Davkaus Posted September 12 Share Posted September 12 (edited) Better than the alternative, but I really don't care for these people. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/sep/12/no-winter-fuel-payments-impact-assessment-was-carried-out-no-10-admits Quote Ministers did not carry out a specific impact assessment on the withdrawal of the winter fuel payment from the bulk of pensioners, such as the potential effect on illness and death rates among older people, Downing Street has said. After days of No 10 refusing to comment, Keir Starmer’s deputy spokesperson said the only assessment made before the policy announcement was a standard legal one of potential equalities impacts. Asked to confirm that there had been no wider assessment to try to establish how many affected pensioners may face health vulnerabilities, and could thus be at risk, she said: “That’s right.” The spokesperson said the focus was instead on encouraging eligible pensioners to seek help. Taking money away from people based on gut instinct rather than any kind of informed decision making. Bunch of rocket polishers. Edited September 12 by Davkaus 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted September 12 Share Posted September 12 2 hours ago, bickster said: Not continually f*** it over like the Tories have been doing. Maybe everybody needs to pay a little more tax Is the right answer. It's been deliberately starved and run down for well over a decade. It needs a government to give it some TLC. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 12 Share Posted September 12 (edited) 14 hours ago, foreveryoung said: You watch them scrap the 25% discount on council tax for people living alone in the budget. Seems, they maybe all shit scared to touch the rich. The days of Labour going after the rich are long over. That ended when the "War Ciminal" decided to abolish clause four. That's when Labour became Conservative but with a small c. I'll gladly admit, that it's better than a big C but that's nothing, really, to get excited about. Let's see what the homeless figures are like in a couple of years from now. They pledged to bring those figures down, so let's see if they're more than just talking a good fight. Edited September 12 by sheepyvillian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulC Posted September 12 Share Posted September 12 23 minutes ago, sheepyvillian said: The days of Labour going after the rich are long over. That ended when the "War Ciminal" decided to abolish clause four. That's when Labour became Conservative but with a small c. I'll gladly admit, that it's better than a big C but that's nothing, really, to get excited about. Let's see what the homeless figures are like in a couple of years from now. They pledged to bring those figures down, so let's see if they're more than just talking a good fight. Yes very true. We will have to wait and see what's in the Budget. By not denying that are going to scrap the 25% single person's council tax discount doesn't mean they will do it. Changing the outdated council tax bands seem more likely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 12 Share Posted September 12 3 minutes ago, PaulC said: Yes very true. We will have to wait and see what's in the Budget. By not denying that are going to scrap the 25% single person's council tax discount doesn't mean they will do it. Changing the outdated council tax bands seem more likely. Funny enough, I got a notification off universal credit, today, saying they're taking my Council Tax arrears with monthly payments. It was fun while it lasted, I'll actually miss telling them Nazi looking bailiffs to "feck off"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foreveryoung Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 11 hours ago, Davkaus said: This is not some common sense idea NHS middle managers don't want you to know, they don't do it because it would cost more, and worsen service. The net cost of prescribing 100 paracetamol is about £2-2.50. Having your healthcare assistants pop out to buy 100 from Tesco (if you could) would cost you £2.30 and not guarantee supply. The problem here is so many people going to the GP instead of popping out to the shop themselves (but free prescription certificates will do that...) and doctors still being so profligate with prescribing paracetamol when they're advised not to prescribe it. Needs Brailsford in there, with his aggregated marginal gains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulC Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 9 hours ago, sheepyvillian said: Funny enough, I got a notification off universal credit, today, saying they're taking my Council Tax arrears with monthly payments. It was fun while it lasted, I'll actually miss telling them Nazi looking bailiffs to "feck off"! Yes they do take outstanding debts off UC payments. Takes them a while to do it but think they are only allowed to deduct a certain amount. I'm worried for people on benefits what welfare cuts this government will make in the Budget..we know the tories under cameron targeted them and introduced some cruel measures like the bedroom tax. No full housing benefit fir under 35s. Also the local authority rates for private tenants putting more and more people into poverty. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 9 hours ago, PaulC said: Yes very true. We will have to wait and see what's in the Budget. By not denying that are going to scrap the 25% single person's council tax discount doesn't mean they will do it. Changing the outdated council tax bands seem more likely. I am sure everyone has had a gaffer who thought that unless everyone hated him he was failing at his job, and it seems likely that Starmer thinks that way. People who dread being considered weak tend to over-compensate in the other direction. Its going to be tough old winter folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 10 hours ago, Davkaus said: Better than the alternative, but I really don't care for these people. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/sep/12/no-winter-fuel-payments-impact-assessment-was-carried-out-no-10-admits Taking money away from people based on gut instinct rather than any kind of informed decision making. Bunch of rocket polishers. It is a bizarre strategy, especially when they spent most of 2022 heavily criticising the Tories for potentially doing it. I understand they need to raise lots of money quickly, but this is a massive own goal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 5 minutes ago, MakemineVanilla said: I am sure everyone has had a gaffer who thought that unless everyone hated him he was failing at his job, and it seems likely that Starmer thinks that way. People who dread being considered weak tend to over-compensate in the other direction. Its going to be tough old winter folks. Yeah he's doing a muscle flex at the moment. It's a shame he's looking down and not up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foreveryoung Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 Re, stopping winter fuel payments too. We do realise that not fit for purpose Ofgem is raising the price cap again.Just in time for when we use the most energy coincidently, I think the end of September. Gotta make sure the big energy companies top up there profits, as well as Ofgem getting its bung. An before a few jump on and say it's world oil prices. You need to remember, when our bills were 3k plus, an we were all struggling, the fat cats were making record profits. