We look like facing a very cold winter and beyond.
We have already seen that the Winter Fuel Allowance will be cancelled for those not on Universal Benefits,
I expect to see VAT on private school fees.
I expect to see the single person discount on Council Taxes to be withdrawn.
I expect to see Pay per mile arrangements being introduced. This would be to replace fuel duties lost to electric or hybrid motor vehicles.
I expect the council tax bands to be extended.
I expect to see fuel duties to rise, especially as fuel costs are currently down. (Brent Crude is currently $70 a barrel compared to $82 per barrel in August).
I expect to see changes to Dividend Income and Capital Gains taxes
I expect to see changes in Inheritance Taxes
I expect unlawful immigrants whose asylum applications are being assessed to be released into the community. This will lead to pressures on social housing but more directly it will increase the number of homeless in our area. Homeless people are the responsibility of local authorities, so more local authority expenditure will be required.
Finally, the Local Government Association are lobbying for lifting or removing the referendum threshold for council tax increases. This can only encourage local authorities to increase council taxes to unsustainable levels rather than achieving greater efficiencies.
There are now indications that the so called £22 billion financial black hole allegedly inherited from the last government may not be as bad after all. The Labour Government is refusing to provide key details of the £22bn “black hole” that chancellor Rachel Reeves claims to have discovered, with officials insisting they need more time to ensure that the figures are accurate.
Which suggests that for all of Rachel Reeves’s economic qualifications, these figures have been calculated using the back of a cigarette packet
The Prime Minister has warned that “Things will get worse before they will get better” and I believe him.

Disclaimer:
This blog/post is the sole responsibility of its author Brian Riley.
It has not been approved nor is it endorsed by Babergh District Council or South Suffolk Conservative Association.