Are the Tories going to tear themselves apart?

Rinoa

vivatifosi wrote: »

Watching Andrew Marr, I think IDS has handled this interview well. He has made some valid points.

For the record, I find IDS the person prickly, but agree with many of his views on the need for social justice and think that the party does need to be more collegiate. However he can't play the collegiate card if the Altmann interview shows that's something he has failed to do himself.

The description of Cameron and Osborne as Ant and Dec made me chuckle.

Always difficult to know what goes on behind the scenes but other people from the DWP appear to have a totally different view to Ros Altmann.

http://order-order.com/#_@/iYROgxb53xlclg

vivatifosi

Rinoa wrote: »

Always difficult to know what goes on behind the scenes but other people from the DWP appear to have a totally different view to Ros Altmann.

http://order-order.com/#_@/iYROgxb53xlclg

I think politicians probably have difficulty knowing how to deal with Altmann, as she isn't particularly aligned to one party. However I trust her in terms of pensions much more. She is more of a subject matter expert than a politician. In that respect, I'd like to know what people at the DWP thought of any schism, rather than other politicians.

Take your point that we'll never know though.

kinger101

cells wrote: »

is someone who saves for a pension and then withdraws some out at age 60 and uses it to buy a car also in the group of "I dont think taxpayers' money should be used to fund the ownership of assets by individuals" ???

Pensions are taxable income. The lifetime ISA isn't taxed on entry (if we take the 25% top-up as being akin to BR tax relief) or exit. The policy was a middle class bribe.

When you put this in the context of the IDS interview this morning, and the Government's failure as well to meet its structural deficit targets, I think it starts to become questionable whether Osbourn is really suited to the job. It rather gives the impression that the intended cuts to the disability benefits were ideological.

dunstonh

vivatifosi wrote: »

I think politicians probably have difficulty knowing how to deal with Altmann, as she isn't particularly aligned to one party. However I trust her in terms of pensions much more. She is more of a subject matter expert than a politician. In that respect, I'd like to know what people at the DWP thought of any schism, rather than other politicians.

Take your point that we'll never know though.

When she was director general of Saga, they promoted the sales of annuities. They used a non-advised limited panel and provided outcomes that were not in the best interest of the consumers they were representing. Yet she went on to campaign that the sales processes of annuities was wrong. The very same processes that Saga used. So, why didnt she change the processes Saga used. Limited panels do nothing for the consumer. They exist for commercial reasons (the more you limit distribution, the greater the insurer will pay the distributor).

She is a useful voice nowadays but she has compromised her position in the past for commercial gain. So, don't kid yourself.

Tromking

Osborne style deficit reduction is now politically untenable. Slash and burn of our public services reflected the public mood 6 years ago and was thus acceptable, the Tory win in 2015 was more about the unelectability of Labour than permission for another 5 years of Osborne`s dogma driven austerity. Osborne cannot miss target after target and expect public support ad infinitum. The u-turns on tax credits and now disability benefit reflect the public's weariness to continued cuts to public spending. When IDS is the standard bearer for compassionate conservatism, you know the 'Posh Boys from Eton' have gone too far.

Thrugelmir

kinger101 wrote: »

Pensions are taxable income. The lifetime ISA isn't taxed on entry (if we take the 25% top-up as being akin to BR tax relief) or exit. The policy was a middle class bribe.

There's no general election for a few years.

kinger101

Tromking wrote: »

Osborne style deficit reduction is now politically untenable. Slash and burn of our public services reflected the public mood 6 years ago and was thus acceptable, the Tory win in 2015 was more about the unelectability of Labour than permission for another 5 years of Osborne`s dogma driven austerity. Osborne cannot miss target after target and expect public support ad infinitum. The u-turns on tax credits and now disability benefit reflect the public's weariness to continued cuts to public spending. When IDS is the standard bearer for compassionate conservatism, you know the 'Posh Boys from Eton' have gone too far.

Slash and burn? I think Osbourn must have used toenail clippers and a disposable lighter.

http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/5326/economics/government-spending/

kinger101

Thrugelmir wrote: »

There's no general election for a few years.

Perhaps someone should have told George that.

HornetSaver

It's not the general election he's interested in, as much as the 2016-17 Tory leadership election. For which he most certainly needed to bribe the middle class.

I'd question how successfully he did so, given that the average age of Tory members is late 50s, and the measure he's introduced is explicitly for under-40s.

michaels

Thrugelmir wrote: »

There's no general election for a few years.

AFAIK there is neither a referendum nor a party leadership election any time in the not so distant future