Points to Ponder

[Ian]

Odd how the Government is refusing to publish details of this ‘£22bn black hole’ that they keep going on about?

https://t.co/JUC2YYqD41

Also odd how they’ve found £600m to send to Ukraine, £100m to give train drivers a pay rise, yet pensioners get their heating allowance taken off them?

I'm sure the right wing press will have submitted plenty of FOI requests, using the Freedom of Information Act, (introduced by a Labour government  ) to find out what substance there is in the claim. Odd we've heard nothing about that as yet...

Oh, and saying "pensioners get their heating allowance taken off them" is rather misleading, unless you believe there are no wealthy pensioners.  And let's not forget that the value of the payment has been steadily eroded over time, mainly since 2010.  Remind me - who was in power from then until now? 

[SteveH]

The six ways Wales must 'urgently' transform set out in eye-opening vision of future
Experts propose fewer cars and sheep along with Crown Estate devolution to ringfence renewable energy income for Wales

Climate experts believe Wales must speed up the switch to net zero or else brace for much bigger shocks down the line. A series of reports published on Monday, September 16 outline ways in which the transition can be accelerated.

Among the ideas proposed are some that may prove contentious, such as car-free town centres, road user charging and higher parking charges to get people out of their cars. Another could see the disappearance of a Welsh icon as farmers are encouraged to stop sheep production and start growing crops instead.

cont https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/six-ways-wales-must-urgently-29947179

[DaveR]

Oh, and saying "pensioners get their heating allowance taken off them" is rather misleading, unless you believe there are no wealthy pensioners.  And let's not forget that the value of the payment has been steadily eroded over time, mainly since 2010.  Remind me - who was in power from then until now? 

There are certainly plenty of pensioners on modest incomes who will find it hard to replace the allowance. Several hundred pounds is still a lot of money to most people. Why would all the Unions and Age UK be so opposed to it otherwise?

[Ian]

Oh, and saying "pensioners get their heating allowance taken off them" is rather misleading, unless you believe there are no wealthy pensioners.  And let's not forget that the value of the payment has been steadily eroded over time, mainly since 2010.  Remind me - who was in power from then until now? 

There are certainly plenty of pensioners on modest incomes who will find it hard to replace the allowance. Several hundred pounds is still a lot of money to most people. Why would all the Unions and Age UK be so opposed to it otherwise?

For two pensioners living together I believe it's only £250.00. Time was that represented a large chunk of cash but no more, sadly.

In terms of Age UK and the unions, fighting a token drop such as that keeps them both in favour with their recipients. I was not in favour of chopping the winter fuel payment, but if the finances are as ropey as the government seems to believe, then possibly small losses like that can be viewed as helping to preserve the larger sums due in terms of pension increases.

It would be useful if the government would reveal the precise basis of their calculations, however.

[DaveR]

If finances are ropey, perhaps £100m could be saved by not giving already well remunerated train drivers a massive pay rise?

"The estimated total pay for a Train Driver is £57,917 per year, with an average salary of £55,115 per year. This number represents the median, which is the midpoint of the ranges from our proprietary Total Pay Estimate model and based on salaries collected from our users." Source: GlassDoor

[SteveH]

Talking of pay rises...........

Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff received a pay rise after the election which means she is now paid more than the prime minister.

The BBC has been told that Sue Gray asked for and was given a salary of £170,000 - £3,000 more than the PM and more than any cabinet minister – or her Conservative predecessor.

One source told the BBC: “It was suggested that she might want to go for a few thousand pounds less than the prime minister to avoid this very story. She declined.”

The decision has ignited a row within government over Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson.

She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser........................ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx247wkq137o

[DaveR]

They are all there with their snouts in the trough. Funny how all their concern for pensioners and outrage about sleaze suddenly evaporates when they get into power?

I also had to laugh at Rachel Reeves cutting the pensioners winter fuel allowance, whilst at the same time claiming £3700 in fuel expenses for her second home.

One rule for them, another for the people that pay them.

[Ian]

They are all there with their snouts in the trough. Funny how all their concern for pensioners and outrage about sleaze suddenly evaporates when they get into power?

