It's not often I agree with a Tory.......

[Herr Tubthumper]

What does it's matter whether it's an original argument. Truth hurts. You'll hear it again too.

In between Steve Foster proclaiming himself the richest NSCer?

 

[drew]

Would this be the pensions that Brown raided to help fund his spending spree.? What about the Gold reserves? Oh yeah, what Gold reserves. !!

Give it a rest about the gold reserves, do a bit of research!!!!!! As for pensions, why should pension funds get tax relief on dividends and nobody else?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Would this be the pensions that Brown raided to help fund his spending spree.? What about the Gold reserves? Oh yeah, what Gold reserves. !!

Hmmmmm. I can now see why you defend SF's trite posts.

 

[aberllefenni]

So Ed is going back to the policies of borrow/spend/borrow...exactly the same policies that worked so well,that when they left they little notes like...'There is no money left.
Labour and their voters want to hit the bosses and bankers and give the working man the money.(So they say...delivering is not so easy) Executive thinking...the very people who make the money and employ workers should be hit so they cannot expand and give out more jobs and increase production.
High taxes for the better off doesn't work...France tried it,put up taxes for the bosses...look at the mess they are in now,all the high earners have left the country, so they lost tax revenues all together......paramount to when Russia shot all her generals...
Somebody has to be in charge,somebody has to earn more than you...A labour vote is a short term memory vote...you cannot remember last time they had the reins..opened up the borders to anyone who wanted to come here,these people have to be housed,=or a hundred and fifty of them can be put up at expensive hotels ...you may moan that your not getting enough money,bet all these interlopers do....why do you think they are queueing up to get into this country.

So, the budget deficit was all Labour's fault and nothing to do with the global financial crisis was it? As for the situation in France I think you'll find it has more to do with their inextricable link with the Eurozone which has overriden any policy formulated on a domestic basis. Higher taxes for the wealthy do work but only as part of a wider economic formula and I don't buy this let the wealthy keep their money and it will trickle down to us plebs, let the wealthy keep their money and they'll do just that, keep it. This type of "doff the cap to the country squire" attitude should be consigned to where it belongs, somewhere between the 17th and 18th century.

I wouldn't place too much faith in Lord Ashcroft's surveys either. The oft-quoted 73% of the under 16's voted Yes in the Scottish Independence Referendum amounted to just 14 people, hardly a representative sample.

 

[beorhthelm]

...As for pensions, why should pension funds get tax relief on dividends and nobody else?

because its our pension funds. we get tax relief on the money we put into those funds, why shouldnt that apply to the re-invested dividends from the investments made? Brown quietly taxed all pensions to the tune of >20%, or £5bn a year in 1997 (far more by now).

and who would benefit from the new pension changes? everyone. but mostly the typical pensioner, who cant utilise current rules to hold off using their pension until 75. this is an equalisation of the rules so that everyone is treated the same regardless of their circumstance.

 

[Gully Forever]

Ed Miliband running the country, for the love of God NO!..
Apart from looking foreign!.
Hate the thought of what he thinks about Immigration!.
His mother was a polish Immigrant for starters!.

Takes care of those with a sticky matress!. And Encourages teenage Girls to have Illegitimate children by paying for them with our taxes!.

 

[Eeyore]

Lib Dems then ?

I think the Tories will be the majority party. Despite their poor showing overall, the first past the post system will still return enough Lib Dems to have influence in a hung parliament.

 

[drew]

because its our pension funds. we get tax relief on the money we put into those funds, why shouldnt that apply to the re-invested dividends from the investments made? Brown quietly taxed all pensions to the tune of >20%, or £5bn a year in 1997 (far more by now).

and who would benefit from the new pension changes? everyone. but mostly the typical pensioner, who cant utilise current rules to hold off using their pension until 75. this is an equalisation of the rules so that everyone is treated the same regardless of their circumstance.

The dividends are earnings and all earnings are taxed! As you say, you have already had tax relief on the contribution yet you want a double bonus of tax relief on the money it earns!

 

[drew]

Ed Miliband running the country, for the love of God NO!..
Apart from looking foreign!.
Hate the thought of what he thinks about Immigration!.
His mother was a polish Immigrant for starters!.

Takes care of those with a sticky matress!. And Encourages teenage Girls to have Illegitimate children by paying for them with our taxes!.

I didn't know Paul Dacre posted on here!

 

[Seagull58]

Gideon has excelled himself with today's announcement about scrapping the higher rate of tax on INHERITED pension funds.

If you set out to try and parody old school Tory policy that seeks simply to protect the interest of the privileged few then you could hardly do better.

I have managed to build a decent pension fund through 35 years of hard work and I intend to leave it to my kids. My old man was a shipyard worker on the Clyde. I didn't inherit the fund my kids will inherit (hopefully not for many years). Privileged few, my rear end.

 

[Seagull58]

It's unbelievable isn't it?

You may find it unbelievable but I would say its very reasonable. If I spend my working life building up a pension fund sufficient to support me in my retirement and then bequeath it to my children on my death what's fair about the government taking 55% of it?

