Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 172 total)
  • David Cameron complaining about cuts…
  • wanmankylung
    Free Member

    http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/11/david-cameron-letter-cuts-oxfordshire?CMP=fb_gu

    Says it all really. He doesnt have a clue what he/they’re doing.

    slowjo
    Free Member

    Saw that earlier today!

    They live in a different world.

    There was another article talking about Osborne and the Tax Credits cuts he proposed. For someone with his wealth, it was mooted that a drop of £2k income is of little concern and that he had no conception of the impact it would make on most people. It is a fair argument.

    As far as tax credit cuts are concerned, I think they are working on the ski slope principle. Propose the worst possible scenario, then everyone will be happy when your revised, soft and cuddly version is implemented. The proles won’t know that this is what you wanted all along.

    Sorry to digress and all that….!

    kimbers
    Full Member

    Very depressing, the damage to public health, education and those at the bottom will have long lasting consequences

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    lunge
    Full Member

    What the Tories are doing, in my eyes at least, is getting the really unpopular policies out of the way early in their term. What that means is that in 4.5 years at the next election either the populous will have forgotten or the changes will have been given time to work. Either way, even if you don’t agree with what he/they are doing, you can see that from a political perspective the timing is spot on.

    Still, Cameron is going to have an interesting time being questioned on this!

    senorj
    Full Member

    Wow!
    Depressing.
    I wonder if he’ll write again?

    Northwind
    Full Member

    I saw Cy tweeted that earlier, it’s pretty astonishing. I guess you just get so used to lying to everyone else you don’t even realise when you’re lying to yourself.

    wanmankylung
    Free Member

    How much more of this kind of nonsense before one of the other pretenders to No 10 make a bid for leader of the Tories?

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    An other tory would just be doing the same tbh as they like to cut but fail to realise that eventually even services they consider essential will be cut

    Libraries are in real danger nationwide as well as they are not front line services either.

    Of course they are doing the double helping of shit first but they are also making sure it is the local council who do it [ and the police ] rather than them

    That said it is what the people voted for and in 5 years time we will see if they like the results

    For someone with his wealth, it was mooted that a drop of £2k income is of little concern and that he had no conception of the impact it would make on most people. It is a fair argument.

    One of the reasons why they ought to be trying to get by on the average wage as most of them are insulated from the realities the majority of the population face. They can no more know or care than we can give advice on how to run a stately home.

    anagallis_arvensis
    Full Member

    He’s doingvthe right thing byvtrying to shift the blame for loss of services onto councils not the Tories cut. They are not as stupid ascI certainly would like to hope they are.

    Oh look the nhs is shit now, lets scrap it. Oh look all schools are shit its because teachers are **** cut their pension.

    jambalaya
    Free Member

    Perfectly legitimate question to ask of the council.

    Tax credits have morphed from a good idea to a £30n unaffordable monster. They are used by employers to subsidise low wages. As per the migrant stats recently, 40% of foreign workers are claiming an average of £6k pa of in work benefits. They take low paid jobs whilst the state makes top the difference and we pay unemployment benefits to those who won’t travel for work. It’s madness.

    The welfare budget cuts need not impact the most vulnerable. If you are cutting a budget from £100bn to £70bn over 5 years surely the £70bn is spent on the most vulnerable ?

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ? Libraries occupy expensive and valuable property in town centres and sadly are yesterdays news, the world including publishing is increasingly online these days.

    anagallis_arvensis
    Full Member

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ?

    My son goes pretty much every week.

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    Poor people mainly to access the internet to look for work oh and, one would assume, those who like reading

    40% of foreign workers are claiming an average of £6k pa of in work benefits.

    What about the other 60%?

    The welfare budget cuts need not impact the most vulnerable.

    Are you now saying welfare is not spent on the most vulnerable and that we can provide the same level of service with less money?

    If you are cutting a budget from £100bn to £70bn over 5 years surely the £70bn is spent on the most vulnerable ?

    And again all welfare is spent on the poorest and the most vulnerable in our society.

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ? Libraries occupy expensive and valuable property in town centres and sadly are yesterdays news, the world including publishing is increasingly online these days.

    Is nothing sacred and everything is just valuable real estate?
    Libraries have diversified into other things

    FWIW go into any library and try and book a computer they are always full as poor folk cannot afford computers or the internet

    As i said wealth can insulate people from the harsh realities of life for the poor and needy and obviously the less we spend the less we can do to help them.

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    Yep. Time the government increased the mandatory minimum wage to sort that out.

    IdleJon
    Full Member

    Is nothing sacred and everything is just valuable real estate?

    I think we all know the answer to that, under this government?

    monkeyfudger
    Free Member

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ?