But they're not in power any more. After a succession of PMs, one lasting a mere three weeks, a complete dereliction of duty at the outbreak of Covid by the PM, the lying and cheating in Downing street during Covid, the dreadful mess they've made of the economics of the UK, the steadily managed decline of the NHS and a lot more, we voted them out.

Oh, wait;  you did mean the Tories, didn't you?   

I also had to laugh at Rachel Reeves cutting the pensioners winter fuel allowance, whilst at the same time claiming £3700 in fuel expenses for her second home.

Dave: I think this post is in the wrong place. Perhaps I should create a new topic for the three other posts you've made on the winter fuel allowance? 

[DaveR]

Well, we can always talk about Keir Starmer’s freebies instead, if you prefer? 

You are absolutely right, though. People voted Labour for a change from incompetent and corrupt Tories. The problem is that, just 2 months in, we’ve found out that Labour are no different.

[Ian]

Well, the notoriously right wing press are furiously scrabbling to find out anything with which they can smear HM's government (as one might expect), but only time will tell if there's a major difference.  One massive change is that we're discovering Civil servants are anything but :-)

[DaveR]

I had no idea the Guardian was considered right wing these days?

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/sep/20/glasses-donor-money-keir-starmer-pm-approval-ratings-liz-truss

Amazing how Starmer’s approval rating is already heading down to Liz Truss levels though. 

[Ian]

I had no idea the Guardian was considered right wing these days?
Amazing how Starmer’s approval rating is already heading down to Liz Truss levels though. 

 
Ah, but the majority of voters didn't vote for Starmer.  In this country one votes for a Party, and trusts to that party's record to do the right thing. As to the party leader, we'll have to see. A somewhat inauspicious start, to be sure, however.

The government has chosen to do the really unpopular things from the get-go. That way they're trusting to the famed short term memory of the British voter.

[SteveH]

An important article if not a little complicated..............

Devolved taxes in Wales hit by a big fall in revenues raised

The Welsh Revenue Authority said income raised for the Welsh Government from the Land Transaction and Landfill Disposal taxes was down more than quarter in 2023-24

The amount of revenue collected from devolved taxes in Wales, the proceeds from which are used by the Welsh Government to support its spending, have declined by more than a quarter.

For the financial year 2023-24 the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) - the first non ministerial department created within Welsh Government - collected £330.2m net from the Land Transaction Tax (LTT) and Landfill Disposals Tax (LDT), compared to £418.6m in 2022-23. LTT raised was down from £372.1m a year earlier to £269.8m. Some £202m was residential related with £67.2m collected on commercial property deals.

cont https://www.business-live.co.uk/economic-development/devolved-taxes-wales-hit-big-29989336?IYA-reg=49560bcd-5a9c-47f0-8fc5-ba2e71710589

[Robert2020]

its not complicated, the WA have lost that LTT revenue because they don't like second homes, less have been purchased and the the LTT premium is being lost. Also over the last couple of years due to energy costs and high council tax fewer people have moved home and the knock on is less house renovation thus less waste revenue.

Its interesting to see that the planning for a 'tourist tax' has so far cost £300£+ just to research how to implement it...i would suggest that once this policy is up and running then tourists will go elsewhere. 

I live next door to a three bed(sleeps 6) holiday let, so £1 night per occupant wound add £42 to the weekly bill,  with the 180+ day occupancy and the new waste charges  many are struggling, add in the 20mph which despite the WA saying its being reviewed many will avoid Wales as a holiday destination.

Wales does not have a good record for job creation so the balance sheet from the UK Barnett funding and the reduced income revenue are going to look poor. Then we will see an income tax rise similar to Scotland.

[SteveH]

Labour's plan to build 1.5m homes – can it be delivered?

The residents of Northstowe in Cambridgeshire have been promised a thriving community. The plan is for more than 10,000 new homes for 26,000 people as part of the UK’s first new town since Milton Keynes was built six decades ago.

Six years after people first moved into the 1,480 homes built so far, there are three schools, a pub, and some other facilities – but no shops or GP surgery.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgw7x4y5rzo