Summary of UK Budget

[mephisto5]

Budget 2012 at a glance: George Osborne's key points

INCOME TAX

From April 2013, the 50p top rate of tax will be cut to 45p.

Personal income tax allowance raised to £9,205 from April 2013, making 24 million people £220 a year better off, including higher rate earners.

But 300,000 more people will be drawn into the higher rate - 40% - tax band from 2013

Comments

[crossfire]

A loss of £83 per...week? Month?

Can one of our British members provide some perspective on this budget? Good? Bad? Disaster?

[mephisto5]

£83 per year.

From my perspective (obvs other Brits may differ), it's a lot better than I expected. I like the increased stamp duty and increased personal allowance (amount you can earn before paying tax).

[crossfire]

Thanks for the insight. It didn't look like the worst thing ever, but there are some things in there that looked scary, like the income tax shifts.

[strandedinaber]

Bad, imo. Tax cuts for the wealthy and the squeezed middle is going to be squeezed even further. I do like the increased personal allowance but that won't make a difference to the lowest earners. Those earning below £8,000 are going to suffer a lot with this in combination with the changing benefit system.

[ellonwye]

'Tax relief for the video games, animation and high-end television production sectors.'

How many times has this come up now and then been scrapped? Three? Four times?

[ghost_busting]

Oh fuck off Gideon.

Sometimes I really wish Ed showed more backbone but I do love it when he gets to snark. I lol'ed when he asked the cabinet to raise their hands if they benefit from the new tax cuts.

Can they also please stop with this whole regional public sector pay shit.

[strandedinaber]

Can they also please stop with this whole regional public sector pay shit.

Ugh, YES. Way to increase the regional divide even more.

[ghost_busting]

Exactly. They're concerned about the pay gap with the private sector? Encourage the private sector to pay their employees more. jfc

[strandedinaber]

But then they wouldn't be able to "reduce the national debt!!!" Which they are not fucking doing ANYWAY.

[atomic_joe2]

Loved the way Ed Miliband made them squirm when he asked which of them would benefit from the 50p top rate going. We should focus more on the fact that most Tories are millionaires and out of touch.

I have a feeling that the next few months could be the making of Ed Miliband. If he keeps the public eye on the cuts, the NHS and the fact that this is a deeply unprogressive government he could get real traction.

[maclyn]

It's a disaster. Everyone I know who has a normal job, or is on JSA, or who is too sick to work, just keeps watching their lives get progressively worse and worse.

[witherwings]

This, tbh.

This government just keep making me angrier and angrier. Feel incredibly disenfranchised right now.