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Markmywordswell

Listed below are comments made by Markmywordswell between Friday, 2nd May 2008 and Saturday, 17th May 2008.

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Rallying the troops 12:43pm on 17 May 2008 Anyone else think that Kiwilegs and Grandantidote might be one and the same person ?

You can hide many things, but writing styles and the same type of spelling mistake are dead giveaways.
Rallying the troops 12:31pm on 17 May 2008 Kiwilegs, with the greatest of respect:

"He was such a bad Chancellor that we have the highest employment on record"

There are at least officially 5 million people more in the UK now than there were in 1979. We can't discuss the unofficial figures because the Government doesn't know who or where they are. Therefore there are BOUND to be more people employed in terms of numbers. But in terms of full time employment numbers as a percentage of the populace ?

"More people own their own homes than ever before."

Thanks to Mrs Thatcher. Who started the process of enfranchising those council tenants who wanted to move onwards and upwards.

"3 million children have been taken out of poverty."

In which country ? Because I have seen REAL poverty. And trust me, that doesn't exist ANYWHERE in the UK.

"He introduced the minimum wage"

Wasn't this going to be forced on us by Europe ? (Not wrongly by the way, I like the idea of a NMW.)

"more Doctors, Nurses Police, Hospital waiting lists down."

I cannot tell you how much the Doctors HATE this government. And I rather thought that the country was crying out for more Doctors, nurses, Police, oh...and Teachers too. Hospital Waiting Lists are down, because if you can't get seen to within 3 months, you don't get put on one. Of all the Labour lies, this is the closest to the top of the list. Do not kid yourself or us. I know FIRST HAND what instructions are being given in respect of waiting lists at local NHS level.

"More hospitals and Schools built over the last 10 years than all of the 18 years under Thatcher and Major."

I honestly don't know the statistics, so I will accept your point.

"OAP given a winter fuel allowance".

To try to help them with the disgraceful and unchecked heating cost inflation occurring under the Labour Government.

"Pensions to be linked once again to earnings."

And with the high real price inflation we are now seeing under a Labour Government, it is a good thing too. Let's hope he gives the pensioners back the money he has plundered from them via the disgraceful tax attacks on the pension schemes.

"free TV licences to the over 75 years old.
Free bus passes for the elderly."

Conceded. No problem with that.

"Please list the achievements of the last Tory Government do not forget to include the Poll tax will you,where dustbin men paid the same ammount in tax as Dukes and Duchesses."

1. The enabling of the council tenants to buy their own houses.
2. The destruction of the power of the undemocratic and oft lazy and incompetent Union Barons.
3. The creation of improved wealth. 2 cars up most people's driveways, satellite dishes on roofs, tv's and computers in every kid's room.
4. A lower tax economy, leaving Labour unprecedented reserves and economic stability when they came to power. Something they have proceeded to now destroy.
5. Far better technology, better education, better prospects than ever before. Emphasis is on "than ever before".
6. A very strong Britain competing in the modern world. A respected Britain, not a "weak" Britain. A Britain no longer laughed at by its European counterparts.
7. Better labour and Health and Safety legislation, than ever before.
8. Industry run by Industrial people, not by shambolic politicians.

And as for the poll tax, the idea was based on the concept that a household with 5 people in it, would put more pressure on council services than a household with just one person. (eg five times more rubbish.) That the concept was sound is FACT. The tax became unpopular because it meant that certain people would have to pay for using council services for the first time. And they said "why should I pay ?".

The argument about bin men and dukes/duchesses is crass and stupid. Firstly, the bin men are far more likely to use the council services than the Duchess. Secondly, why should the Duchess subsidise the cost of your rubbish ? Thirdly, are you now saying that this should be a measure for society. So, for example, at the queue for cinema tickets , there should be a queue for "those who believe that the rich should keep subsidising them" - such people pay nothing. Then a queue for the middle earners, who just pay normal price, and then a queue for "the rich and the toffs" who pay double price, so that you can get in for free.

