General Election 2024: General UK Politics Discussion here

[m williamson]

Running the country is somewhat comparable to running a business. In business you can make a loss and survive, in fact you can continue to make losses year after year and still survive. The one thing you can't do is run out of money. If that happens it's over.

 

In the 2009/10  financial year public sector debt was 62.4% of GDP in the 2021/22 financial year it had increased to 95.5% of GDP.

So Rachel Reeves has a point.

[Top4719]

2 minutes ago, geared said:

 

Probably from the budgets of the Police, NHS and local authorities.

 

The NHS most definitely isn't short of money.

[lavery549@yahoo]

Just now, Top4719 said:

 

The NHS most definitely isn't short of money.

And where exactly did you get that from . ? Copious amounts of money is wasted on stuff like diversity rubbish . 

[Mister M]

3 hours ago, Mateo said:

Rachel Reeves chose to remove winter fuel allowance.  Rachel Reeves chose to authorise a 22% pay increase for Junior doctors.  9.4 billion being given to public sector workers in the form of wage increases and 1.4 billion taken away from pensioners with the lost of winter fuel allowance are choices made by Rachel Reeves. 

 

The 22 billion figure for a black hole includes the 9.4 billion therefore Rachel Reeves has been less than truthful.  Jeremy Hunt may well have been less than truthful by being more optimistic with the state of the economy. It's possible both Rachel Reeves and Jeremy Hunt are lying.  Rachel Reeves has a problem because of the Labour party manifesto pledge not to increase VAT,  Income tax and National Insurance which is why she has resorted to claiming the Labour party didn't know the true economic situation which is being less than honest. 

I don't think we start by pointing the finger at others for being "less than honest". 

The head of the OBR is looking into whether the previous Chancellor hid numerous black holes, leaving the current one to sort it all out. 

[Padders]

Listening to Mrs. Reeves we've got to find about 20 odd billion pounds from somewhere.

It looks like she's preparing austerity measures that will make 1930's Germany look like Donald Trumps bathroom.

And yet we still own works of art and buildings worth billions, well, all of it has to go, all of it. d'you hear?

Sell it to Coca Cola, McDonalds, anyone, just sell it.

 

We in Britain are going have to get used to the idea that actually, people in India and Brazil and China have got it right, while we are living a life we can't afford.

This brings me on to the thrust of my brilliant plan. Benefits.

At present you go to the doctor and tell him you have a bad back, he confirms this without looking up and as a result the government gives you a box of money every week that you use to visit the hot spots on the Med, or even set up a rock band.

Then you have the Jobseekers allowance, If you can show that you spend 12 seconds a week looking for work, you are paid to sit around all day, eating chips, drinking beer, watching films on the obligatory 50 inch plasma TV.

All this has to stop,

And here's what I suggest.

 

Instead of paying people benefits in cash, why not remove them from the system, then send them round to the benefits office every week to collect some bread, some meat, some toothpaste, a little tot of sherry, and, at Christmas, one or two wooden toys for their children.

This idea would reduce the amount of public drunkenness, because those on benefits would have no cash to spend on beer, it would free up more time for the police, it would reduce obesity, because they would be given only healthy food, and it would reduce their debt because they would no longer be able to buy hideous settees using money they have no chance of paying back.

More importantly, it would teach us what the rest of the World already knows, that if you want to watch the Olympics from the comfort of a button-backed, reclining La-Z-Boy you are going to have to work..

 

My idea would reduce unemployment, stimulate growth and show the World we mean business.

So come on Rachel, take my ideas on board, tell the shirkers they need to get of their fat bums and get a job!!!

 

 

 

[Al Bundy]

13 minutes ago, Top4719 said:

 

The NHS most definitely isn't short of money.

Indeed.

 

Nearly a budget of 200 billion this year,

 

Nearly 3 billion was wasted because of union led industrial action last year apparently.  I can't even imagine all the  rest that goes to waste on hair brain schemes and pure incompetence .

[HeHasRisen]

I know your tongue is firmly in your cheek but I've thought for years that benefits should be paid in cards/tokens than can only be used for groceries and utilities. 

 

Asylum seekers used to (may still do, actually) get a card called an Azure card. Can be used in major supermarkets but can't be used to buy alcohol and fags. 

Edited July 30 by HeHasRisen

[Al Bundy]

Germany on the brink of recession, Olympics events postponed because of sewage in the river Seine.

 

 

Bloody Tories.

[crookesey]

7 minutes ago, Al Bundy said:

Indeed.

 

Nearly a budget of 200 billion this year,

 

Nearly 3 billion was wasted because of union led industrial action last year apparently.  I can't even imagine all the  rest that goes to waste on hair brain schemes and pure incompetence .

I find the name ‘industrial’ incompatible with the Public Sector, perhaps something of the like of ‘nationalised’ would be more appropriate. 

[Mateo]

35 minutes ago, Mister M said:

I don't think we start by pointing the finger at others for being "less than honest". 

The head of the OBR is looking into whether the previous Chancellor hid numerous black holes, leaving the current one to sort it all out. 

The spotlight should be on the honesty of the current Chancellor and current Labour government.  There was nothing in the Labour party election manifesto about removing winter fuel allowance for pensioners.  Why do you think the Labour party failed to include that policy in their election manifesto?