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 1 hour ago, PaulC said: Yes they do take outstanding debts off UC payments. Takes them a while to do it but think they are only allowed to deduct a certain amount. I'm worried for people on benefits what welfare cuts this government will make in the Budget..we know the tories under cameron targeted them and introduced some cruel measures like the bedroom tax. No full housing benefit fir under 35s. Also the local authority rates for private tenants putting more and more people into poverty. Good job I'm made of the finest timber. However, most are not, and it's always been the vulnerable in society who feel these harsh measures the most. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted September 13 Moderator Share Posted September 13 4 hours ago, foreveryoung said: Re, stopping winter fuel payments too. We do realise that not fit for purpose Ofgem is raising the price cap again.Just in time for when we use the most energy coincidently, I think the end of September. Gotta make sure the big energy companies top up there profits, as well as Ofgem getting its bung. An before a few jump on and say it's world oil prices. You need to remember, when our bills were 3k plus, an we were all struggling, the fat cats were making record profits. Do you have even the remotest shred of evidence to back the claim in bold up? In relation to record profits, that's how margins work The cap this winter will nowhere near as high as it was last winter History of Ofgem's Energy Price Cap - a Timeline | Heatable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted September 13 VT Supporter Share Posted September 13 (edited) 15 hours ago, delboy54 said: Well as long as "reform" just doesn't mean chucking even more money at a struggling institution... In my humble opinion there is a lot right with the NHS, but also a lot wrong with it. If it was the best model for health care then why hasn't it been copied by any other country in the world? 15 hours ago, bickster said: You mean apart from... Sweden Denmark Ireland Portugal Spain Norway Cyprus Latvia Hong Kong Italy New Zealand Finland Malta Cuba Who all follow the Beveridge model to some degree or other My brother has just moved to Spain recently. He took his newly registered daughter to the Dr's and they asked if he'd been registered yet. When he said no they signed him up on the spot and he was immediately bussed from room after room seeing various nurses for all sorts of tests before sitting with a doctor to a review. This when just turning up to get his daughter seen. I don't know what their version of The NHS is in Spain but not a chance in hell you'd get that here. Edited September 13 by sidcow 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 36 minutes ago, foreveryoung said: Re, stopping winter fuel payments too. We do realise that not fit for purpose Ofgem is raising the price cap again.Just in time for when we use the most energy coincidently, I think the end of September. Gotta make sure the big energy companies top up there profits, as well as Ofgem getting its bung. An before a few jump on and say it's world oil prices. You need to remember, when our bills were 3k plus, an we were all struggling, the fat cats were making record profits. I dropped my smart meter and smashed it beyond repair. Sent an email to my energy provider, only to be told they can't replace the meter as it will no longer aligne with my outside metres, so anytime I need to hit the emergency credit, which, for me, is quite often, I now have to go downstairs (upstairs flat), and press buttons on my outside metres. They're full of shit. Why just nationalise the Railways? It's a crime the way energy companies have been fleecing the population with impunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davkaus Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 6 minutes ago, sheepyvillian said: Why just nationalise the Railways? It's a crime the way energy companies have been fleecing the population with impunity. Nationalising trains is easy, all of the train operating companies have fixed term contracts we can simply choose not to extend when they naturally come to an end, hey presto, we have nationalised rail, easy as that. Restructuring the energy industry is a lot more complex, expensive, and risks scaring the market. It's also the case that the companies making massive windfall profits aren't the UK energy suppliers, it's the energy generators, most of whom I think are based overseas. Sometimes these are based under the same parent organisation, such as Centrica owning British Gas, but not always, and suppliers have gone through a very difficult few years which is why so many of them went bust because they didn't have a profiteering parent company propping them up. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 13 minutes ago, Davkaus said: Nationalising trains is easy, all of the train operating companies have fixed term contracts we can simply choose not to extend when they naturally come to an end, hey presto, we have nationalised rail, easy as that. Restructuring the energy industry is a lot more complex, expensive, and risks scaring the market. It's also the case that the companies making massive windfall profits aren't the UK energy suppliers, it's the energy generators, most of whom I think are based overseas. Sometimes these are based under the same parent organisation, such as Centrica owning British Gas, but not always, and suppliers have gone through a very difficult few years which is why so many of them went bust because they didn't have a profiteering parent company propping them up. Just because it's complex doesn't mean it can't be achieved. That comes with the responsibility of Government. I'm sure "Reforming the NHS" will be quite complex. You're, sadly, right, it's not going to happen though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davkaus Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 4 minutes ago, sheepyvillian said: Just because it's complex doesn't mean it can't be achieved. That comes with the responsibility of Government. I'm sure "Reforming the NHS" will be quite complex. You're, sadly, right, it's not going to happen though. You're obviously right it's possible with the political will. Would you be happy spending tens of billions on it though? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepyvillian Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 1 minute ago, Davkaus said: You're obviously right it's possible with the political will. Would you be happy spending tens of billions on it though? Sadly, that's at the bottom of all the challenges ahead, "Money". It was ever thus. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davkaus Posted September 13 Share Posted September 13 1 minute ago, sheepyvillian said: Sadly, that's at the bottom of all the challenges ahead, "Money". It was ever thus. Yup. Fwiw, I'm generally in agreement with you, it should be state owned, there's no real competition, and if it was state owned now, it would sound ridiculous to propose selling it off to let people profit from it, but where we find ourselves, I think it's quite hard to make a case for it, with all the other broken services that need fixing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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