The British ISA

[JohnB]

With the consultation not due to close until the 6th of June (80 years since D-Day!) I can't see them holding up the Finance Bill for it, they really do want to get the traps laid before Parliament is dissolved. And passing a measure for 25/26 could be killed in plenty of time in the new Parliament.

[Grumpsimus]

I do not think that anyone should get over excited about this. All it amounts to is a three months consultation. We already know the industry is not keen on what they see as an extra complication for very little gain. Already about half the investment in ISAs goes into UK equities. It appears to be just a tax bung to high earners.

Incidentally, I have seen no reference to the UK ISA being exempted from stamp duty as was suggested earlier.

The Financial Times summed it concisely "The UK ISA announcement: pretty much meaningless" , it is relevant if you think the current government will be with us next year. The attitude of a future Labour government isn't known, but The UK ISA is unlikely to be a high priority issue for them.

[mc2fool]

Mention of Ireland got me thinking of one of my nitpicking little issues, because sometimes Northern Ireland (NI) is treated differently from the rest of the UK. Technically NI isn't part of Great Britain because it says on our passports "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".

I'm not quite sure what the official definition of "Britain" is vis-a-vis "Great Britain" - looking up definitions on Wiktionary, the formal meanings of both excludes NI but the looser conversational definition includes it, equating it with the UK.

Great Britain is the name of the island which contains England, Wales and Scotland. It's as simple as that.

TJH

That's the geographical definition of Great Britain, it's the biggest of the British Isles. The political/territorial definition also includes the offshore islands of the countries of England, Wales and Scotland; e.g. the Isle of Wight, the Shetlands and Anglesey, just to name a very few.

[GeoffF100]

It has been delayed until after the General Election:

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/t ... r-BB1jH8QN

Surprise, surprise.

[monabri]

It's dead!

[kempiejon]

And I was just reading about

British Savings Bonds
Coming soon
The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Spring Budget that he wants to increase opportunities to help people save for the longer term. He’ll do this by launching British Savings Bonds, delivered through NS&I.....Due to launch early April – watch this space.

https://www.nsandi.com/british-savings- ... %20million.

[Lootman]

And I was just reading about

British Savings Bonds
Coming soon
The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Spring Budget that he wants to increase opportunities to help people save for the longer term. He’ll do this by launching British Savings Bonds, delivered through NS&I.....Due to launch early April – watch this space.

https://www.nsandi.com/british-savings- ... %20million.

Tax free? Otherwise I do not see why this would be any more attractive than the fixed term accounts that are already available widely.

I'd rather they increased the premium bond limit to £100,000 per person. Or introduced a new inflation-linked offering.

[stevensfo]

And I was just reading about

British Savings Bonds
Coming soon
The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Spring Budget that he wants to increase opportunities to help people save for the longer term. He’ll do this by launching British Savings Bonds, delivered through NS&I.....Due to launch early April – watch this space.

https://www.nsandi.com/british-savings- ... %20million.

Really? I thought he wanted the Brits to spend, spend, spend, to boost the UK economy.

So why not reintroduce the savings books that we used as kids? Take a pound ( I think it used to be 10p) into your P.O. and get a stamp in your book, then, when you have ten quid, have it transferred into your PO account. Worked wonders for me when I was a nipper. It reinforced the habit of saving that I continued.

Though in those days, the interest rates were higher. I still remember using my pre-O-level maths to work out how much I'd have in x years. I reckoned that I'd be a millionaire, though after a few hundred years!

Steve

[XFool]

So why not reintroduce the savings books that we used as kids? Take a pound ( I think it used to be 10p) into your P.O. and get a stamp in your book, then, when you have ten quid, have it transferred into your PO account. Worked wonders for me when I was a nipper. It reinforced the habit of saving that I continued.

Though in those days, the interest rates were higher.

Were they? I seem to remember rates of around 1 5/8 %

Though I suppose it depends when you childhood was!

[stevensfo]

So why not reintroduce the savings books that we used as kids? Take a pound ( I think it used to be 10p) into your P.O. and get a stamp in your book, then, when you have ten quid, have it transferred into your PO account. Worked wonders for me when I was a nipper. It reinforced the habit of saving that I continued.

Though in those days, the interest rates were higher.

Were they? I seem to remember rates of around 1 5/8 %

Though I suppose it depends when you childhood was!

Yes, good point!

Childhood is a strange time. I think that I was collecting stamps and buying those old 10p savings stamps around 1973-78 -ish. Our village newsagents was also a P.O. and hadn't yet limited the kids allowed in, so I reckon they lost a fortune in stolen Bazooka Joes, Spangles, sherbert fountains etc. I also went there for my 1st day covers when new stamps came out.

Steve

PS All my 1st day covers and mint stamps are now worth.....about the same as a Sherbert Fountain!

[77ss]

It's dead!

I hope so.

A pointless complication/a tax bung to the comfortably off.

A soundbite masquerading as a considered economic policy.

Standard procedure for this governement. All mouth and no trousers.