No change to tax free cash on 26 November

michaels

So given all the u-turns can we really believe the 'commitment' on the TFLS?

m_c_s

michaels said:

So given all the u-turns can we really believe the 'commitment' on the TFLS?

Messing around with the TFLS doesn't really get you much money quickly (not the sums needed) in my opinion. 
The only way they can really get a large amount of money in quickly is now through tax thresholds. Dan Needle and Julian Jessop (tax expert and economist) produced a great insight yesterday into how just by lowering the 40% tax threshold to £46,000 and the additional rate threshold to £100,000 raises an enormous £8Bn which is equivalent to 1% income tax increase. Thresholds are known to be the great stealth tax so reducing them is not really stealthy anymore but is the next obvious thing to get large sums into the Treasury over the next few years. 

ColdIron

Aylesbury_Duck said:

HedgehogRulez said:

And a u turn on the IT/NI switcheroo.
good grief

A u-turn on something that wasn't announced in the first place?  

Last week she wrote to the OBR confirming that hiking the levy would be among the "major measures" announced on November 26. That's about as close as you can get without announcing it in the HoC and a long way from 'kite flying'

Cobbler_tone

m_c_s said:

michaels said:

So given all the u-turns can we really believe the 'commitment' on the TFLS?

Messing around with the TFLS doesn't really get you much money quickly (not the sums needed) in my opinion. 
The only way they can really get a large amount of money in quickly is now through tax thresholds. Dan Needle and Julian Jessop (tax expert and economist) produced a great insight yesterday into how just by lowering the 40% tax threshold to £46,000 and the additional rate threshold to £100,000 raises an enormous £8Bn which is equivalent to 1% income tax increase. Thresholds are known to be the great stealth tax so reducing them is not really stealthy anymore but is the next obvious thing to get large sums into the Treasury over the next few years. 

We are already in the world of semantics. e.g. would decreasing tax bands be deemed as not breaking the manifesto promise? Clearly it would be in real terms. Whatever is raised won't come from a magic money tree, hence why I wouldn't rule out more additional borrowing on top of any changes.

bjorn_toby_wilde

michaels said:

So given all the u-turns can we really believe the 'commitment' on the TFLS?

I would consider a u turn to be a reversal of an announced or documented policy. None of the things you’ve mentioned strike me as anything but speculation. If they haven’t announced a change to the TFLS how can leaving it alone then be described as a u turn?

Personally I don’t see the problem with u turns anyway. When something blatantly isn’t working would you want someone to continue doing it or u turn?

I do find the “pitch rolling” pretty irritating though.  Do it or don’t do it, but spare us the nonsense.

Grumpy_chap

m_c_s said:

The only way they can really get a large amount of money in quickly is now through tax thresholds. Dan Needle and Julian Jessop (tax expert and economist) produced a great insight yesterday into how just by lowering the 40% tax threshold to £46,000 and the additional rate threshold to £100,000 raises an enormous £8Bn which is equivalent to 1% income tax increase. 

That actually would not seem to be too bad if the withdrawal of the personal allowance is also scrapped at the same time.  It would make the tax system more naturally progressive and avoid one of the unnatural bumps which forces behaviours.  

If the Additional Rate threshold comes down to £100k AND the withdrawal of the PA remains, assuming my maths is correct, I think that would mean an effective rate of 67% (45% IT rate, 20% withdrawal PA, 2% NI).

The Government seem to be getting themselves needlessly boxed in to not change TFLS, not change IT, keep WFA, remove two-child limit, etc.  There is little left to look at.  

I can only imagine the plan is to find the one person in the country not affected by any of these things and get that individual to fund the entire Government spending.

Cobbler_tone

I think they must have found a VLOOKUP that wasn't working correctly.

tiptop1_2

Anything could still happen. The govt are changing their minds every day. It's ridiculous.

This isn't how a govt on top of their game act, it's a shambles.

Veloflyer

tiptop1_2 said:

Anything could still happen. The govt are changing their minds every day. It's ridiculous.

This isn't how a govt on top of their game act, it's a shambles.

Be grateful for being aware that the government are a shambles. At least you can take action armed with that knowledge - now where is my passport.......   

MallyGirl

Please avoid political debate or the thread will get closed