Can we trust what the politicians are promising ahead of the election?
Over the last few weeks it has become apparent that many MPs and political parties will do whatever it takes to grab the attention of voters and ensure that you put your cross next to their name on the ballot paper. We have seen u-turns, we have seen changes in policy and we have seen a whole mix and match of comments, headlines and strategy changes. But can we really trust any of the politicians ahead of the election?
The truth of the matter is, and this has always been the situation with regards UK general elections, that political parties at this moment in time are focusing upon certain groups of the population who will ultimately dictate how the election goes. While there's no doubt that many of the policies being announced today are genuine hopes for the future the reality is that many of these policies and strategies announced over the last few weeks will never see the light of day.
The state of the UK finances will dictate the spending policy of political parties in the short to medium term after which they may well be able to return to their former hopes and aspirations. However, significant public-sector spending cuts, tax rises and other income streams will be announced after the election.
Share this..
Related stories
Government acts on empty property tax
Over the last few months there has been a rather strange phenomenon in the UK property market whereby those with empty properties have still been forced to pay business tax at the full rate. In many circumstances businesses have been forced to demolish buildings to avoid the tax which was crippling many and causing serious cash flow problems. However, the government has today announced a one-year...
Read MoreWill US banking giants move to London after US banking levy is introduced?
In a rather bizarre quirk of fate, the announcement by Barrack Obama of a levy against the US banking sector to replenish taxpayer's funds may well play into the hands of the London market. Despite the fact that the UK government is pressing ahead with a 50% banking bonus tax the playing fields between the US and UK are now more level than they have been for some weeks. On the face of it, it seems...
Read MoreU.K. authorities deny plans to nationalise Lloyds Bank
That the UK authorities have come out with a firm statement regarding the future of Lloyds bank and confirmed there are "no plans" for an outright nationalisation of the group. The wording is interesting because while many investors and analysts believe a full nationalisation is not far away, it appears inevitable that the UK taxpayer will be forced to increase its stake in the ailing group.
...
Are consumers being targeted by the government's pollution taxes?
As we covered in one of our recent articles there are grave concerns that UK power companies could be forced to increase costs substantially as the government look to reduce pollution into the atmosphere and introduce greener power. There are many forecasts about the potential impact this will have for the consumer and the general consensus seems to be increases in power costs to the tune of £200...
Read MoreHas Gordon Brown been outmanoeuvred again?
It has been revealed that Gordon Brown is working with his "archenemy" Nicolas Sarkozy to create a climate change fund of around £7 billion, funded by EU members. However, it has been revealed that the UK will be by far and away the largest contributor to the climate change fund despite the fact that other economies are performing better than the UK at the moment. So why is the UK yet again being...
Read More