 

[Eeyore]

Surely the UKIP 17% being converted to seats ( or not ) will depend on the clustering of the UKIP votes ? The Lib Dems have had a number of MPs over the last 30 years and sometimes with mid-teen percentages. If that poll is repeated for real then I can see a hung parliament and one hell of a bun fight to be the first to build a coalition.

Key phrase.

Political history is rarely kind to parties starting out in the arena with strong backing, and even with a decent showing. 1983 was harsh for the SDP/Liberal Alliance, they took 25% of the vote yet only returned 23 seats. I think about half of their gained seats (12) were from Labour MP defectors (I don't have the exact figures). Additionally, UKIP may struggle with the tactical vote, and will be best concentrating their resources in targeted way. They will know this.

If they do establish a platform, then 2020 will be their big election in Westminster as people grow in confidence (As the Greens showed in Pavilion). A number of good third places will give people the confidence to stay with them, second place in any constituency will mean they are almost guaranteed to push on (assuming something doesn't go horribly wrong).

They'll win Clacton, and hold it at the General Election. I'm not sure about Rochester. I think it's too early for other seats, but who knows.

 

[Stoo82]

It's unbelievable isn't it?

What, unbelievable Labour agree with the cut and that their angle at attacking the announcement is that it should never have been put on in the first place and they are only taking it off becuase we are in election mode?

 

[drew]

You may find it unbelievable but I would say its very reasonable. If I spend my working life building up a pension fund sufficient to support me in my retirement and then bequeath it to my children on my death what's fair about the government taking 55% of it?

Fair enough, but you have received tax relief on your contributions. Perhaps it would be better to remove that benefit and leave the pension tax free to transfer. Alternatively, keep the contribution tax relief and just include pension funds in inheritance tax!

 

[Seagull58]

These are the policies that were going to eliminate the deficit in one parliament. The fact that there are more people in part time work who want or need full time work. The explosion of zero hour contracts, not because people want them but because they are all that is on offer. Low mortgage rates that we had under the last government. We now have Osborne announcing that he is going to steal from the poor to pay back the rich with Pension changes and caps on some benefits and reductions on the maximum. This is the same Osborne who sold off the Post office to his mates who then sold it on for massive profit despite getting the good deal in the first place on proviso they were in it for the long haul!!!! Oh and don't forget about our triple A rating.

If I were an investigative journo, I'd be looking at the friends of Osborne just to see who has family about to peg it and, ergo, who would benefit from the immediate changes to the pension taxation!!!!

How on earth do you work out that not taxing my pension pot when I leave it to my children is stealing from the poor to pay back the rich? I have paid income tax on all the money I earned to build my pension pot. Why the hell should the government take a further 55% when I die?

 

[Seagull58]

The dividends are earnings and all earnings are taxed! As you say, you have already had tax relief on the contribution yet you want a double bonus of tax relief on the money it earns!

But you pay tax on the income you draw from the pension fund. Dividends are reinvested into the pension funds, not taken as income. When the income is taken it is taxed. Why should it be taxed twice?

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

I think the Tories will be the majority party. Despite their poor showing overall, the first past the post system will still return enough Lib Dems to have influence in a hung parliament.

The LibDems will be massacred in the 2015 GE. The opinion polls show their support is still waning and they are vying with the Greens percentage wise for 4th and 5th place. UKIP have several Labour target seats in Eastern England where UKIP support is between 35% to 40%

 

[wellquickwoody]

Let's face it - whoever gets in will make things worse.

A Labour government is slightly better for our quality of lives, but bad for the economy.

A conservative government is worse for our quality of lives (unless you're rich) but slightly less bad for the economy.

Whoever we vote in, things will only continue to get worse. We should be pushing for a revolution of the democratic and economic system, rather than playing along with this party politics charade.

I'll just go and slash my wrists then! Whatever happens things will get worse? Jeez, I hope you do not have any staff to lead.

Times are tough, and things are getting tougher for the western world. Cheap labour in the far east, immigration from poorer to richer parts of Europe, technology making all things equal, the west will never have it as easy as in the past.

But 'whatever happens things will get worse'? Do have a special insight, or are just a very poisonous pessimist? Or an agenda to dishearten the infidels?

 

[Seagull58]

Fair enough, but you have received tax relief on your contributions. Perhaps it would be better to remove that benefit and leave the pension tax free to transfer. Alternatively, keep the contribution tax relief and just include pension funds in inheritance tax!

Any income I take from the pension fund while I'm alive is taxed and any income my children take after they inherit it is also taxed. Why should they tax it 2 or 3 times?

 

[Eeyore]

The LibDems will be massacred in the 2015 GE. The opinion polls show their support is still waning and they are vying with the Greens percentage wise for 4th and 5th place. UKIP have several Labour target seats in Eastern England where UKIP support is between 35% to 40%

Surprisingly, I think, despite the Liberal Democrats only having a consistent 8-10% in the poll, they will hold on to more seats than people assume. The key question is the collapse in their vote. Where they have MP's they often prove popular, and may hold a loyalty vote. Where they were challenging, yes, they have no chance. All that matters is their vote in the constituencies they hold.