    We went today and got a load of books so the kids could complete their reading challenges, the Mrs also picked up a couple or crime thrillers she’d not read before. Kraaazy eh!

    Libraries occupy expensive and valuable property in town centres and sadly are yesterdays news, the world including publishing is increasingly online these days.

    So valuable that a good deal of retail properties are currently empty?

    julianwilson
    Free Member

    Putting aside the politics and the practical need for cuts, that article reveals an extraordinary set of numbers that simply cannot be explained. How can any MP be so out of touch with his/her local authority’s financial situation? There is no excuse for getting it that wrong, and writing this down in a letter that can be seen by your constituents is a rather great way to demonstrate this.

    That this MP represents a local aithority arguably less damaged by budget cuts than others in the Northern Powerhouse, and that he happens also to be the prime minister, also a man with a usually very impressive command of numbers and ability to reel off (usually partly true!) statistics off the top of his head in interviews and at the dispatch box, makes this all the more ridiculous.

    LoCo
    Free Member

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ?

    My son goes pretty much every week.

    My children go once a week or so too.

    Sandwich
    Full Member

    As per the migrant stats recently, 40% of foreign workers are claiming an average of £6k pa of in work benefits

    That will be the ones that have been shown to be statistically dodgy. One occupant of a migrant house claims some benefit and suddenly the all 5 or however many are in the house are deemed to be claimants.(Source 1) (Source 2)
    Remember he’s from Marketing and PR and has no concept of how to do maths properly, details are not ‘his thing’ by training.

    footflaps
    Full Member

    How can any MP be so out of touch with his/her local authority’s financial situation?

    a) He’s a millionaire
    b) He doesn’t really give a shit

    kimbers
    Full Member

    Yeah we take the kids to the library on a Saturday, its pretty busy !
    Janbys comments about libraries nicely illustrate the ignorance of some, including our PM of how important local libraries are to many at the bottom
    There’s always a queue for the computers and our library puts on a lot of stuff for parents and babies in the week too.

    The cuts to council social care, children’s services, sports facilities etc are shortsighted in the extreme, save; money now, but pay more to pick up the pieces later, destroy lives on the way

    bongohoohaa
    Free Member

    Perfectly legitimate question to ask of the council.

    Tax credits have morphed from a good idea to a £30n unaffordable monster. They are used by employers to subsidise low wages. As per the migrant stats recently, 40% of foreign workers are claiming an average of £6k pa of in work benefits. They take low paid jobs whilst the state makes top the difference and we pay unemployment benefits to those who won’t travel for work. It’s madness.

    The welfare budget cuts need not impact the most vulnerable. If you are cutting a budget from £100bn to £70bn over 5 years surely the £70bn is spent on the most vulnerable ?

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ? Libraries occupy expensive and valuable property in town centres and sadly are yesterdays news, the world including publishing is increasingly online these days.

    Oh that has to be on purpose….someone tell me Jambayla is the local wag who everyone knows is joking?

    convert
    Full Member

    We (cumulatively) voted in the muppets. We reap what we sow.

    lunge
    Full Member

    oor people mainly to access the internet to look for work oh and, one would assume, those who like reading

    Hang Junky, I’m sure in the grammar school thread you said that the working class don’t go to the library.

    TheBrick
    Free Member

    Re the selling off of public building and spaces. It tendsnto be these public building as spaces that make a town or city. Without them you end up with a dull commercial and or Disney commodified area. Just look at the average us town (not the headlining by, dc cities).

    footflaps
    Full Member

    You also can’t plug a funding deficit with one off capex sales, as you can’t resell the same building each year.

    konabunny
    Free Member

    we pay unemployment benefits to those who won’t travel for work

    Is unwillingness to travel a big cause of unemployment?

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    Everyone unemployed has to travel up to 90 minutes [ generally means public transport] from their location for employment.

    I am not sure what the point was that he meant to make but I doubt it was what he said. I assume it was some sort of Tebbit on your bike type comment but I am really not certain.

    Hang Junky, I’m sure in the grammar school thread you said that the working class don’t go to the library.

    Are the unemployed working class or just the underbelly?

    That said [ and I did check] I did indeed

    http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/new-grammar-schools-thoughts/page/3#post-7243649

    Either good memory or top stalking. Either way a fair point
    EDIT: I said it to you[just checked that] so good memory rather than stalking I assume

    teamhurtmore
    Free Member

    Julian – it is extraordinary true, as is the fact that folk believe these are people who should have more control of the key levers of the UK economy. Truly frightening concept that one.

