OT; Cwedit Cwunch?

[Arfa Daily]

So if Thatcher got it so wrong, and the ones that came after carried it on, how come the lying gobshite Blair and his tooth-sucking pal Brown, who came in on a ticket of "things can only get better" didn't get rid of her ideas, and put it back as was when you seem to think all was hunky dory? When she came to power, this country was teetering on the point of bankruptcy, just as it is now after a spend spend spend and sod the consequences labour administration has been in power too long again. Far from things getting better, they have got immeasurably worse since this government, which has got to be the most corrupt and inept in living memory, not even barring the Major years, came to power. Anyone who thinks otherwise, is either stupid - possibly even a product of their failed schools and education policies - or has been living on a different planet for the last 10 years.

Thatcher did what was needed at the time to pull this country back from a Labour created disaster. Of course not everything she did was right, and no sensible person would suggest otherwise, including her probably, but what she did do was right enough to save us from falling into an irrecoverable abyss.

Why is it that whenever anyone mentions her in regard of anything good that her administration did, out come all the selective amnesiacs, who only remember what they consider were her bad points ... ?

Arfa

[Tim S]

Derek Geldard coughed up some electrons that declared:

Sorry to hear that. Terrible.

Oddly enough, both my kids popped out there and, though the building are old and mouldy, the maternity staff were second to none. Wife got generally better treatment than St Helier in London (overstretched, lose your test results so you have to get them done 3 times). She had one brief emergency stay in the Conquest near Hastings, and although that's a pretty new and shiny hospital by comparison, Pembury seemed to manage to produce more staff were it counted. The Conquest is way understaffed on the nursing front.

And Pembury, or at least the maternity bit seemed fairly clean in 2003 and

2004. Don't know WTF happened in the last couple of years.

Needless to say, Pembury and the Kent & Sussex main hospital at Tunbridge Wells were spotless over the last few months when I had the occasion to visit.

Cheers

Tim

[Derek Geldard]

Following the winter of discontent (Whatever happened to the "Solemn & Binding" social compact/contract BTW.) It was absolutely clear that things had to change and she was voted in to change them.

Her downfall seemed to be the community charge about which she had been advised that if everybody paid it then the charge to each individual could be very low say 50 quid. She failed to realise that as in previous re-organisations the (mostly labour) local authorities would "Pig out" on the salaries paid to the new appointees in the new jobs (In reality, because of the unions, to the same old brain dead jobsworths who had been in the same posts for years).

Of course concessions came to be allowed and by the time it was all determined the community charge for the individual was non-trivial.

When the time came to collect it the renta-trots and the crypto-anarchists etc took to the streets and created mayhem, and the policy was lost. This simply meant that those who had paid nothing rioted to continue to pay nothing and reflect the cost of providing council services to them onto people who already paid for their own full share of council services.

By and large it's fomented by the crypto-stalinists and renta-trots, not forgetting those "On the free" living on benefits who have a vested interest in the status quo USW.

Derek

[Jerry]

There is no one so blind as those who choose not to see what is in front of their eyes...

[Arfa Daily]

I'm glad it was you that said that. Back at ya, pal ...

Arfa

[Dave Plowman (News)]

The frequent quote was 'why should a poor pensioner widow living in her own house pay the same as the family next door all working' under the rates system. My mother was in exactly that position and had to pay more, money wise, for the poll tax than she did under the old rates. So if they couldn't even get that bit right you can be sure it was really only meant to benefit the rich - like just about all of Thatcher's policies. They never helped 'middle england' as my brother, a teacher and true blue found out.

[stuart noble]

Whatever your politics, the poll tax was the sensible solution given that it's people rather than property that determines how much money local government needs to spend

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Far too simplistic. For example a large house will have a bigger road frontage which needs maintaining etc.

Of course there's nothing wrong in having a fixed charge for all for local services. Can we also then have a fixed and equal income for all too?

[dennis]

The poll tax was fine.. they didn't cap the councils when it was introduced.. ours increased spending by about 25% the year the poll tax came out and guess who they blamed?

I think it should be reintroduced.. it meant that everyone contributed to spending including those on benefits (even if there was a big rebate) so they were going to vote for people that reduced spending.

Even those on benefits wouldn't have paid more as the benefits were increased to cover the extra they would have to contribute as long as the councils didn't increase spending.

It was a case of a good idea introduced badly.