Utterly absurd. The cost of council services should be exactly the same for everyone. Or, based on actual usage.

The duchess pays no more or less for her milk and sugar as you. Do you think they should be made to pay for those things too ?

To quote Thatcher, please stop the "politics of envy".
10p tax repair 09:15am on 17 May 2008 The thing that astonished me the most is that, as an accountant, it took me about twenty minutes on budget day 2007, yes 2007, to calculate that the abolition of the starting rate of 10% and the lowering of the basic rate bands to 20% would hit anyone on low earnings and no benefits, and would equally benefit anyone earning more than around 18,000 per annum.

I saw it coming 12 months ago. Why didn't the government ?Who was advising them, and what did they expect people to say ? This is such a simple piece of mathematics and it defies belief that the government were too thick to see it coming, and also that their spin people/advisers were too thick to see it coming.

What has been announced this week is that personal allowances will increase by 600 pounds. The effect of this is that everyone paying at the basic rate of tax, will actually get just 120 pounds back. NOT the 223 pounds they lost (based on last year's starting rate band.) Again, no one seems to have seen it. This is NOT a like for like replacement. Someone earning 7,665 pounds will still be 103 pounds worse off.

All middle income tax payers (18,000 and over) will now be even better off.

But just to correct an earlier post, the increase of the personal allowances will not affect higher rate payers, as the level at which people pay 40% has fallen by a compensating amount. 40% payers are still better off than they were last year, (because of the fall in basic rate) but are no further better off as a result of this new development. They are no worse off either.
Fuel for the inquest 4:44pm on 02 May 2008 As an accountant, I remember listening to the budget 2007 live on Radio 5 live in my car.

After about 6 miles further down the road, I had calculated that a single person earning about £18,000 or less would be worse off as a result of the abolition of the 10% tax band. Whilst those earners in the £ 35,000 region would be considerably better off as a result of the drop in the basic rate band.

What absolutely baffles me is that if it took the accountants about 10 minutes to realise the effect of this, then how in blazes has it taken so long for the politicians to realise this.

I would however want to correct some myths about how much has actually been lost. As a result of the loss of the 10% band, the actual tax hit (for non state pensioners) is no more than £ 223, which is £ 4.29 per week. As a result of the increase in personal allowance for single people, this hit is reduced to £ 181, which is £ 3.48 per week. This is all providing that you are a single person under 65 with no other benefits/allowances available to you.

For people in receipt of pensions, then, assuming that their gross total income does not exceed £ 21,800, then they will actually be better off in 2008/09 as the increase in the age related personal allowance will save tax of £ 296, whilst the loss of the 10% bracket will cost them £ 223. Therefore, all pensioners over the age of 65, will, in fact, be better off by around £ 1.40 per week. Hardly a fortune, but nonetheless pensioners over 65 are not losers from these budget changes.

I don't understand how OAP123 is paying £ 38 tax MORE on his pension per month. Unless of course he has other income, which is being taxed via the tax code allocated to his pension. All pensioners over 65 are better off, any pensioner under 65 (early retiree) can only be a maximum of £ 15.08 worse off exclusively as a result of the budget changes.

Last night Brown paid the price for record fuel prices (20% higher than this time last year), for record gas and electricity prices, for ever increasing weekly shopping bills, for people's perception of economic doom and gloom, whether real or not, for record numbers of seemingly uncontrolled immigration, for record levels of political arrogance at almost all levels, for record levels of corporate insolvencies and personal bankruptcies. The nation is being slowly asphyxiated by the policies of this administration. Particularly financially. There is not one person in this country who does not feel "ripped off" somewhere, somehow on a weekly basis.

To quote Cromwell:

"You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately ... Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!"
Inquest (continued) 08:29am on 02 May 2008 Nice to see some public honesty.

Wouldn't it be nice just to hear someone say "yeah, we got stuffed".

Time will tell.

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