Current Affairs 2025

[Onelife]

David Lammy is proposing Jury-free trials

Yes or No?

Without knowing all the details my initial thoughts would be to support this idea. Having said that, I think I would like to see more than one person presiding over the guilty or innocent verdicts.

Maybe a better option would be to set a minimum education standard for jury duty.

That’s why I’ve probably been able to avoid doing jury service …but I think it is often the case that some juries allow their emotional bias to override good judgment.

[Stephen]

What a joke

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cy8vz032qgpt

[oldbluefox]

Just listening to her I’m wondering if she lives on the same planet as me because none of what I have heard so far bears no resemblance to where we live. Who has written these fairy stories?

[Onelife]

Having listened to Kemi Badenock response I can’t see her being the opposition leader much longer. Ok’ we know her back benchers are pushing her to be “stronger” but having listened to her rambling on trying to take that stance, she, imo came across as vindictively rude and was completely wrong footed by the generally positive budget which Racheal Reeves delivered.

[david63]

There was a lot of words but little substance other than everything is the fault of the previous Government - and I was ashamed by the behaviour of the "school children" on both sides.

There was a lot "I" in her speech, which is fine as when it comes unstuck it will be her head on the block.

[Stephen]

Someone’s head will be on the block for ‘accidentally’ publishing the contents the budget.

I agree with David, it was pathetic listening to the heckling going on. Instead of the deputy speaker asking certain members to be quiet she should have had them removed.

[towny44]

It just shows the difference that the same subject can have on people, my view of the budget was the complete opposite to Onelifes. I thought Rachel from accounts presentation was the rambling one, whilst Kemi's response was punchy and certainly her take on the massive increase in welfare spending struck just the right chord with me. Unless the govt, whichever party is in charge, gets to grips with the burgeoning welfare bill then this country has absolutely no future, and anyone who thinks differently is living in cloud cuckoo land.

[poole boy]

towny44 i really agree with every thing you said in your last post and wonder haw any one can make her budget speech positive as it will mean any pensioners being told they are getting a good rise will have to pay more tax for the next 3 years

[david63]

Can somebody explain why we still need to have child benefit?

Yesterday Rachel from accounts scrapped the two child cap on child benefit claiming that it would take 450,000 children out of "relative poverty" (whatever that is) but it will also be putting more money into the pockets of many that don't need it. Whilst I can accept that there are some children, through no fault of their own, that the benefit is a lifeline and because of that then the benefit must continue.

But where I think that she missed a golden opportunity is that at the same time she should have announced that child benefit will not be paid for any children born after, say, 1st January 2017 thus starting the end of this benefit - if you cannot afford to have a child then don't have one, it really is that simple. OK there will always be exceptions/extenuating circumstances but those should be dealt with on a case by case basis.

I simply cannot understand why I, as a tax payer, have to pay families to have children. The concept of child benefit was brought in after WW2 because there was a need to rebuild the population - that need is now long gone to the extent that the opposite is now more of a requirement. The Government are constantly bemoaning the fact that the benefits bill is too big so what do they do, they increase it!

[david63]

Next EV car tax.

This is the worst thought out tax I have ever heard of.

When questioned about it this morning Rachel from accounts was trying to say that it could be collected from mileage provided from MOT tests until it was pointed out that an MOT test is not required for the first three years - which planet has she been on for the last 50 or so years?

The other idea is that you submit your predicted mileage at the start of the year and from that a monthly charge will be made and then at the end of the year you submit your actual mileage resulting in either a refund or an additional charge depending on the actual figures. This sounds to me to be an administrative nightmare - just getting motorists to sign up in the first place. Surely it would be simpler, and cheaper, to have a supplement to the Road Tax? With the current technology in cars in general, and EVs in particular, it is not beyond being able to monitor a car's mileage in real time and tax accordingly.

This form of tax has been inevitable with the growing number of EVs but it seems a strange piece of timing when only the other day the Government announced grants to encourage motorists to take up the buying of EVs.

[towny44]

I am not certain if the lifting of the 2 child limit will mean every family will receive the benefit if they have more than 2 children, or whether this only applies to families claiming Universal Credit. If the latter then I can see the logic of this for poorer families.
As to whether this is the best use of £3bn a year, I leave that for others to judge.
It will be interesting to see if this leads to a significant increase in the birthrate.

[Ray B]

Rachel said the everyone should contribute, not that we have a choice. With the tax threshold frozen, it's just more tax to pay and more now having to pay tax.

[Stephen]

I thought the idea of trying to save the planet and eventually doing away with petrol/diesel cars was to get more people into electric cars. This new tax system is never going to do that. In fact I can only see more unemplyment from manufactureres as orders decrease.

[david63]

I thought the idea of trying to save the planet and eventually doing away with petrol/diesel cars was to get more people into electric cars. This new tax system is never going to do that. In fact I can only see more unemplyment from manufactureres as orders decrease.

Don't forget though that the sale of new petrol/diesel cars will be banned from 2030 and I imagine that dealers will start winding their stocks down long before that (unless the goalposts are moved) so I don't really see there being a decline in the manufacturing of EVs in the long term, perhaps a slow down in demand for a few months.

The tax on EVs has been talked about for the last 10 years as everyone has been aware that as more EVs hit the roads that fuel duty will diminish and that something will have to replace it.

The more I think about the current scheme the more I think that it will not happen unless there is some legislation that goes along with it but then there is the problem of enforcement.

