Off Topic Politics Thread

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I need to go back to the start and do a degree in business and economics. I know that we need to tighten up taxation, but I don’t understand it well enough to comment really. Been PAYE my whole life - and with large pension payments and mortgage payments have never really had any money <laugh>
 
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......loading...... said:
Absolutely. The more fudge there is around tax payment, the easier it is to fiddle. Most employees have no way to avoid tax - whereas the self-employed / business owner has many opportunities to find loopholes. So how do we fix it?
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Maybe change the system so that businesses/self employed pay tax on income and then put in a claim for tax rebates for all those things that they currently use to reduce their tax burden.
Put the onus on them to prove that they are entitled to that tax relief rather than on HMRC to prove that they aren’t.


With regards to the welfare costs, I don’t think anyone should be able to water down or stop a person from receiving a disability benefit without having a suitable medical qualification.
My wife had to prove that she couldn’t work by filling out a very long form (she couldn’t do it herself because of her drug addled brain due to the cancer related drugs she was on) and also by answering verbal questions from a non medically qualified person.
If a medical specialist supports a person’s claim that they cannot work, then that should be the end of the discussion.
Yes some will con the doctor but not as many people as are already conning the tax office.
 
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Trump now over riding the judiciary with Venezuelan gang members having been deported to El Salvador against court decision. I think that this is probably a good move in deporting criminals but a scary precedent should other legal challenges be ignored.

Trump will look to move more Liberal judges and attorneys to bring the courts in line and compliant. I feel he has done the right thing with Venezuelan gang members but the treatment of the South African ambassador is a sign of things to come.
 
StJabbo1 said:
Enact legislation to close loopholes, increase rate of capital gains tax, lower undocumented expenses allowance, there's lots more. Making sure HMRC fraud investigators have the resources they need to squeeze the pips of the thieving arseholes.
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Problem is, taxes are already devastatingly high. It’s incredibly difficult to run a successful business.
The brutal reality is that ratio of productive v unproductive people in the country is not good and continuing to get worse. There aren’t any easy answers.

I think I would advocate for an Elon style DOGE over here to eliminate fraud & waste before I started cutting benefits.

I have said many times on here that I don’t think we should raise taxes any more. We have a spending issue, not a taxation issue.

The government steals enough money from the productive citizens already.. enough that the country should work well imo - it’s just the vast majority of the money gets wasted.

(Although for sure the benefits systems need urgent reviews. 100% there are millions per month being wasted on paying benefits for people that should be working or not even claiming. I’m sure we all know many stories of this happening. Every dinghy that arrives at Dover costs us millions for example)
 
Osvaldorama said:
Problem is, taxes are already devastatingly high. It’s incredibly difficult to run a successful business.
The brutal reality is that ratio of productive v unproductive people in the country is not good and continuing to get worse. There aren’t any easy answers.

I think I would advocate for an Elon style DOGE over here to eliminate fraud & waste before I started cutting benefits.

I have said many times on here that I don’t think we should raise taxes any more. We have a spending issue, not a taxation issue.

The government steals enough money from the productive citizens already.. enough that the country should work well imo - it’s just the vast majority of the money gets wasted.

(Although for sure the benefits systems need urgent reviews. 100% there are millions per month being wasted on paying benefits for people that should be working or not even claiming. I’m sure we all know many stories of this happening. Every dinghy that arrives at Dover costs us millions for example)
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Eliminate waste? Shall we start with the Royal Family and House of Lords then?.
 
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I remember having an interesting discussion with a chairman of a previous company who made an interesting comment about employment and welfare. This was that some people are unemployable and should receive welfare because you would not want them in your business.

I also think most immigrants want to work. I would be in favour of people being allowed to stay in the uk in merit rather like in John Lancaster's excellent book 'The wall. ' I would like to see racist bigots such as those who rioted after the incident in Southport deported. We should promoting a Liberal and tolerant society. Those preoccupied with hate should be deported regardless of whether they are English / Scottish/ Welsh . Send them to Trump’s America where they will be appreciated.
 
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Ian Thumwood said:
I remember having an interesting discussion with a chairman of a previous company who made an interesting comment about employment and welfare. This was that some people are unemployable and should receive welfare because you would not want them in your business.

I also think most immigrants want to work. I would be in favour of people being allowed to stay in the uk in merit rather like in John Lancaster's excellent book 'The wall. ' I would like to see racist bigots such as those who rioted after the incident in Southport deported. We should promoting a Liberal and tolerant society. Those preoccupied with hate should be deported regardless of whether they are English / Scottish/ Welsh . Send them to Trump’s America where they will be appreciated.
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We did years ago, but to Australia. Time to.open that country up again for our unwanted then??
 
......loading...... said:
I think we should celebrate our Christian culture and live by the words of Jesus Christ. We should love the immigrant as we love ourselves.
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Wouldn’t worry as we won’t be a Christian country in a few years, the way things are going currently.
We will see how you enjoy Sharia law.

This current government will cut funding to pensioners and welfare benefits and use the money to defend any border except our own.

British taxpayers always last. Absolute insanity.
 
Osvaldorama said:
Wouldn’t worry as we won’t be a Christian country in a few years, the way things are going currently.
We will see how you enjoy Sharia law.

This current government will cut funding to pensioners and welfare benefits and use the money to defend any border except our own.

British taxpayers always last. Absolute insanity.
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These statements are so stupid as to being not worth responding to.

Shame you refuse to answer my question as to hoe you feel about Trump threatening the sovereignty of other nations.
 
Stewart Lee …
“But since Elon Musk showed social media how to downgrade the visibility of liberal comment and monetise the outraged engagement caused by right-skewed clickbait, I have watched my online views wither. Social media is engineered to suppress the material you are reading now. If you have been directed to this column online somehow, then somewhere there’s a rightwing billionaire that needs to rejig his algorithms”
 
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shoot_spiderman said:
Stewart Lee …
“But since Elon Musk showed social media how to downgrade the visibility of liberal comment and monetise the outraged engagement caused by right-skewed clickbait, I have watched my online views wither. Social media is engineered to suppress the material you are reading now. If you have been directed to this column online somehow, then somewhere there’s a rightwing billionaire that needs to rejig his algorithms”
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Grok will even tell you this is the case. Right wing hysteria generates clicks.
 
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......loading...... said:
This is pretty sadistic. Utterly un-English. Valueless, despotic and cruel. UnChristian and vindictive.

Os’s response? To be expected.
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It’s not even his account, it’s a media and news company.


1. Fact-Check & Dismissal (Professional & Confident)

"Presidential pardons, whether signed by hand or via Autopen, hold full legal authority under longstanding precedent. If there’s an issue with the process, legal avenues exist—but baseless claims don’t change reality. Instead of deflecting, maybe focus on the real issues facing America."

2. Witty & Direct (Sharp & Sarcastic)

"Ah yes, the old 'I declare it void' strategy—works great in imaginary courtrooms. Meanwhile, real legal experts and institutions still recognize the validity of these pardons. Maybe focus on policies instead of personal grievances?"

3. Engaging & Neutral (Thought-Provoking)

"If Autopen-signed documents are invalid, does that mean past executive orders, military authorizations, and bills signed this way are also void? This claim raises more questions than answers—perhaps a legal expert should weigh in?"
 
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