Doom and Gloom

Nov 16, 2015
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Well after a lunchtime meeting with my motorcycle chums, the Pub was closed for a local chaps wake. RIP.
So off to another pub, nice pint and a sandwich. Got home and the dog wanted his walk, so thinking OMG , what's going to happen tomorrow with the Right Honourable, Robin Hood of the government, decided that SWMBO should come with us , to be able to have a couple of pint and a few glasses of wine before we give over our well earned pensions to the Government.
Taxed on your earnings, taxed on your savings taxed on your parents hand overs when they die. Taxed on your pensions.
Rant over.
Have a nice night wrapped in our blankets around the candles.
IMG_20221116_195950_950~2.jpg

There are just three tea candles in the lower bright lights. Optical illusions
 
Nov 11, 2009
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Unavoidable given the costs of the pandemic, energy price caps and the costs associated with Ukraine. What puzzles me is how amongst the G7 we are bottom of the league and our economy is the only one below its pre pandemic level ? But just take heart and remember the good times that we have all had.
 
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Nov 6, 2005
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Unavoidable given the costs of the pandemic, energy price caps and the costs associated with Ukraine. What puzzles me is how amongst the G7 we are bottom of the league and our economy is the only one below its pre pandemic level ? But just take heart and remember the good times that we have all had.
It doesn't puzzle me at all - but we keep politics out of this forum - I feel sorry for all those worse off but I don't have a solution.
 
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Jul 8, 2020
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Don't even mention pensions , i am planning on retiring at 55 ,just had a look at my pension pot and its dropped 250k since last year .:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:
 
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Don't even mention pensions , i am planning on retiring at 55 ,just had a look at my pension pot and its dropped 250k since last year .:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:
Has that not been counterbalanced by the better annuities on offer now that interest rates have risen? Or are you too far away from 55 to benefit. But my savings have dropped a chunk, but it will be transient and what comes down eventually goes up.
 
Nov 16, 2015
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Hopefully then in two years the world will be in a better shape and investments will have regained some ground and interest rates stay up.
My stocks and shares ISA, lost £5k in 6 months but have almost fully recovered, hopefully a few more months and I will be ahead again.
 

Parksy

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Nov 12, 2009
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If they were to scrap their overpriced vanity project called HS2 currently forecast at £100 billion they could fill the black hole and have change!
Write to your MP, not to our message boards.
This is a caravan forum and any further posts of this nature will be removed.
 
Mar 17, 2020
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Always difficult to steer completely away from "political" (small p) views when the thread is aimed directly at our "day to day" living experiences.

I'm not sure what a "Doom and Gloom" thread on a caravan forum is likely to bring other than personal experiences and opinions that, in this particular case, seems to have little bearing on "caravan matters"!
 
Jun 20, 2005
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Has that not been counterbalanced by the better annuities on offer now that interest rates have risen? Or are you too far away from 55 to benefit. But my savings have dropped a chunk, but it will be transient and what comes down eventually goes up.
Be very careful with Annuities. Buy one today, die tomorrow, end of all your Fund. Reading all the threads , political ones to one side , the answer is simple. No qualifications are required to run the UK other than being a failure in the real world.Pension pots rise and fall all the time. The big rises of recent years were only on paper. What you haven’t had you haven’t lost. Love the candles Hutch👏👏
 

PTA

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Trouble is "politics" impact on almost everything in our daily lives, including caravan costs, site costs, fuel costs, tow car costs, ability to tour abroad etc. etc. Difficult to steer clear of the subject really!
 
Mar 17, 2020
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Trouble is "politics" impact on almost everything in our daily lives, including caravan costs, site costs, fuel costs, tow car costs, ability to tour abroad etc. etc. Difficult to steer clear of the subject really!

I'd go so far as to say impossible to stay completely clear. Blind allegiance to a political partly in spite of blindingly obvious catastrophic policy failures is widespread.

