50 word Moneyfesto - Small changes for a big difference 2013

R3id

Scrap Child Benefit and Tax Credits then give all children from their 1st birthday 2.5 days in nursery per week free of charge enabling mum's to work more hours without huge nursery bills

ben333latham

Tax PLASTIC bags. The goverment is always looking to bridge the borrowing defecit. Around 10-13 billion are used in the UK each year. A tax of 5p or 10p each bag would bring in revenue and encourage public to re-use bags or get bag for life.

budeman

The Govt want people to work but with childcare being so expensive its just not viable to many men and women to go back to work when they have children.

Martinslovechild

If the Government is really keen on encouraging first-time buyers onto the property ladder, property SELLERS (rather than buyers) should be the people who pay the stamp duty. First-Time Buyers generally struggle to save up the cash to pay for SDLT*, whereas the vast majority of sellers have accrued an amount of equity. Those buyers moving up the property ladder will benefit as they'll pay less SDLT - paying only on the property they're selling rather than the one they're buying.

Stamp Duty on property sales should be levied the same as income tax (i.e. 4% from £250K to £500K and 5% from £500K upwards), so that on a property advertised for £525K, 5% is levied only on the proportion above £500K and lesser percentages are levied on the remainder. This prevents buyers from putting in daft offers (e.g. £499K on a £550K property simply to reduce their overall stamp duty tax burden).

*SDLT = Stamp Duty Land Tax

pearl123

Stop execessive packaging on products. It harms the enviroment.

Thomas1892

I suggest rather than paying benefits in cash, so that the ones not interested in finding work can't go buy carryouts/cigarettes or luxury items. They get a card with ID being required to use it and it can only be used to purchase foods and essentials items.

London_Sazzle

Incorporating car insurance into the petrol price allows people to pay based on their usage of the roads/infrastructure and will make sure that everyone has cover as everyone needs fuel.

ben333latham

Change current laws in buying/selling houses to the way they are sold in Scotland. Its such a shame and a big expense when a house falls through. Change the system to that of what Scotland has, make it fairer.

pearl123

Stop companies from being able to sell on your details to other companies!

Citizen123_3

Hospital car parking charges should be no more than £1/visit.

In the last few years I have had to make numerous visits to various hospitals to either take my daughter to appointments or to visit sick relatives. All the car parking charges on based on time so the longer you stay - the more you pay. However this is morally wrong when most people visiting hopsital are unwell or worried about a loved one and do not need to be contantly watching the time because the car parking changes are increasing with the length of their stay. Also often you are not in control of your length of stay at the hospital eg when visiting A&E.

A small fixed rate charge (£1/visit) would address this - and save money for regular hospital attendees.

I would ideally suggest making hospital car parking free - but in the current economic climate a small fixed charge would seem more realistic.