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Do they arrive where they are now if there’s any great degree of competence or some master plan that’s being played out? There’s a series of disastrous events that have lead to where we are. This is not an exhaustive list by any means but Cameron has a referendum he arrogantly thinks he can win. He loses and fucks off. May, another remainer, takes over and thinks a hard Brexit is the best way forward (for her and her retaining power). She has a healthy majority but calls a snap election anyway, is a campaign disaster and wipes that majority out. She’s now a dead man walking. No working majority and safe in the knowledge her party won’t let her stand as leader at the next GE. Johnson comes in and can’t do a thing but plays on the fact the thick as fuck general public are desperate to get Brexit done. Swinson and Corbyn get sucked into his ploy and he wins an 80 seat majority. Then Covid masks virtually everything wrong with leaving the EU. Eventually this begins to unravel because the entire government and Parliamentary Tory party say Brexit is going well when they know it’s actually wrecking the economy but can’t admit it. Johnson’s shenanigans eventually turn the public against him so his MPs would rather role the dice than risk losing their seat. The membership then choose Truss, a power hungry moron, despite every demographic (including Tory voters) preferring Sunak. Truss then picks a cabinet of sycophants even she doesn’t find mentally intimidating. Their big idea is to come up with massive borrowing to fund the biggest tax cuts in decades but ones which overwhelmingly benefit the rich the most, at a time when almost everyone is significantly worse off than they were 5 years ago. They’re just a pub drunk at closing time, staggering to the next lamppost, thinking it’ll save them until they accidentally stott their heed off it.

Bloomberg. I don't know what reaction they were hoping for, but I'm guessing it wasn't this.

Done nowt but piss on the righteous so far.

Thing is the republicans and to a lesser extent the Democrats as well get away with a lot of shit as they sell this American dream where if you work hard enough, you too can be rich. I think the tories have and are trying to sell this same shit over here - a lot of people who have no business even thinking of voting for them believe this "aspirational" shit where the 150k job is just around the corner. You know they'll argue that if Labour promise to raise any taxes at all that this means they're against hard work and sadly this will probably be enough to stop Starmer from making any such promises as there are idiots out there who'll accept the tory argument.

Suits you sir.

Good luck with both of your situations, gents.

I was planning to buy my first house around the turn of the year - working 6 days a week at the moment to add that bit extra that I needed. The stamp duty component will do nothing for me, but the interest rate hike is going to make it all the more difficult. It's hard to stay motivated that there's a better life worth working for at times, frankly.

CT'dYP

Yeah, I'm thinking along both your lines, this is a last ditch gamble for them. Somehow this trigger a growth boom and somehow they will be re-elected on the back of this. And if it doesn't work out this way, then let Labour clear up the mess.

Get the King to interject like his mother did when tax was going to affect her estate in Scotalnd. Oh wait on, this only damages the peasants. ShE DiD GratE FoR thE CunTry

You’re sat at your desk like this aren’t you?

I'm off to Keswick later and it actually looks like it should be relatively good weather all weekend. The sun shines on the righteous.

Would be nice if Starmer could rouse himself above the level of “drowsy tramadol addict” with regards to his parties opposition after this budget

This lot are trying to buy the 2024 general election and my moneys on them succeeding

If you've watched his interview with Hannity the other night, one thing that came across loud and clear on that is that he's shitting it and flailing. It can't be fun receiving legal blow after legal blow day after day, and I'm loving all of it. I hope it either bankrupts him or the stress of it all just hollows him out and kills him. Or both would do too.

That has to be the worst post in this entire thread. Aren’t you the bloke who liked that absolute abomination, ‘Sons of Anarchy’ (apologies if I’m mixing you up with another poster who enjoys abysmal TV)?

I wonder which prison gang he'll be looking to join.

36 yrs old.

My worry is that when Labour win the next election what do they have to work with? A failing economy with a decreasing tax base? Then when they need to raise tax rates they’re painted as ‘same old Labour’.

Hilary Mantel I’ve only read the first of the Wolf Hall trilogy. The tv series based on the first two was brilliant as well imo

Just fixed for 5 years a couple of weeks ago. Should have gone through sooner but the solicitor was fucking useless. CUNTS

There used to be an occasionally funny dating page in Mixmag. One that springs to mind was along the lines of - Are you into political activism? Do you have strong views about the environment? Are you part of the anarchist-illegal rave scene? Then kindly fuck off. I want a thick as fuck blonde with massive tits.