[Derek Geldard]

The Councils (usually Labour controlled) used it as an opportunity to pig out as they had in the Local Government re-organisation in 1974.

Then there were all the exceptions and a succession of pleaded cases such as convents and old folks homes. All this contrived to make the tax higher than Mrs T. had been advised.

Nothing will ever be able to help Middle England. Somebody has to pay the tax -the poor can't and there are not enough numbers of rich people. What Gordon Mac Shite-Features has done is to strip away every vestige of benefit that middle England used to get such as mortgage tax relief, MIRAS, etc. Then by upping NIC's by 2% and withdrawing student grants etc, putting humunguous taxes on company cars (when I last had a company car in 2003 I was taxed more heavily than if I had been given the value of the car in pound notes every year) middle England families are being reduced to penury. Next is coming green V.E.D and Gordon doesn't know when to stop.

Incidentally when Gordon Mac S-F said he was going to increase the tax on "THE MOST POLLUTING CARS" I thought I was in the clear with my 55 mpg Toyota Previa. No such luck my VED went up about 33% and if I had been running a 5 litre, £150k Ferrari it would have only cost me another sixpence per week in VED. "HELPING THE POOREST" my arse.

Derek

[Tony Bryer]

When Gordon Brown changed company car tax in 2002 I was left nearly £80 a month better off. But, as with the poll tax and, more recently, VED, you heard nothing much in the media about the winners and lots about the losers.

FWIW my car is a Honda Jazz auto, cost roughly £11,500, tax liability £11,500 x 15% x 40% = £13.27 per week on my tax bill - for which the company (my company) pays tax, insurance, servicing and depreciation, setting all these against Corporation Tax. I just pay the petrol. A deal worth having if ever there was one.

[Derek Geldard]

TBH I've seen nothing in the media about company car users losing out, there's little sympathy from motorists who pay for their own cars for company car users. The thing is the incessant changing of the rules disadvantages small business operators who change their cars infrequently because of taking a big depreciation hit when the vehicle is sold.

Well at that time mine was a 5 year old Fiat Ulysse with 88,000 on the clock. Invoice value when new £24,000 current market value about £4k. At first the revenue reduced my allowances by £7,700. I thought that had to be wrong so checked it on the AA website which confirmed it was wrong. I made an appeal and got it reduced to £4.700. on which I would pay tax at my highest marginal rate (40%) + NI (Both halves). This looks like £2914 in tax +NI /year, or £56.04 /week for almost zero private miles. The accountant said the IR would not accept that a car in a small firm does zero private miles.

So-oo I was indeed paying tax on more than the whole value of the car as if I had been given it in used notes afresh every single year. The car was always full of tools, parts and test equipment and I had nowhere to empty it at weekends so I used my wifes car to do private journeys.

Bit of a bummer altogether.

Oh, nearly forgot...

The tax on company cars is not now related to business miles done so it's an open ended invite for the MD to put his wife on the books and provide her with a natty little sports car to go out in when she buys her hats, the tax on which would be something like £50 / week, as you say "A deal worth having if ever there was one".

Gordon Mac Shite-Features "HELPING THE POOREST" my arse.

Derek

[Bruce]

How was it possible for you to pay higher rate income tax *and* National Insurance?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Absolute rubbish. It's still much better value than actually having to buy and run the equivalent new car.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Why do firms insist on buying high depreciating cars? Don't they have accountants?

You left the car at work each day?

[Derek Geldard]

I don't do the salaries myself and don't pretend to understand the ins and outs of a pigs arse that is salary and income tax legislation.

But, yes I do seem to recall one or both halves of the NI being capped at some figure which changes from time to time as "Prudence" runs inexorably out of money.

Derek

[Derek Geldard]

Chocolate teapot. However the choice of car was limited by the need to safely and reliably get out to customers up to 740 miles away (ret.) with all tools, spares, and circuit diagrams etc. and the occasional need to take customers out on sales demonstrations, so must be recent and decent.

I am a mobile service engineer and my service base is my home.

Derek

[Derek Geldard]

Not so. It is exactly the way it is.

I didn't have a new car it was 5 years old.

Derek

[Dave Plowman (News)]

And they still chose a Fiat?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

What firm runs 5 year old cars? Non I know of. IIRC that is the depreciation to zero period. But most change them earlier to keep a maker's warranty and 'free' servicing, etc.