And of course the friction here happens when what seems an "innocent" comment made by one member is taken as a direct criticism of the politics of another.

Makes me smile when in spite of overwhelming evidence for a particular point of view is widely expressed there are those who " hide their heads in the sand" simply to keep faith with a particular political standpoint that, in most cases has been instilled in their thinking from birth!

Now, back to caravans........................!
 
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Be very careful with Annuities. Buy one today, die tomorrow, end of all your Fund. Reading all the threads , political ones to one side , the answer is simple. No qualifications are required to run the UK other than being a failure in the real world.Pension pots rise and fall all the time. The big rises of recent years were only on paper. What you haven’t had you haven’t lost. Love the candles Hutch👏👏
Like everything in life annuities are to some extent a amble on how long you will live but so is not taking one. You can I think still find some that will repay some of the sum invested if you die very early but have not been involved in these for many years. They do prevent the other problem that hit my father in law who lived to 96, he simply outlived his expectation and did end up a bit short in the end. Get it really wrong and without an annuity you could be hit very badly. You can also get joint ones for couples to provide for the survivor if needed.
An annuity is a safe option in an uncertain world but what you choose may be down to your perception of risk.
As far as the budget is concerned I think there was never any doubt we would all be hit, but will not comment further as I think that would be too political for this forum.
 
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Parksy

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I agree that politics does affect our lives in many ways, but when a particular point about a policy is raised there are others who will disagree, and a political discussion follows.
The reason for my earlier intervention is that I've got better things to do than to act as an online referee to such a discussion.
 
Jun 20, 2005
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As an aside the Boundaries Commission for England has changed the make up of our Parliamentary Constituencies. Last week I was in North Wiltshire, today I am South Cotswolds. That should add 10% to home value👍👍. I suspect looking further afield some Boundary changes may have some clandestine reasoning 🤔
 
Nov 11, 2009
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As an aside the Boundaries Commission for England has changed the make up of our Parliamentary Constituencies. Last week I was in North Wiltshire, today I am South Cotswolds. That should add 10% to home value👍👍. I suspect looking further afield some Boundary changes may have some clandestine reasoning 🤔
I am sure that the Boundary Commission can be relied upon to be objective and fair. But it's up to the politicos if they accept the recommendations. We lived in Bradford on Avon and transferred from West Wiltshire to North Wiltshire when the previous boundary recommendations were made. Made no difference to the party representing us , and we still retained access to a good MP. Andrew Murrison,, now Michelle Donnelan. Both were excellent at responding to my letters/emails.
 
Jun 16, 2020
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As an aside the Boundaries Commission for England has changed the make up of our Parliamentary Constituencies. Last week I was in North Wiltshire, today I am South Cotswolds. That should add 10% to home value👍👍. I suspect looking further afield some Boundary changes may have some clandestine reasoning 🤔

There is, or has been, a proposal to move us to the Cotswold. We all said the same about it putting 10% on the values.

John
 
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I am sure that the Boundary Commission can be relied upon to be objective and fair. But it's up to the politicos if they accept the recommendations. We lived in Bradford on Avon and transferred from West Wiltshire to North Wiltshire when the previous boundary recommendations were made. Made no difference to the party representing us , and we still retained access to a good MP. Andrew Murrison,, now Michelle Donnelan. Both were excellent at responding to my letters/emails.
We keep the same MP, a very safe seat. I was thinking way North of me 😉
 

PTA

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I agree that politics does affect our lives in many ways, but when a particular point about a policy is raised there are others who will disagree, and a political discussion follows.
The reason for my earlier intervention is that I've got better things to do than to act as an online referee to such a discussion.

Perhaps it's value judgements attached to posts relating to political points that are the problem?
It's a fine line for moderators to delineate.
e.g "Caravan costs are rising because of inflation." OK
" Caravan costs are rising because of inflation caused by the government." NOT OK
I don't envy you in having to do that!
 

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