Simon Harris is asking what you'd like to see in the budget on his Instagram stories

[misemoi]

I would say it is normal for all politicians to use all communication channels? I am sure they have a team assessing how best to communicate. For some it is on the doorstep, others it is online, others it is radio/tv, others it is leaflets etc. And of course it is a nonsense that ideas/desires given now will work their way into the 2027 budget but it is just market research, not just on the topic but on what drives engagement, what works, what doesn't etc for other campaigns.

 

[faketales]

Of course - and this should go without saying- it's a ludicrous and terribly bad idea, government by Instagram.

Fully agree.

I obviously feel the same about all pre budget submissions, emailing TDs, phone calls and constituency clinics.

 

[JoeRoberts]

would say it is normal for all politicians to use all communication channels

Why not use it for other issues ?. Picked the budget because it is giveaway time.
Lers see if he uses it for the other issues on peoples minds.

 

[TomEdison]

Call me a crusty old cynic, but I seriously doubt that budgetary policy is influenced in even the tiniest degree by anthing that anybody posts to Simon's Instagram.

It did occur to me that Harris may be doing this, not to get ideas, but to gauge reactions; he gets a sense of what doesn and doesn't play well with the punters by seeing what people say in their posts. But I dismissed that thought almost instantly; there are much more serious and reliable ways of taking the measure of public opinion, and the major political parties use them extensively.

So it come down the explantion that I think is most likely; relationship-building. Harris is having conversations with voters — voters who are interested enough to be following a politician's instagram — and fostering a sense of engagement with them. They may or may not think their suggestions are actually going to flow through to policy, but they do know they're having a conversation with Simon about public issues.

 

[misemoi]

Same reason politicians/canvassers are on the doors only at election time. When interest is higher the impact is higher. You can make promises then, doesn't matter if you ever deliver but people feel heard.

I would never attend a constituent clinic, and never talk to the doorstep canvassers, but I do engage with politics online. Just different preferences.

Why not use it for other issues ?. Picked the budget because it is giveaway ti

 

[Fortune]

there are much more serious and reliable ways of taking the measure of public opinion, and the major political parties use them extensively.

They make good use of leaking ideas to the press and seeing how the public react.

 

[Leo]

Why not use it for other issues ?. Picked the budget because it is giveaway time.
Lers see if he uses it for the other issues on peoples minds.

I presume you posted that without even looking at this particular post or his channel??

 

[JoeRoberts]

presume you posted that without even looking at this particular post or his channel?

Yes, did I miss a nugget of wisdom from him ?

 

[Leo]

Yes, did I miss a nugget of wisdom from him ?

If you can't even invest 5 minutes in a topic then why bother wasting time posting uninformed thoughts here? We aim for higher standards.

 

[getting_on]

Does he say how those of us who don't want to register with and use Instagram should give him our ideas?

Yes, not all of us are keen on having Meta convey our thoughts to our elected representatives

I'm sure you can still email or write to him in the post. More outreach channels are better than less.

Apparently however he only promoted US Tech Company, Meta's platform

 

[Cameo]

Pay per use charges for water
No reliefs for excise duty on fuel
No income tax cuts
Use any budget surplus for strategic investment fund
No increase in inheritance tax threshold

I be more likely to vote for a politican that did something responsible

 

[jpd]

A responsable politician?

Bit of a contradiction imho

 

[faketales]

Introduce a flat tax?

 

[Robovac rider]

Reverse your Budget 26 promise to reduce vat for the hospitality industry and reinstate the 13% rate.

Use the extra revenue generated from this reversal to reimburse the workers you shafted in 2026.

Your hospitality friends didn't pass the vat reduction on to their customers.

Add this reimbursement to your your Budget 2027 promise to look after those who get up early.

 

[micheller]

We're now being advised to expect something much more modest

 

[Leo]

it's a ludicrous and terribly bad idea, government by Instagram.

A politician seeking to engage the public is a bad idea! Really? He's getting great publicity from this one. I'm no fan of Harris, but pretty much all politicians are active on Social Media, it's how they reach much of their supporters and potential supporters alike. He has thousands of posts before this one, why pronounce judgement on a single post? To suggest this is government by social media would be to suggest the response received will dictate policy, does you truly believe that's the case here?

To suggest they shouldn't engage on the most consumed media is nonsense. 80% of the population engage with social media on a daily basis, only 22% read an actual newspaper!

 

[Purple]

Pay per use charges for water
No reliefs for excise duty on fuel
No income tax cuts
Use any budget surplus for strategic investment fund
No increase in inheritance tax threshold

I be more likely to vote for a politican that did something responsible

Great ideas.

I'd add:
No increases in pensions.
No increases in welfare.
Any increases in income tax bands to, at most, match inflation.
Increase Property Tax.
No increases in Healthcare funding.
Any spending increases to be on infrastructure.
The only exception to this is a significant increase in defence spending (radar, ships etc).

Use any surpluses to be used to reduce external national debt and increase reserves.

 

[jfrank]

Would agree on most of your list there Purple, definitely I am very sore that he did not index bands last year just to give it all to a hospitality sector that is not exactly known for its keen pricing. I do think though the government will collect more taxes through the inflation impact so, they cannot be too miserable and not pass on some welfare increases either.

On defence, I 5000% agree.... we are a bloody joke hiding behind our "neutrality" and piggy-backing the British air/marine forces. It is just that in this country we simply cannot have a mature debate about it without someone shrieking NATO, military power etc

 

[Cameo]

I do agree with doing something on home heating oil (means tested if not too complicated) as it must be a disaster for people with no other option for alternative heating options.