MSE News: Queen's Speech: Taxes to be frozen for five years

Former_MSE_Helen

Measures to ban income tax, VAT and national insurance rises over the next five years have been announced by the Queen...

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Queen's Speech: Taxes to be frozen for five years




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socks_uk

On income tax: legislation has been promised to ensure no one working 30 hours a week on the minimum wage – currently £6.50 an hour – will have to pay income tax. The speech also confirmed the Government's intention to raise from £10,600 to £12,500 the threshold at which earnings become liable for income tax. This will apply UK-wide.

Somebody currently on minimum wage working 30 hours a week would already be below the personal tax allowance, wouldn't they?

30hrs x £6.50 = £195

£195 x 52 = £10,140

The personal tax allowance is currently £10,600.

Are we being conned by the Cons?

Pennywise

socks_uk wrote: »

Somebody currently on minimum wage working 30 hours a week would already be below the personal tax allowance, wouldn't they?

30 hours a week is part time, not full time. Full time hours are usually 35-40.

agarnett

And tax is being frozen because?

Ah yes ... the more people the country has grafting at the coalface who are not contributing to the cost of state welfare, the more you can keep reminding them they are lucky to be here, and the more easily restrict their rights when they need help.

Beautiful.

Oh yeah ... we can keep their reward for labour at rock bottom too ... lovely ... wage slaves cornered for another five years of fearing for their cr¤p jobs but they still arrive at work day after day for the price of a Big Mac Meal for every hour they work. They won't starve then, will they?

No tax though ... that'd be a piffling amount anyway, wouldn't it? Cost too much to collect. Nah, let 'em take their wage packets and blow the lot on treating themselves and the bairns while they can ... they'll need to, because their country won't pick up any pieces beyond a short stay in A&E if they fall ... it ain't set up that way.

This is No country for poor people. Better get rich quick, or toe the line ... get ready and set for another five years of posh boys who don't know the price of milk except this time without the moderating voice of any conscience politicians.

socks_uk

Pennywise wrote: »

30 hours a week is part time, not full time. Full time hours are usually 35-40.

I hadn't realised I had mentioned full/part-time. I was just quoting what was in the Queen's speech and noting that if someone was currently working 30 hours a week on minimum wage they wouldn't notice any difference as they already don't pay tax.

mgdavid

what it guarantees is that as the Minimum wage goes up, so the tax personal allowance will also increase in line with it.

Spidernick

MSE_Helen wrote: »

Measures to ban income tax, VAT and national insurance rises over the next five years have been announced by the Queen...

In the words of The Style Council's The Lodger:

'And if you believe all this you must be out of your mind.'

They may not change the rates, but you can bet they'll manipulate the bandings to increase what people pay. Employee's NI is a very likely target and I could easily see them extending the 12% band and still have the cheek to claim it's not a 'rise'. Similarly the could extend the scope of VAT (another 'pasty tax') and, in their twisted logic, claim exactly the same. Don't believe a word of what they tell you.

zygurat789

mgdavid wrote: »

what it guarantees is that as the Minimum wage goes up, so the tax personal allowance will also increase in line with it.

What it guarantees is that those earning minimum wage and working full time will pay tax for the next 5 years.

CLAPTON

why ever should we create a new class of people that can vote but don't pay income taxes?
why is that a good thing?

chrismac1

The minimum wage thing was the subject of a local ding dong between me and the Conservative candidate. "No-one on minimum wage to pay tax" was the slogan. I pointed out that Cameron was very careful to inlcude "30 hours" in his speeches, and that full-time minimum wage people were guranteed to pay tax every tax year for the next 5 years.

Then her assistant came back with calculations refuting me. I pointed out to him that his calculations combined the current NMW rate with the expected 19-20 starting point of tax. And that if you use the NMW rates and tax tables which are consistent with each other for 15-16, 16-17, 17-18, 18-19 and 19-20 then a full-time NMW person pays tax every year. That ended the exchange of views but did not end the use of the slogan.

Not that the other parties were any better. In my view, it was the worst election since 1983 in terms of the choices on option, each and every one of the main 5 parties had a £15bn per year minimum hole in their numbers.

quietriot

I'll be interested to see how they draft the bill. If they're not careful, Ltd Co directors & shareholders who previously would have had to pay higher rate tax on some of their dividends might find themselves paying nothing just by sticking themselves on minimum wage for 30 hours a week.

I would expect a competent government to legislate in such a way as to prevent that. I have no confidence that this government will be competent.