Ending of age allowance for pensioners in budget

zygurat789

Biggles wrote: »

Eh, me? I was criticising a 'random poster' for doing just that (as was margaretclare) but the offender now seems to have had all his posts deleted while I wasn't looking! I've therefore hastily deleted mine.

Completely disappeared, not just deleted, must have been done by a mod. Are we all in trouble for responding , should we run and hide.

zygurat789

zygurat789 wrote: »

Completely disappeared, not just deleted, must have been done by a mod. Are we all in trouble for responding , should we run and hide.

So has my post where I, in jest, wondered if anybody had ever suggested that you should get a life. {Instead of ressurecting year old posts}. I hope you took this as a joke but apparently jokes aren't allowed by the forum police so I expect I shall be barred now.

Savvy_Sue

It's usual for posts which quote deleted posts to be deleted - if I spot any I report them so they often go later. Means the thread can become a bit disjointed ...

yangptangkipperbang

Sweey_as_a_nut wrote: »

Flogged off our water.
electric and gas.
railways.
Telephone.
I expect the list can go on and on.

You obviously can't remember how awful these services were when they were all state owned !

I waited 6 months for my first telephone - and then got a party line. There was a choice of one 'phone, but in two colours, green or black.

Another thing you forgot:- they "sold off" the TV programme rights so that the newspapers could actually show (other than on the day) what was on TV.

Eon/EDF/SSE/BG may have their faults - but at least there is some competition now - I have just shaved 8% of my energy bill, which I couldn't have done in the "good old days".

pollypenny

Get away! We had a blue phone in 1970. It went with the decor.

chesky

I had a trimphone - very trendy.

clemmatis

chesky wrote: »

I had a trimphone - very trendy.

I had one too! and later, some really good looking plain dark green 'phones.

zygurat789

yangptangkipperbang wrote: »

You obviously can't remember how awful these services were when they were all state owned !

IAnother thing you forgot:- they "sold off" the TV programme rights so that the newspapers could actually show (other than on the day) what was on TV.

I remember how they "sold off" these state assets for £Xmil and the next day they were worth £2Xmil on the stock exchange.
I think that "sold off" was a very exaggerated euphemism.
I have always cheated that the tories did this just to finance tax cuts for those on the higher rates of tax, their mates in the city.

Roger1

yangptangkipperbang wrote: »

You obviously can't remember how awful these services were when they were all state owned !

I remember them. I was around at the time. I don't share your opinion.

I waited 6 months for my first telephone ...

The world has moved on. What makes you think that the GPO/Post Office/BT wouldn't also have changed? IMO it's a scandal that BT retains the bulk of phone lines and infrastructure in spite of what you would call competition.

Eon/EDF/SSE/BG may have their faults - but at least there is some competition now ...

Er yes, they do have their faults. And what's that about competition? 'She' couldn't abide state monopolies and had certain views on foreigners. The effect of privatising the utilities, letting her friends make fortunes and then selling out means that my gas and electricity are now billed by a state monopoly. Just not a British state monopoly, though, but a French state monopoly (EDF Energy) and one that charges its UK customers far more than its French customers! Change supplier? I've done that a couple of times and in the end, it's self defeating as the prices end up with only a few pence difference and hardly worth the bother.

Oh by the way. The gas and electricity for most if not all of the companies you mention are provided by one monopoly. Where's the competition for National Grid? :rotfl:

Sir Harold Macmillan was right when he talked of the Thatcher government selling off the family jewels.

Similar point about the railways and buses. Much of the infrastructure is now controlled by German, Dutch and French quasi-monopolies. Many rail and bus companies are owned by Deutsche Bahn. I for one find it outrageous that many traditional London red buses are operated by a subsidiary of RATP (the Paris Underground monopoly) and Arriva (a wholly owned subsidiary of DB - yes, a foreign state monopoly).

Can anybody put their hands on their heart and say that the railways have improved since privatisation? That would be a very difficult claim, though here again, the world has changed and the current operators are unable to offer adequate capacity at acceptable prices.

I could go on, but back to the topic. The granny tax has now kicked in so Dave's promises about protecting the elderly look a little dim.

joyce341

I am still waiting for an answer to this question from my MP.
Pension £6000 a year,tax limit say £10,000 so can earn £4000 before paying Income tax.
recieve also houseing benefit of approximately £6000 a year,not included for income tax.
Universal credit,housing benefit renamed and payed with pension credit,so Pension £6000 a year,pension credit £6000 a year,equals £12,000 a year,tax threshold £10,000 so will tax dedutions be made on the extra £2000,if so a lot of pensioners income will go down,I hope i,m wrong but cant see how else they can do it,the fact that Housing benefit is not taxed has been one reason why people have been worse of working for years.