Forum Topic

Rishi Sunak's gamble...

Read this link from the Independent...https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/cost-of-living-inflation-government-b2068668.htmlHuge mistake, but what do you think ?

Loraine Pemberton ● 1605d15 Comments

Complettly daft and out of touch to presume that everyone has savings!  He doesn't live in the real world and neither do so many in the Westminster bubble.

Philippa Bond ● 1604d

Philippa, unusually, I'm in complete agreement with you

Loraine Pemberton ● 1604d

Don't know if this a fact, so please correct me if it's not. I heard that 40% of the working population have less than 100 quid in savings, so that wont work RichiHe's also hoping that as we're just coming into Spring, no one will notice their energy costs.

Stephen Gould ● 1604d

That will not be the calculation Sunak did. The calculation will be a lot more along the lines of: what percentage of current and target tory voters have significant levels of savings? They are not aiming to help people, they are aiming to stay in power.

Alan Clark ● 1604d

From the Independent linkOffice Of National Statistics ONS figures" Households saved £72bn in 2019, compared with £211bn and £163.7bn respectively in 2020 and 2021 before accounting for inflation, according to the Office for National Statistics’ quarterly account.While from the MoneyCharity websitehttps://themoneycharity.org.uk/money-statistics/february-2022/QuotePersonal DebtPeople in the UK owed £1,765.6 billion at the end of December 2021.This is up by £64.2 billion from £1,701.4 billion at the end of December 2020, an extra £1,212.93 per UK adult over the year.The average total debt per household, including mortgages, was £63,528.Per adult this was £33,328, around 108.7% of average earnings. This is up from the revised £33,306 a month earlier.£3,745 Total unsecured debt per UK adult in December 2021UnquoteSo that while "houseolds" *overall* "saved" £ 211 billion in 2021, the average *debt" per household was actually £ 63,528.IOW its only because the richest households were able to "save" squillions during lockdown that the average is positive at all.  All Togther Now !But just think how much worse things would have been under Jeremy Corbyn. michael adams 

Michael Adams ● 1604d

Mortgage shouldn’t be included in debt figure, e Gerry prices have risen across the world along with cost of living this is NOT unique to the UK. The cheap prices we have been paying for chicken, eggs etc is totally unsustainable, farmers deserve to be paid a fair price for their produce. We have relied on cheap imports pre covid, those days are over, we all have to get used to higher prices, that’s the impact of covid and war.

Jayne Thorburn ● 1604d

Jayne Thorburn explained" Mortgage shouldn’t be included in debt figure,""Rushi Economics" at its best !  Basically people should simply default on their mortgages and use the money *saved* to pay their utility bills instead.Simples !  " We have relied on cheap imports pre covid, those days are over, we all have to get used to higher prices "Covid has been with us for two years now. More expensiove imports don't seem to have affected "some people to the extent that they managed to save £211bn in 2020and £163bn in 2021 as compared with only £72 bn pre-covid in 2019. These more expensive imports asa result of covid don't seem to have affected supermarket profits either, by the looks of things" Tesco profits are expected to soar to £2.75bn when the supermarket giant announces its full-year results on ...https://inews.co.uk/news/business/tesco-profits-expected-to-reach-2-7bn-but-it-could-face-pressure-to-reduce-prices-as-inflation-soars-1567306Although it "could face pressure" - sob, sob, cue the violins" Sainsbury’s profits have more than doubled to £730 million, with retail sales (excluding fuel) up 2.9% to £29.9 billion, while bosses warn of lower profit for the current year due to soaring inflation.""Lower profit for the current year " - when will the misery end for poor Sainsbury and Tesco - cue more violins !All together now !Things would be so much worse with Jeremy Corbyn in chargemichael adams

Michael Adams ● 1604d

Hey I had a mortgage at 8% interest which doubled in a year to 16% from memory. We have got used to cheap money, covid has had impact in supply chain, energy prices rises to Putin’s, war, fertilisers, grain, wheat so the impact across the world is very real. Then we have 1.25% to increase social care spending which everyone has been shouting about for years. Prices will continue to rise. Mortgage payments are funding a home which hopefully over the years will increase in value so not debt in the same way as a credit card, car loan etc, the tax payer is already having to fund furlough along with god only knows how many handouts. We are all in it together. Of course there are people more well off than others that has and always will be the case.

Jayne Thorburn ● 1604d

Jayne, reading both of your posts and between the lines, I detect, and please tell me if I'm wrong, a lack of empathy for the less well off without much in the way of savings and financial security ?Many don't own their own homes, are on minimum/low wages and are really struggling to pay for essential basics like keeping a roof over their head, food and power - how do you suggest those people cope ? As you've said we are all in it together.

Loraine Pemberton ● 1604d

" Tesco profits are expected to soar to £2.75bn when the supermarket giant announces its full-year results on ..."Indeed, that is why you will find that their prices have increased by minimum 10% to up to 75% on certain items. Yet Rishi is happy that pensions have only increased by 3.1% despite his manifesto promise of triple lockdown. And he refused to increase the winter fuel allowance. I shudder to think of how some pensioners are coping. 

Steve Taylor ● 1604d

There is also the problem of no fault eviction and AirBnB.  That doesn't exactly promise to create a happy and contented hard working population.

Philippa Bond ● 1604d

"Hey I had a mortgage at 8% interest which doubled in a year to 16% from memory."Yes but we also had high interest rates on savings in those days.  Many people could easily live on the interest they achieved on their savings!

Steve Taylor ● 1604d

Hey I had zero savings when I was younger and mortgage rates were high. So to survive I had to cut back and focus on essential spending like paying bills. The majority of the population are not on benefits, let’s have a balanced conversation. Fact is rising prices is happening in every country, whoever was in government wouldn’t stop that. Perhaps in hindsight furlough was too generous, we can’t keep taxing people on higher incomes who already pay the majority of tax collected. I have every sympathy for low income families with no savings it is going to get harder before it gets easier. Corp tax rises to 25% this year, pay has risen, spending has risen at some point we have to understand that covid and war impact the world meaning higher prices. The poor souls in Ukraine have lost everything literally so the rest of us will pay more for energy that’s the least we can do to support them. Hopefully over time the world will find alternatives to Putin’s gas & oil.

Jayne Thorburn ● 1604d

It's a shocking fact how little people have saved or nothing at all. MP's dont realise what it's like in the real world. We dont all work in workplaces with subsidised bars either.

Nicholas Beard ● 1603d

Please elaborate on your experience of and understanding of the lives of people on low incomes.

David Roberts ● 1603d