    Of course in the froth of anti-austerity (no really) people conveniently forget the key instrument of economic policy that is being pursued here, in the U.S., is not cuts but theft of money from the prudent and indirectly from everyone. Of course we dress this theft up in fancy jargon (QE/ financial repression) to ensure that people don’t understand what is going on. In US alone the government has stolen $470bn off savers, pensions funds etc and we are doing the same here.

    Does anyone shed a tear for those victims? They should do……

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    jambalaya » Tax credits have morphed from a good idea to a £30n unaffordable monster. They are used by employers to subsidise low wages.
    Yep. Time the government increased the mandatory minimum wage to sort that out.

    So many issues could be dealt with by that. And a policy for decent social housing.

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    THM the “victims” of the “theft” really ought to report it to the police 😕

    http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3f9cc4f2-dec0-11e4-b9ec-00144feab7de.html

    No mention of theft anywhere- basically we have low interest rates . WHy not just say that ?

    rossburton
    Free Member
    molgrips
    Free Member

    It’s madness.

    Quite possibly, but you simply cannot just pull the plug when people depend on it.

    jambalaya
    Free Member

    @kona if people are prepare to travel halfway across Europe for a job it’s not too much expect to hope unemployed Brits might do the same.

    JY I’d guess the other 60% don’t claim Tax Credits, I’d also wager a very significant portion of that 60% don’t pay sufficient tax to cover the cost of healthcare, edication etc. Singaporean immigration is very targeted and based on how much tax you’ll pay. There is a happy ground in the middle.

    @bing just trying to contribute to the debate

    @scot as far as I’m aware the cuts are to be phased in at least in part and the minimum wage is being increased as is the tax free allowance. We don’t really know the details yet, we have to wait for the spending review.

    Cameron is right to ask, why aren’t the council cutting “back office” support rather than services ? I’ll give you a theory, let’s keep the “jobs for the boys” and cut the services most likely to generate headlines and we’ll blame the government for the fallout. There’s no doubt these are difficult decisions but Cameron is right to ask the question

    As rightly pointed out above this was the mandate the Tories where given and it’s worth noting the Labour Party stood on a similar deficit reduction programme it’s just people didn’t believe they’d execute it.

    wanmankylung
    Free Member

    Everyone unemployed has to travel up to 90 minutes [ generally means public transport] from their location for employment.

    Woah there Tiger. Have the Tories got any idea how stupid that policy actually is? In my time I have had to commute a 90 minute journey £30/day, a 55 minute journey £22/day and a 40 minute journey £15/day. If I had been on minimum wage I could not have afforded to do that.

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    JY I’d guess the

    No offence but I would rather deal with the facts than your guess.

    I’ll give you a theory, let’s keep the “jobs for the boys” and cut the services most likely to generate headlines and we’ll blame the government for the fallout.

    So your argument is that a Tory has come up with this idea in his the PM’s area 😯 May I ask exactly why you think he has decided this is a good idea? Its seems an odd response for a Tory to try and shame the Tory PM in his area what exactly motivated him to do this?

    Do you know he replied – its in the link and he explained how many cuts they have done, what the saving is and why there is no more left to be cut. The evidence does not really support your theory.

    PLease actually read the link and counter what the head of Oxford said rather than guess.

    kcr
    Free Member

    JY who really goes to the Library these days ? Libraries occupy expensive and valuable property in town centres and sadly are yesterdays news, the world including publishing is increasingly online these days.

    My kids go every week or two and return with a big bag of books, and and I think it’s been one of the most important parts of their education. There’s something special about being able to physically browse through piles of colourful books of all different sorts that makes the online experience seen distinctly thin by comparison.

    I remember the excitement of going to the library each week and wondering what new books I was going to find, and I see my kids having the same fun. That’s helping me rediscover the habit of reading for pleasure that I lost as an adult.

    Libraries are important, and it’s a sad day when we lose that service.

    p.s. my local council library does online eBook loans as well!

    Northwind
    Full Member

    jambalaya – Member

    Cameron is right to ask, why aren’t the council cutting “back office” support rather than services ?

    Did you consider actually reading the letters, at any point? Cameron is wrong to ask “why aren’t you cutting back office support” because the council is cutting back office support.

    nick1962
    Free Member

    FFS why all the whingeing about the Tories? They won a free and fair election only a couple of months ago and are obviously what the public wanted.

    wanmankylung
    Free Member

    FFS why all the whingeing about the Tories? They won a free and fair election only a couple of months ago and are obviously what the public wanted.

    Because they won it with a pack of lies?

    Junkyard
    Free Member

    1. Its a tory PM whinging about a tory council whose Chief executive then whinges about the Tories

    2. We are still allowed to discuss govt policy even though they won the election.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 172 total)

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