National News Windfall tax on oil companies

[Peterdev]

I see this old chestnut is coming up now that a windfall tax should be imposed on oil companies.
What would be more appropriate would be see the price at the pump be reduced to allow transportation costs to be less for business and consumers. This would allow prices to be stable in the shops rather than having rocketing inflation.
No doubt interest rates will be soaring by double today….still only minuscule to 0.5%. That will hardly make any difference to rising prices. Nor will there be any encouragement to consumers to save.
The government coffers will certainly be boosted by increased taxes on petrol prices as well as any possible windfall tax.
Everything the government do seems to be too little. The pandemic has certainly had its impact on the economy

 

[Essexyellows]

Its been a very mild winter so far, the flip of that will be lower consumption of domestic fuel.

More folk are travelling less so demand for transportation fuel is lower.

I thought the whole "green thing" was wanting us to use less fuel??

So now we use less they charge us more for the less we are using...... got it!

 

[chuckbert]

So now we use less they charge us more for the less we are using...... got it!

Isn’t that how economics works?

 

[Essexyellows]

Isn’t that how economics works?

Yep if the supplier wants to keep the same bottom line.
However we keep being told things must change, we must use less fuel so the flipside is that the fuel companies' income will diminish.

I was talking to a chap who works for one of the power network companies about new build estates and asked him why a proportion weren`t built with solar as standard.
Kind of build 300 houses and have solar on 100-150 of them.
He said the supply companies weren`t interested in doing it because of the long term loss potential.
I said what about the green benefit and he laughed.

 

[Sheik djibouti]

Isn’t that how economics works?

Yep - it's that old chestnut capitalism again....

We should be windfall taxing the energy companies anyway. They have made even more obscenely huge profits than normal out of this - they can afford it. We can;t force them to put the prices down at the pump, so one of the only levers the government have is to reduce the tax take, which is self-defeating anyway and will not happen becasue it is sending out the wrong message on our low carbon ambitions. For de-carbonisation purposes alone, I am all for high fossil fuel prices IF low carbon alternatives are available at competitive prices with the proper infrastructure to support them - we're nowhere near ready for that at this point, but we need to get there PDQ. Gas-guzzling SHOULD be a luxury.

Interest rate rises at the speed the BoE are prepared to go will not touch the sides with where the economy is heading over the next 12 months - constant catch up I am afraid and by the time they do, there will be an awful lot of Just About Managings who will suddenly be unable to make mortgage payments - welcome back to the late 80's/early 90's everyone. Many in that JAM category are sitting on quite a bit of debt already, due to easy credit and cheap mortgages...it is going to get pretty hairy for an awful lot of people.

So forget encouraging people to save - most don't have anything to save now. That's kind of the problem with a cost of living squeeze and particularly for a large proportion of the population who would consider themselves in the JAM category with debts to begin with.

 

[Essexyellows]

Yep - it's that old chestnut capitalism again....

We should be windfall taxing the energy companies anyway. They have made even more obscenely huge profits than normal out of this - they can afford it. We can;t force them to put the prices down at the pump, so one of the only levers the government have is to reduce the tax take, which is self-defeating anyway and will not happen becasue it is sending out the wrong message on our low carbon ambitions. For de-carbonisation purposes alone, I am all for high fossil fuel prices IF low carbon alternatives are available at competitive prices with the proper infrastructure to support them - we're nowhere near ready for that at this point, but we need to get there PDQ. Gas-guzzling SHOULD be a luxury.

Interest rate rises at the speed the BoE are prepared to go will not touch the sides with where the economy is heading over the next 12 months - constant catch up I am afraid and by the time they do, there will be an awful lot of Just About Managings who will suddenly be unable to make mortgage payments - welcome back to the late 80's/early 90's everyone. Many in that JAM category are sitting on quite a bit of debt already, due to easy credit and cheap mortgages...it is going to get pretty hairy for an awful lot of people.

So forget encouraging people to save - most don't have anything to save now. That's kind of the problem with a cost of living squeeze and particularly for a large proportion of the population who would consider themselves in the JAM category with debts to begin with.

If you are accruing debt you aren`t "just about managing" you are living beyond your means.

Been there, got the t-shirt and endured 17%+ interest rates!

The best thing anyone could have done over the prolonged period of low interest would be to reduce their level of debt because it is a given that rates will rise.

I`ll agree with a windfall tax as long as it is distributed fairly and therein is the tricky part - how to do so?

If they decide to knock £200 off everyone's bill someone will say that is unfair as those who can afford it benefit, or do you increase the Warm Home scheme by £200 where those who work miss out........................ not an easy one.

 

[Essexyellows]

So it's £200 off your bill for everyone and £150 rebate on Council Tax bands A-D.

Good news for us then as we get the £350 then pay it back over 5 years..............

 

[QR]

Capitalism is the biggest ponzi scheme of all. A system built, when largely unfettered (as Tories call for less regulation!), to let the few take out a disproportionatal sum to the efforts they expend.

The flip of this is the suffering of others.

The more the few take the more everyone else suffers. We are now at the point where for those at the bottom of the ladder 'suffering' is and will increasingly manifest itself as malnutrition and unbearably cold houses. The rachet up as the few take even more will be the death of the poor.

