Are the public sector employed middle classes sleepwalking into disaster?

[I1L2T3]

It is a historical fact that many cities which were strongly anti-Tory - such as Sheffield or Liverpool - not only had the support for their industries slashed, but they were left without any plans or re-investment to replace them, resulting in lengthy periods of stagnation and decline. Hard economic reality, or one very spiteful old bag?

 

Well it seems to have worked. We seem to be awash with Sheffield people who think Cameron has their best interests at heart. How wrong they are. How very wrong.

[iansheff]

A leopard never changes its spots as the saying goes and I cannot see the tories doing anything but looking after their wealthy backers. They say no cuts in the health service and they will put money into, where is this money going to come from, raised prescription charges, optical charges and dental charges? it has got to come from somewhere.

[Michael_W]

The decline of manufacturing in the UK regardless of your point of view who was/is to blame, means that the UK will struggle to make a quick recovery from the economic crisis. The public sector will now take a big hit because the UK economy can not sustain the overheads of the NHS, education, public services etc...tough times ahead I'm afraid, and none of the leaders in the recent tv debates can tell us how they are going to create jobs that will get the economy back on it's feet....putting all the eggs in the basket of finance and services will burden the UK for a long time !

[Rupert_Baehr]

It is a historical fact that many cities which were strongly anti-Tory - such as Sheffield or Liverpool - not only had the support for their industries slashed, but they were left without any plans or re-investment to replace them, resulting in lengthy periods of stagnation and decline. Hard economic reality, or one very spiteful old bag?

 

If the industries in those cities were so successful, why did they need permanent and ongoing cash support?

 

Why did people not want to invest in those cities after the industries had closed?

 

How many of the people in those cities 'bought British' and spent their holiday money in the UK? - If they couldn't be bothered to invest in the UK why should they expect other people to do so?

[fishy_taste]

I ask this question because I was out the other night with some friends, most of whom were professional types in the NHS and education sysyem. They were not what you might call traditional Tory types but some of them were criticising the Labour govt about this, that and the other.

IMO things may not exactly brilliant at the moment but my god, if the Tories are re-elected many of them will probably be out of work with the HUGE public spending cuts the Tories are planning. Is it time for them to get real?

 

Think of the public finances as your own finances.

 

You have huge debts (for arguments sake).

 

Unlike the UK govt you can't call upon a nation and say 'I need to tax you a bit more'.

 

All you can do is curtail your spending - i.e. 'cuts'.

 

The govt spend on the public sector - NHS, Home office, DWP and so on.

 

They really have tw or three options (one of which they are close to exhausting, you can guess which).

 

Increase taxation

 

Cut spending.

 

Borrow more.

 

Labour have it in their pysche to find cutting public sector jobs abhorrent, so they will raise the tax burden (which has increased significantly since 1997, though not income tax).

 

The choice is:

 

Take hard, unpopular, but necessary decision or;

 

Hope things will get better eventually/ride the storm.

 

Come May 6th, you (the royal YOU) decide. And make sure you think carefully about the choice you make.

 

Pain now

 

Or serious pain later on.

[I1L2T3]

 

Come May 6th, you (the royal YOU) decide. And make sure you think carefully about the choice you make.

 

Pain now

 

Or serious pain later on.

 

Easy to say isn't it. If you have a young family and you work in the public sector do you vote conservative, put yourself out of work and damage the future of your kids?

 

That is what people don't seem to be getting at all. Yes all parties will expect to make cuts but the conservatives will make savage cuts and they will be focused outside of conservative heartlands. Labour's planned cuts are pretty extensive, the liberals a little worse again. The conservatives, well.........

[fishy_taste]

Easy to say isn't it. If you have a young family and you work in the public sector do you vote conservative, put yourself out of work and damage the future of your kids?

 

That is what people don't seem to be getting at all. Yes all parties will expect to make cuts but the conservatives will make savage cuts and they will be focused outside of conservative heartlands. Labour's planned cuts are pretty extensive, the liberals a little worse again. The conservatives, well.........

 

I do have a young family and my wife works inthe public sector, but the fact of the matter is, the national debt is as big as it's been since WWII (and that was due to ther having been a World War).

 

We cannot keep borrowing. So, the option are increase tax (income and other indirect tax's - something labour has done very cleverly since 1997) or cut spending (which usually means job cuts, but shouldn't and, to be honest, saving a salary on year one is not a saving on years two and beyond.

 

Sadly, if 'savage' cuts are not made now, then eventually they will have to be made (and then they will not be savage, they will be much, much worse).

 

Maybe, if you vote Gordon the borrower back in, you might just shuffle off your mortal coil before the real sh*t hits tha fan.

[donkey]

Cutting inheretance tax for millionaires doesn't seem like a great way to get the deficit down. It does seem like a pretty good indicator of what sections of society the Tories will and won't be targetting their cuts at though.

[Wildcat]

I do have a young family and my wife works inthe public sector, but the fact of the matter is, the national debt is as big as it's been since WWII (and that was due to ther having been a World War).

 

We cannot keep borrowing. So, the option are increase tax (income and other indirect tax's - something labour has done very cleverly since 1997) or cut spending (which usually means job cuts, but shouldn't and, to be honest, saving a salary on year one is not a saving on years two and beyond.

 

Sadly, if 'savage' cuts are not made now, then eventually they will have to be made (and then they will not be savage, they will be much, much worse).

 

Maybe, if you vote Gordon the borrower back in, you might just shuffle off your mortal coil before the real sh*t hits tha fan.

 

It is nothing like it was in the 50s. It was about 200% of gdp then, it is only 62% now.

[I1L2T3]

I do have a young family and my wife works inthe public sector, but the fact of the matter is, the national debt is as big as it's been since WWII (and that was due to ther having been a World War).

 

We cannot keep borrowing. So, the option are increase tax (income and other indirect tax's - something labour has done very cleverly since 1997) or cut spending (which usually means job cuts, but shouldn't and, to be honest, saving a salary on year one is not a saving on years two and beyond.

 

Sadly, if 'savage' cuts are not made now, then eventually they will have to be made (and then they will not be savage, they will be much, much worse).

 

Maybe, if you vote Gordon the borrower back in, you might just shuffle off your mortal coil before the real sh*t hits tha fan.

 

Ok, if you're happy to screw your family life up on the instructions of somebody who couldn't give a stuff about people in your area of the country then good for you.

 

I think cuts are needed too but they need to be thought through properly, not savagely made in ways that could blight some regions for a generation. We've been there before remember and in so many ways we still haven't recovered from the last time.