Autumn Statement: Bleak borrowing prediction rocks George Osborne’s deficit hopes.

[Taf]

"Employment Allowance extended to carers"

No details as yet... but it sounds intriguing.

[alanbjames]

If we wern't sending in our armed forces into countries behind whoever is in the Presidents office in USA and butt kissing we may not be in such a mess.

Theres no money for us in the UK, yet they always find money to replenish our weapons or to give to other countries.

I remember when Cameron gave the we are all in this together speach and said that there was no chance in raising the overseas aid budget as the UK could not afford to and within weeks he increased it by almost £1 billion.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Taf

"Employment Allowance extended to carers"

No details as yet... but it sounds intriguing.

Yes, there's no doubt in my mind that carers could do with a bit more help. Anyone who gives up a career to care for a loved one for any length of time is likely going to suffer the consequences long after their caring role has ended.

[blackthorn]

Originally Posted by Taf

"Employment Allowance extended to carers"

No details as yet... but it sounds intriguing.

Any idea what it means ?

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Ed Balls' response has been abysmal so far. Absolutely abysmal.

He has an impossible task.

Unemployment is going down, employment is going up, the economy is growing. You can argue that it should have been better than this, but Labour spent the first three years of this parliament predicting that it would be a whole lot worse - and it hasn't been. They don't look like a credible government-in-waiting and Balls know it.

edit

Oh, and all the carping about Tory cuts, Tory cuts, Tory cuts is about to come home to roost as well. You can't easily spend 5 years making out that cuts are the definition of evil, when you know you're going to have to go into the 2015 election acknowledging that you will ... er .. have to make quite a lot of cuts.

Of course, Labour bet the farm on things going so horribly wrong between 2010 and 2015 that they could get back into power almost by default. I wonder how they think that might work out for them now.

[Osem]

Yes just been listening to Balls being interviewed by Andrew Neil and when he wasn't answering questions about Labour policy with remarks about Tory policy, he was making quite a lot of fuss about all the cuts they're going to make. How very odd...

[Taf]

Originally Posted by blackthorn

Any idea what it means ?

Not at all, just one line in the BBC report.

With the end of DLA looming and the "more directed" PIP taking its place, I fear a lot of disabled people and their carers are suddenly going to find themselves unaided by the State because many disabilities will be downgraded as "not severe enough" especially when the company replacing ATOS gets its orders (and loads of cash).

---------- Post added at 16:07 ---------- Previous post was at 15:36 ----------

It now says

Employment Allowance worth £2,000 extended to carers

[blackthorn]

Originally Posted by Taf

Not at all, just one line in the BBC report.

With the end of DLA looming and the "more directed" PIP taking its place, I fear a lot of disabled people and their carers are suddenly going to find themselves unaided by the State because many disabilities will be downgraded as "not severe enough" especially when the company replacing ATOS gets its orders (and loads of cash).

---------- Post added at 16:07 ---------- Previous post was at 15:36 ----------

It now says

I`m still no wiser to what it means. I`m only asking cause I`m a carer. Does it change anything for me I wonder.

[denphone]

My carer and l at the moment cannot understand what this exactly means but its highly likely that the devil is going to be in the detail when we get that.

[Gary L]

It means that you can now employ somebody. and if you pay them less than £2,000 a year. then you don't have to pay NI contributions.

dog walker? cleaner? maid? escort?

Originally Posted by Mr Angry

More financial chaos.

"The Government will have to borrow as much as £75bn more than it intended over the next five years, delivering a damaging blow to Chancellor George Osborne’s hopes of claiming that the Government has the country’s deficit under control.


In Mr Osborne’s last Autumn Statement this Wednesday before the general election, his attempts to boast of the Conservatives’ economic record are set to be over-shadowed by new, bleak fiscal forecasts from the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR). Collapsing revenues from oil sales, stamp duty and income tax mean the Chancellor will be forced to admit his plans to bring the deficit down could be knocked off track."


Indy

Except it's not true.....

From the BBC

[Hom3r]

For some strange reason every time I hear George Osbourne's voice I want to punch him in the throat.

[Mr Angry]

Hugh, which part isn't true?

The extra £75 billion of borrowing.

[Mr Angry]

Originally Posted by Hugh

The extra £75 billion of borrowing.

How so? (Sorry, this isn't my forte).

The BBC report you link to states "The forecast for borrowing next year has been raised from £68.7bn to £75.9bn, but the predictions for the years after that have improved."

Osborne was cited in 2010 as having said "...that he would commit to a mandate of removing the structural current deficit - which adjusts for the effect of the economic cycle and ignores investment spending - and start cutting into the national debt by 2015/16. However, he added that he would achieve this goal a year earlier than expected."

As far as I am aware he has not achieved this goal and will, as the BBC appears to confirm, have to borrow an addititonal £75bn to continue in his attempts to do so.That is, by definition at least, £75bn beyond what he had anticipated needing to borrow to get the job done. As I say, not my forte but happy to learn.