How long will people put up with this? Will people allow others to die. I fear, based on the number of 'I'm alright Jack' types on here, quite a while yet. Covid has soften them up to 'accept deaths' as you can read on here most days.

 

[RyanioBirdio]

How long will people put up with this?

Forever.

 

[Essexyellows]

Capitalism is the biggest ponzi scheme of all. A system built, when largely unfettered (as Tories call for less regulation!), to let the few take out a disproportionatal sum to the efforts they expend.

The flip of this is the suffering of others.

The more the few take the more everyone else suffers. We are now at the point where for those at the bottom of the ladder 'suffering' is and will increasingly manifest itself as malnutrition and unbearably cold houses. The rachet up as the few take even more will be the death of the poor.

How long will people put up with this? Will people allow others to die. I fear, based on the number of 'I'm alright Jack' types on here, quite a while yet. Covid has soften them up to 'accept deaths' as you can read on here most days.

You had better learn to accept death because it is the only certainty in life.

Lets go full on North Korea where nobody dies and everyone is happy.

 

[QR]

You had better learn to accept death because it is the only certainty in life.

Lets go full on North Korea where nobody dies and everyone is happy.

Your usual glib, out of touch, irrelevant and frankly insulting responce to an incredibly serious issue. DON'T LOOK UP!!!!

 

[Essexyellows]

Your usual glib, out of touch, irrelevant and frankly insulting responce to an incredibly serious issue. DON'T LOOK UP!!!!

What death? If you find out how to avoid it let me know.


Back on topic it seems Rishi has got confused between a "cut" in fuel bills and a "loan" repayable over 5 years with no interest but there we are.

We will also probably find out that the "cut" in Council tax won`t filter down to the payer as the local council absorbs it by creating a department for implementing the reduction.

 

[QR]

What death? If you find out how to avoid it let me know.


We will also probably find out that the "cut" in Council tax won`t filter down to the payer as the local council absorbs it by creating a department for implementing the reduction.

Go on, falsely rubbish council when it's the government's energy strategy that's failing us all.

BTW councils will run a simple BACS tape (old jargon) used council tax DD info. Those not playing by DD will probably have to apply as councils won't hold their bank details. So like your heroes you're talking crap again.

 

[Essexyellows]

Go on, falsely rubbish council when it's the government's energy strategy that's failing us all.

BTW councils will run a simple BACS tape (old jargon) used council tax DD info. Those not playing by DD will probably have to apply as councils won't hold their bank details. So like your heroes you're talking crap again.

I`m fully in favour of fracking. Seems the tree hugging folk aren`t.

Our City Council is abysmal from a lived experience.
They invest disproportionately in the East of the City where the core Labour vote sits and ignore the West, even the local Labour councillors get frustrated at it.
Even more annoying is sitting 1 mile from the County boundary where services are far better!

I expect you to come back with "Ah buts the Guvermunt cutz innit?" again....

 

[Sheik djibouti]

I`m fully in favour of fracking. Seems the tree hugging folk aren`t.

Our City Council is abysmal from a lived experience.
They invest disproportionately in the East of the City where the core Labour vote sits and ignore the West, even the local Labour councillors get frustrated at it.
Even more annoying is sitting 1 mile from the County boundary where services are far better!

I expect you to come back with "Ah buts the Guvermunt cutz innit?" again....

Maybe you should move

 

[Sheik djibouti]

I`m fully in favour of fracking. Seems the tree hugging folk aren`t.

Our City Council is abysmal from a lived experience.
They invest disproportionately in the East of the City where the core Labour vote sits and ignore the West, even the local Labour councillors get frustrated at it.
Even more annoying is sitting 1 mile from the County boundary where services are far better!

I expect you to come back with "Ah buts the Guvermunt cutz innit?" again....

https://www.local.gov.uk/publications/fragmented-funding-report

 

[QR]

Maybe you should move

He had moved on.... from the point being made as he didn't have an answer.

 

[Essexyellows]

Maybe you should move

We will be soon and it will be a consideration.

 

[Essexyellows]

He had moved on.... from the point being made as he didn't have an answer.

The City council where I live is biased to where its core vote lives.
Can`t say I blame them, but they are setting themselves up for failure as other Wards start kicking up.
Got a local Ward election today which should be a massive Labour win....... we shall see.

 

[MC Yellow]

Capitalism is the biggest ponzi scheme of all. A system built, when largely unfettered (as Tories call for less regulation!), to let the few take out a disproportionatal sum to the efforts they expend.

The flip of this is the suffering of others.

The more the few take the more everyone else suffers. We are now at the point where for those at the bottom of the ladder 'suffering' is and will increasingly manifest itself as malnutrition and unbearably cold houses. The rachet up as the few take even more will be the death of the poor.

How long will people put up with this? Will people allow others to die. I fear, based on the number of 'I'm alright Jack' types on here, quite a while yet. Covid has soften them up to 'accept deaths' as you can read on here most days.

Certainly agree with the Ponzi comment, but this is a global problem not a U.K. problem, so I am not sure why the need to slip in another Tory dig. Unless of course you want to blame Labour for the global banking crisis, also caused by unfettered regulation.

You also seem to think that those who now find themselves in more comfortable circumstances have never experienced hardship in the past. Not sure it is completely fair to pigeon hole all of these people as “Im alright Jack” types who have never experienced difficult times in the past and who don’t really care.