What caused the UK to be in so much debt?

[loraward]

You're having a laugh!

 

Is that why the Tories wasted billions of tax payers money on these?

 

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/sep/18/nhs-records-system-10bn

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2552850/Delays-Universal-Credit-mean-far-cost-225-000-EACH-person-new-benefits-system.html

 

The NHS IT system was started by Labour, the Tories abandoned it because it was sucking up huge amounts of money for no gain.

[SteveJ68]

Thatcher allowed deregulation of banks allowing to do whatever they wanted.

The banks mis-sold sub prime mortgages in the USA and UK. They thought they were the masters of the universe.

 

Don't forget that the infallible free market and its high priests the bankers must not be criticized by leftie heretics.

[Titanic99]

For the purpose of balance in this discussion, whilst discussing Labours role in the creation of the debt here's an equally interesting article on the huge increae in personal wealth during their time in office.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7018253.stm

[buck]

The old belief that a bought home was the best investment in life died in 2008. I had bought my house in 1982 for $98,000 and sold it in 2014 for $265,000, a pretty good return. We bought a much smaller house for $110,000 which we live in and enjoy today not hemmed in by the kids and grandkids. Because of the recession it's value is down to about $90,000. But if we'd stayed with the old house would be worth only about $180,000. The blame for all of this is not that of any government party, but of allowing people to buy expensive property with very litttle or no down payment and poor work habits. People get bankrupted, foreclosed, then walk away from the mortgage without penalty. I know this because my own son did it twice to my disgust.

[Jonny5]

The Labour party only adopted that stance after it was proven it was the right policy.

The original Ed Balls strategy was to spend their way out of debt. That was the 2010 line as per his Bloomberg lecture.

Can you imagine the mess we'd be in now with that mug in charge. Even he's done a huge U turn on that policy.

 

That's why we can't trust Labour - all rosy when there is nothing to worry about, headless chickens in an economic crisis.

Everybody should research the stuff that Balls was coming out with in 2010-2012. At the time it was obvious that he was wrong, consistently and blatantly. But he kept saying the same things, fear mongering to scare people of the Tories.

 

There is a strong possibility that he's going to be the next chancellor.

 

There will be trouble if he is.

[El Cid]

Everybody should research the stuff that Balls was coming out with in 2010-2012.

 

Labours 2010 manifesto - Secure the recovery by supporting the economy and halving the deficit by 2014 through growth, fair taxes and cuts to lower priority spending.

 

That sounds quite sensible, fair taxes n cuts.

[Alan Ladd]

The Tories blame the reason for the debt on the wrong thing, it was caused by the banking crisis, the more lies they tell, the more people vote for another party.

 

The Prime Ministers other title is First Lord of the Treasury, then we have a Chancellor of the Exchequer, both titles indicate that their primary responsibility is control of the nations finances. Brown, Darling, assisted by he rest of the incompetents blew it.

 

Governments govern, the last Labour government after all its posturing and arrogance proved to be incompetent.

 

We must never trust them again.

 

---------- Post added 01-05-2015 at 18:57 ----------

 

Labours 2010 manifesto - Secure the recovery by supporting the economy and halving the deficit by 2014 through growth, fair taxes and cuts to lower priority spending.

 

That sounds quite sensible, fair taxes n cuts.

 

According to Daily Politics, and unchallenged by the Labour representative present, had we adopted Darlings formula we would have paid back less than half of the debt than we have.

 

Are you and your fellow travelers content to have your children pick up the debt that our generation would bequeath them if Labour policies were followed?

 

---------- Post added 01-05-2015 at 19:00 ----------

 

Thatcher allowed deregulation of banks allowing to do whatever they wanted.

The banks mis-sold sub prime mortgages in the USA and UK. They thought they were the masters of the universe.

 

Thatcher did indeed de regulate the banks, then she watched them like a hawk as did John Major.

 

Blair and Brown removed oversight by government and placed it in the hands of the Bank of England.

 

Labour were the party in power, Labour blew it.

[mjw47]

 

---------- Post added 01-05-2015 at 16:51 ----------

 

 

There was far too much easy credit. People were allowed to borrow ludicrous amounts to buy houses. This forced up the price of houses and when the crash came was known as toxic debt. The same happened in Greece where people were able to borrow money at low interest to buy stuff they didn't really need.

 

It is all fine until someone wants their money back.

 

Private debt came about in a large part because of deregulation of the financial sector.

 

Deregulation was started by Thatcher and continued by Brown, so both main parties are culpable.

 

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2F7f8aaf08-a122-11e2-bae1-00144feabdc0.html&ei=obtDVe6IO5PxauiCgIgL&usg=AFQjCNEcwcCuN7ps7OcPrhS7LYmyv3tr_Q&bvm=bv.92189499,d.d2s

 

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CEUQFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fbusiness-13032013&ei=obtDVe6IO5PxauiCgIgL&usg=AFQjCNGqxgTU2b1JoVT6ETN-Y38xndnksw&bvm=bv.92189499,d.d2s

 

When my wife and I decided to buy our own house in 1972 there were strict limits on how much you could borrow.

 

If I recall correctly it was three and a half times the mans annual wages, the woman's wages were not taken into account as "she may get pregnant".

 

When banks replaced the old fashioned bank manager with salesmen/women who were more concerned with how much they could lend and how big their bonus was going to be the recipe for disaster was in place.

 

People tended to adopt the attitude 'well they wouldn't lend it to me if they thought I couldn't pay it back'.

 

The old adage 'if it looks too good to be true then it very likely is too good to be true' was forgotten.

[El Cid]

 

Blair and Brown removed oversight by government and placed it in the hands of the Bank of England.

 

Labour were the party in power, Labour blew it.

 

Labour not responsible for crash, says former Bank of England governor.

 

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/dec/29/labour-government-not-responsible-crash-bank-england-governor-mervyn-king

[Alan Ladd]

Everybody should research the stuff that Balls was coming out with in 2010-2012. At the time it was obvious that he was wrong, consistently and blatantly. But he kept saying the same things, fear mongering to scare people of the Tories.

 

There is a strong possibility that he's going to be the next chancellor.

 

There will be trouble if he is.

 

I dont think he will be next chancellor, a. I suspect that when people actually vote Cameron will get a majority. b. If I am wrong, I dont think Milliband will give him the job. The markets would panic. Run on the pound, disaster.