in, I want to see if all these strike days suddenly dry up.

They will as Labour will give in & pay them what they are asking for!!

Not the best of advice to give unless you don't give a shite if they catch up with you.

That sounds illegal to me, in fact not the sort of advice I’d expect from someone who criticises the Tory’s.
Obtain by deception…?

Nothing illegal Snowy, you can give it to your kids, providing you do not fall into the inheritance tax bracket, I don’t. People give their kids money towards deposit for a house etc.nothing illegal about that. I contributed towards the deposit for my daughters first house, new kitchen and recently refurbishment of her bathroom.
Nothing about that has anything to do with my views on the Tories,I was helping my family out.

You can give your children or grandchildren money while you are still alive. However, under normal circumstances, it could be subject to tax depending on the amount, and something called the 7-year rule.

The 7-year rule explained
If you die within seven years after you have gifted money to your children or grandchildren, it will not be subject to inheritance tax. However, an inheritance tax could be due if you die before seven years have elapsed. So asking yourself, can I gift money to my children tax free in this instance depends on something called “taper relief”.

I think there might be more as the unions fund Labour and will threaten to withdraw the funding if they support a strike.

Funny how you have a very Tory approach to your financial dealings and the loop holes in the system, I know people who’ve done it.
Yes you can do what you say, but to do so to claim your pension top up is at best immoral….. I’d find it was basically a case of short circuiting the system and a sign of money having a greater value than political values when shove comes to push.
I wouldn’t lower myself to get pension credits by such a method,……..’do as I say, not as I do’ is rank hypocricy.

but how long does it take to train people to do many jobs especially if they are very repetitious. places like exhaust centres and those who only do brakes it should not take long. going back to jamies earlier comment about going on the dole and having to tick boxes to receive it i can say i suffered the same when i lived in norfolk. i never worked from november to late march as many others did who were in the tourist industry. there was high winter unemployment but seem to pick on those who actually bothered having a wash and shave before signing on and the scruffy youngsters who they knew would not bother got a free ride. possibly if they did they,d just walk round the corner and claim another benefit that would be available.

It just seems totally wrong to me that someone who left school at 18 has to work and pay tax until age 66 before the state will give them benefit (state pension).
Leave school now at 18 and you can go on benefits and claim them for life without ever paying a penny or serving society.
It's also ominous that nowadays the State Pension is declared a benefit even though its dependent on NI contributions yet until recently it was always regarded as an entitlement.

Funny thing is, you pay into it all your working life and someone who has never worked gets it too…..with 10% of the working age population on benefits it’s obvious there’s a fault in the system.
Anyone under 25 for starters, if claiming benefit should be in education and monitored full time, not left to skive off.
No show, no benefit.

its difficult as you cannot make the workshy starve to death. said a thousand times that you cannot beat the system but can use it. its the systems that need to change to avoid those milking it where cash is not handed out but more things like food vouchers up to a certain amount depending on the circumstanes the claiment has. not allowed to be used for anything but food. a voucher for new clothing could always be given out from the charity shop of their choice. its not as if they sell rags but decent clothes especially for kids where some are unworn.

The only way that could happen is if they means tested it like benefits, it’s not a benefit in general people have contributed too, it’s 50% of the living wage. The best anyone can do is move their savings some where if over £6k and claim Pension Credit which entitles you other benefits.
Maybe if the triple lock was removed and tax threshold raised it wouldn’t cause an upcry taking pensioners out of paying tax ?[/quote]

If you "get rid of" savings of £6k and above you do not automatically get Pension Credit, there are other things to take into account, like private pensions etc and when you take the wife's state pension into account you have no chance!

At least he has a hen to ‘peck’ him.

Yes, but if they’re finding themselves being in full time training and education they’ll twig on a job’s the better option, then if they starve it’s self inflicted.
We have to do something we ‘re bring in third world labour to do work they won’t do, there is the way to madness.

If you "get rid of" savings of £6k and above you do not automatically get Pension Credit, there are other things to take into account, like private pensions etc and when you take the wife's state pension into account you have no chance![/quote]
People on pensions are going on about having to pay tax, I’ve been paying tax on my pension from day one.

i have never seen 6k and cannot imagine having savings like that. there would be bound to be another car to be purchased with that amount lying idle. brought up the charles dickens way. spend 19/11 from the pound but never 20/1d.