[Onelife]

I personally think we should stop all this whinging and accept that taxes needed to go up…but not yours of course.

Get a grip folks, there were a lot of positives in this budget…albeit with a few that could have been done differently.

I do believe that we finally have a government that is trying to implement policies that give us a better chance of digging ourselves out of this massive hole we are in.

Oh’ and I love you all.

[david63]

we finally have a government that is trying to implement policies that give us a better chance of digging ourselves out of this massive hole we are in.

Do you mean the £3 trillion national debt with interest at around £8.5 billion a month? I see nothing in this budget that will alleviate that

[Onelife]

we finally have a government that is trying to implement policies that give us a better chance of digging ourselves out of this massive hole we are in.

Do you mean the £3 trillion national debt with interest at around £8.5 billion a month? I see nothing in this budget that will alleviate that

Then unfurtunatly they will be following in the same footsteps as the previous government who when taking power back in 2010 inherited a 1.2 trillion debt, increasing it to 2.7 trillion before getting ousted for incompetence.

For the most I think this Government is making sensible long-term policies, which I for one hope will restore some economic stability from which business confidence can grow.

I remain positive.

[towny44]

Onelife, have you seen the forecast trajectory for the welfare bill, and that was before this budget. The liklihood that our economy will grow to even keep pace with the current treasury demands, which as we all know is unable to provide sufficient doctors, teachers, police officers etc etc.
So much for your sensible policies, labour has always been the tax and spend party, and I see no liklihood that it will ever change.

[Portsmouth]

For the most I think this Government is making sensible long-term policies
I remain positive.

Good pleased you are so positive especially about the new Gambling duty changes

The biggest impact to the sport is likely to come from the indirect consequences of bookmakers reducing sponsorship, cutting marketing and removing customer incentives like bonuses
In essence, the OBR is predicting bookmakers will seek to reduce risk and costs in its customer base to keep more of the money people bet with them. That means punters can expect a less attractive proposition worse odds, fewer bonuses and less appetite to lay risky bets.

Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain said the additional cost to its UK and Ireland online business would be approximately £200m, before mitigation.
Chief executive Stella David described the budget as "a disaster for British betting and gaming as well as British customers", adding: "The only winner is the black market, which has hit the jackpot."

[towny44]

For the most I think this Government is making sensible long-term policies
I remain positive.

Good pleased you are so positive especially about the new Gambling duty changes

The biggest impact to the sport is likely to come from the indirect consequences of bookmakers reducing sponsorship, cutting marketing and removing customer incentives like bonuses
In essence, the OBR is predicting bookmakers will seek to reduce risk and costs in its customer base to keep more of the money people bet with them. That means punters can expect a less attractive proposition worse odds, fewer bonuses and less appetite to lay risky bets.

Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain said the additional cost to its UK and Ireland online business would be approximately £200m, before mitigation.
Chief executive Stella David described the budget as "a disaster for British betting and gaming as well as British customers", adding: "The only winner is the black market, which has hit the jackpot."

However horseracing has been exempted from the increase in the new tax, so you and Onelife will be able to safely continue to support the bookmakers shareholders.

[oldbluefox]

Sorry OL. I see nothing in this budget which will alleviate the problems facing the country? It just demonstrated how out of touch they are with reality. Good news for those on benefit and the workshy whilst the rest will have to "make a contribution".
They are naive to think that scrapping the cap on two children will alleviate child poverty. It won't.
My sympathies lie with those working long hours in two or three jobs on basic pay who don't qualify for benefit because they try to provide for themselves.

[towny44]

Sorry OL. I see nothing in this budget which will alleviate the problems facing the country? It just demonstrated how out of touch they are with reality. Good news for those on benefit and the workshy whilst the rest will have to "make a contribution".
They are naive to think that scrapping the cap on two children will alleviate child poverty. It won't.
My sympathies lie with those working long hours in two or three jobs on basic pay who don't qualify for benefit because they try to provide for themselves.

I do think it will have a very beneficial impact on many thousands of families, however whether we can currently afford such largesse is doubtful, maybe increasing the cap to 4 children would have had quite a significant benefit, and been far more affordable. However I do wonder how much will actually be spent on improving the children's lives, and how much will be spent on beer and fags, or maybe iPhone contracts.

[oldbluefox]

You are right towny. Many of these families are totally dysfunctional and it is the children who suffer from their neglect. The extra money will not go on the children but will indeed be spent on alcohol, cigarettes, bingo, tattoos, Netflix, anything but child welfare. These people should be discouraged from their chosen lifestyle of a life on benefits. By changing the focus maybe we can improve the life chances of the more disadvantaged children.

[Portsmouth]

Many of these families are totally dysfunctional and it is the children who suffer from their neglect. The extra money will not go on the children but will indeed be spent on alcohol, cigarettes, bingo, tattoos, Netflix, anything but child welfare. These people should be discouraged from their chosen lifestyle of a life on benefits.

You make a good point

[Onelife]

However, the fact still remains that the majority of children living in poverty live in the deprived areas of the country, Burnley, Blackpool, Wolverhampton, Middlesbrough to name a few, These areas have lost their industrial bases and have through lack of investment find themselves with few job opportunities, with the few that do find employment having to do part time or seasonal low paid jobs. I agree that parenting comes with responsibility and popping them out expecting the state to feed and clothe them needs addressing.