Our house failed to sell this summer, it went on just before Easter. We had two buyers pull out, interest rates during this period went up three times and they’ve just gone up again. We’d found a bit of a dream home to move to but had to pull out of that ourselves. We were intending putting it on the market again in the Spring and the stamp duty cut would’ve helped. But as you say it’s fairly irrelevant when rates will probably at least stay at a 30 peak till then & go up perhaps three times again next year?…our fixed deal finishes at the end of this month and we’ve just fixed for 5 years at £250 a month more than we were on….

Interest rates set to hit 5% next year now, with the BoE pulling in the opposite direction to the treasury. Who's mortgage is on a variable or on a fixed up for renew soon? Half of mine is on a tracker which is a a bit of the kick in the balls. The reduction in stamp duty will be more than countercted by affordability criteria of the new rates I think.

I’ve thought this too re: expecting to lose but I’ve cone to the conclusion they haven’t got a clue what they’re doing. The problem with the notion it’s deliberate is they can’t take the rest of the party with them because it means loads of them losing their seat at the next election.

Tbh I am pretty firmly of the opinion now that they're expecting to lose and so are pushing the purest form of Toryism on us so that Labour are bogged down for years trying to sort it all out and they can come sweeping back in 5 years hence blaming Labour for absolutely everything - Brexit, the economy, the lot. They've reached a point where they need to muddy the water on who is to blame. There cannot be any other plan at this stage. They're pretty much a domestic terrorist organisation at this point IMO - have been since Brexit but becoming increasingly bold. The other angle is that they're complete fucking morons - which is a tempting one too. I don't see how they can win on this basis, this is too much, surely. If PL is right about this we are beyond fucked.

Just watched 15 mins BBC news on catch up from 12 o'clock after watching sky news live at 12 o'clock. There's such a difference in tone, sky basically telling it how it is, BBC news spending 5 mins having Andrea Leadsom talking shite and not really getting grilled very much from their political editor.

I'm putting this right up there with CT's infamous "Could this be the week that we can say Mike Ashley is finally....etc." They're so out of touch in their South Coast tax havens.

Nowhere to hide.

Borrowing is fine for things like building infrastructure. Tax cuts, not so much.

Not everyone in the UK thinks like you/us, I think Brexit sort of proved that. No one I know thinks they’re being had by the tories, even if they did “Labour would be worse mate!!” They just don’t think about it very much and then just vote Tory anyway…

Is this about Chris Wood?

FORUM CROSSOVER JOKE ALERT!

"Politically toxic and economically dubious". The words of an unnamed Tory MP, adding that people would be left "aghast" by the abolition of the top rate of tax. The Prefects Common Room has gone fucking doolally here, high on their own supply, and completely out of touch with their own party, the country and economic common sense. Serves the daft cunt right for packing the cabinet with people as fucking stupid/batshit as her.

Also there's the simple fact that we are not living in a vacuum, this "mini budget" will have ramifications we cannot control. We maight see parity and worse with the dollar soon.

I think Rents is right…a lot of us are naturally pessimistic after 40 odd years of supporting Newcastle

I am - was/hopefully still am going to move back to Newcastle. It's been a weird few years and I am really ready to go back home.

Me granny used to say that. Enjoy!

Thread

"Around 660,000 top earners will gain £10,000 on average from abolition of highest rate of income tax, Treasury admits". Unfortunately for Truss, that 1% still only have 1% of the votes (although I am sure they would like to change that). Edit: fooking Gemmill beat me to it.

660,000 of Britain's wealthiest are now £10k a year better off on average, courtesy of the top rate of tax going. Just impossible to justify. It'll go straight in their fucking ISAs, and do nothing for the economy. These are the Treasury's own figures btw.

Everybody notices their own pocket though. And people do notice the figure head, Johnson proves that. Truss has more than neutralised Starmer's personality vacuum. Is there much point on arguing on the basis of anecdotes anyway? The polls continue to tell the real story.

makes you wonder why they bothered with a decade of austerity when the end game was to borrow their way to a currency crisis. at least during this cost of living crisis it was for the worthy cause of *check notes* tax cuts for the country's wealthiest people.

The markets are confident about Trussonomics then.

@sammynb Am seeing Lemonheads on October 12 in Southampton….no doubt your bass drum friends are on the bill too… Jah Wobble tomorrow night in Fareham