Wednesday 19 March 2014

Budget 2014

Amazing, incredible...ermmm here is my quick review:


a) A bad start
b) Sagged in the middle
c) Tailed off towards the end

So what was the point of that then, nothing exciting and everything else announced months ago. I almost pity the print journalists who have to try and make copy from this!

13 comments:

Blue Eyes said...

Disagree. Didn't see the actual speech but he's raised the threshold for the 40p rate so everyone can have a bit of the increase in the personal allowance. He's made ISAs easier and more generous and the pension changes have got to be good.

I am reasonably happy.

Just wish he'd crack on with the spending cuts.

Anonymous said...

Blokes who have no real experience of life bickering about how they will spend your money.

I've got a civil partner for that!

Bill Quango MP said...

I thought he did alright.
If you are a pensioner or about to become a pensioner I expect its a pretty good day. Lynton Crosby seems to have pointed the chancellor at the essential demographic.

For the rest of us, not much to get excited about. But there never is.

At least he didn't burn £50 million just to fox his opponent as some '10p' chancellors have done in the past.

Graeme said...

at l0ong last a budget with gimmes for pensioners and savers - definitely a tactical budget. If the reporting i9s correct and there is no longer a requirement to buy an annuity with your pension funds, then this could be the best budget for 30 years.

Electro-Kevin said...

Blue - Spending cuts.

Yes. But Osborne has to consider the fact that the country would be set on fire if he hatchet swung as it should.

Steven_L said...

How much demand for government bonds will the new annuity rules remove from the market?

The final nail in the coffin for the 30 year long bull market in gilts methinks.

No more QE, no more financial repression of pension savers and £1.25 trillion government debt. The only way is up (for mortgage rates that is).

Blue Eyes said...

Graeme spot on. BQ it's not just for soon to be pensioners. Of course the rules won't be the same in 35-45 years when I retire but it will be hard to go back from a liberal policy to a "you must buy a rigid expensive annuity" as designed by Calamity Brown.

The ISA rules are good for us middle income types and the tiny changes in the income tax thresholds are a hint at what it might look like under a Tory or ConDem government next time.

EK I think the government agrees. However we had a bit of rioting before the cuts even started. I think they wouldn't have been much worse if there had been actual cuts.

CityUnslicker said...

In my personal world you must be loaded to care about ISA's...saving?

hovis said...

Late to the party here, but I cant see the 1% rise in the 40% rate as anything but another tax grab. Osbourne has consitently allowed fiscal drag to bring more and more people into the so called "higher" rate.

So he raised the allowance by 1% (less than inflation) so the headlines scream tax cut when in real terms this is just a marginally less large tax rise. So we serfs are supposed to doff our caps and say 'thank'ee sir' to the little weasel? F*** off he's shown nothing here, it might appease some with tribalist leaning but I lost those a good while ago, so but not I.

Blue Eyes said...

It makes a refreshing change from the past few years when each rise in the personal allowance has been matched by a cut in the 40% threshold to ensure that nasty middle income people don't benefit.

No doffing of caps or licking lips at mirages here. Just relief that there was a small shift in emphasis.

Jan said...

A bit late but.....I think freeing pensions is mainly about keeping consumption going...the blue rinsers will spend it all while they still can although the less selfish ones may not and keep some back for their kids and grandkids

hovis said...

My ire wasn't directed at you BE, just at the way it was portayed in some of the papers, as well of course feeling particularly ranty this morning.

Blue Eyes said...

I realise that, no offence taken!