Topic: Do you think the government listens ?

[jjt]

 I prefer dossers to barristers they do a lot less harm.If you're gonna have parasites have cheap ones.

[Flunky]

I prefer dossers to barristers they do a lot less harm.If you're gonna have parasites have cheap ones.

 ;D ;D

[valmarg]

I really doubt any sensible working class person would ever vote the Tories back in. I remember Maggies fascist regime well.

Yes, let's get back to the good old bad old days.  I remember Callaghan's administration even better.

Inflation at +/- 25%, top rate of income tax 97.5 pence in the pound.  Britain being the sick man of Europe because of all the strikes.  Healey having to go cap in hand to the IMF to pay for their profligate spending.

If you think managing on your salary is difficult now, you should have tried it back then.  Prices never the same two days running in the shops.

The unions were running the country, not the government.

There is the saying that 'those who do not learn from history are in danger of repeating it'.

Well I'm getting a touch of deja vu with this lot.  We are heading for a 'winter of discontent' with the public sector workers.

Taxed up to the hilt, dissatisfied with our lot.  Although we were promised a referendum on the EU constitution, we have not been given that right, even though it was part of the labour manifesto, before they won the last election.

I just despair.

valmarg

[Paulines7]

Yes, I remember Callaghan's administration too.  You forgot to mention mortgage interest rates up to 15½%.  I was unable to get a job as I had two children under 5 years of age and employers were not interested.  Those were the days when they could ask you about family matters.  We couldn't afford shoes for the children and when my mother visited and saw our son with holes in his shoes, she bought him some new ones.  We lived off eggs, baked beans or tinned spaghetti on toast.  The mortgage, rates and fuel bills took all my husband's money so our food and bus fares came out of the Family Allowance.  I think and always have thought that Callaghan was at heart a "Tory" as he did nothing for the low paid workers. 

The Tory Government that followed was just as bad as far as I am concerned.  The "family silver" was sold off as utilities were privatised.  Public sector pay rises were less than inflation.  Hospitals and schools were run down. The three day working week and strikes and plenty of sleaze.

This present Government have charged fees for University students and encouraged student and other loans.  They have cut the number of Public Sector employees who collect the money for the public purse and reduced the numbers involved with catching benefit fraudsters.   It doesn't make sense.

They have done some good things though such as signing up to the European Social Chapter.   The rights to be guaranteed by it include, "free movement throughout the EC; ‘equitable’ remuneration; a maximum number of hours per working week; free association in trade unions and collective bargaining; professional training; sex equality; minimum health and security provision; employer–employee consultation and participation; a minimum working age of 16; minimum pension rights; and protection for disabled workers".


They have also banned fox hunting and put more money into education and the NHS.  The waiting times for operations has come down considerably and there is a deadline of 5 months from seeing the Consultant to having the op.  For people in pain this is really good news.  No more 4 or 5 years of waiting for a knee or hip replacement.  Physiotherapy is now offered as a matter of course after these operations.   

Hopefully the Government will do something to avert the crisis that is hitting our country now.  We know that we are not the only ones affected as it is a world wide problem brought on by the cost of oil and the shortage of food.  If they don't do anything I can see a big crash coming!

[Barnowl]

The government has tied its own hands. As the OECD pointed out earlier this week:

'Britain is more vulnerable to the credit crisis than any other leading nation except the U.S., a grim report warned yesterday.

Tumbling house prices and a heavy reliance on financial services have left us as badly exposed as the U.S. where a recession is looming, it said.

The study by the the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development issued a damning verdict on Gordon Brown's handling of the economy.

The watchdog said his 'excessively loose' spending policies had left Britain ill-equipped to withstand the downturn.

But it said the Bank of England cannot afford to ease the pain by lowering interest rates today because inflation is soaring.'
[from the Torygraph but the quotes are accurate.]

[redimp]

The government has tied its own hands. As the OECD pointed out earlier this week:

'Britain is more vulnerable to the credit crisis than any other leading nation except the U.S., a grim report warned yesterday.

Tumbling house prices and a heavy reliance on financial services have left us as badly exposed as the U.S. where a recession is looming, it said.

The study by the the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development issued a damning verdict on Gordon Brown's handling of the economy.

The watchdog said his 'excessively loose' spending policies had left Britain ill-equipped to withstand the downturn.

But it said the Bank of England cannot afford to ease the pain by lowering interest rates today because inflation is soaring.'
[from the Torygraph but the quotes are accurate.]

The OECD is a tory pupper organisation following a tory agenda - end of!

[Mr Smith]

Redclanger,
              
               You must love giving away your hard earned money to feckless and the idle personally I don't. In your great dream of socialism where everybody is equal can you tell me why the great  socialist countries have now kicked communism into touch , I've just come back from town and went into two shops one to have my new glasses adjusted which I had to pay for because I don't claim anything off your left wing mates  the lady that did the job was disabled a credit to herself, the second shop a similar story with another disabled person serving me a credit to himself, then I walk back to my car without a walking stick and go by the local 'Wetherspoons' and there they all are sat out side the dossers and tossers the idle and work shy on the piss at 1030, I know half of them and I know they are just lazy idle gits who in your view need all the help they can get, well mens bits to socialism move to North Korea or Rhodesia

[sawfish]

And why do people obsess with a bit of DSS fraud when tax fraud, evasion and avoidance costs billions - oh, yeah, the Mail ignores fraud by its friends and concentrates on vilifying the weak and unfortunate and people like you swallow the tripe unquestioningly!

Its so obvious they do this to take the attention away from themselves and to lay the blame on those with no voice, there are so many examples of things like this. I dont think people swallow it, I think they choose to believe it because of their own selfishness and greed.

It amazes me that people can actually defend Mosley, I mean Thatcher these days.

"Fascism is a government, faction, movement, or political philosophy that raises nationalism, and frequently race, above the individual and is characterized by a centralized autocratic state governed by a dictatorial head, stringent organization of the economy and society"

I'd say Thatcher was 100% there  :)

[valmarg]

And wrong.  - discuss

valmarg

[valmarg]

Apparently Maggie sold off the silver, but Hash Brown sold off the gold/ >:( >:( :( :o ??? ::) :-[ :'(

valmarg

[Paulines7]

I don't know, all this tit for tat arguing over politics and we are never going to agree.  Let us just be grateful for what we do have in this Country. 

One of the things our taxes go towards is protection from terrorists and this must cost a fortune in the current climate.  Think what could have happened if plans for blowing up a plane over London had not been stopped.  We have had one bad attack on London but many others have been prevented. 

I for one am happy about the taxes I pay to safeguard our security, give us a good NHS service, provide a decent education, to fight crime on the streets etc, etc.  The most important thing for me is good health, not stupid arguments over how much tax we all pay.

[Barnowl]

The OECD is a tory pupper organisation following a tory agenda - end of!
[/quote]

I don't think the Labour government would help fund it if it was a Tory puppet. And I'm old enough to remember the criticisms the OECD levelled at Tory governments in the past. It's a worldwide organisation with worldwide funding although funding is dominated by the US (the well known Tory puppet state run by David Cameron :)).

'The OECD is funded by its 30 member countries. National contributions are based on a formula which takes account of the size of each member's economy. The largest contributor is the United States, which provides nearly 25% of the budget, followed by Japan.'

[redimp]

The OECD follows a Tory monetarist agenda - just like New Labour does which is why they are happy to fund it.

[valmarg]

Do try to calm down a bit rc.  You really are asking for a heart attack, or a stroke.

I used to bother about politics, but since 1997 have realised (as I've said before) there's small choice in rotten apples.

Happily, I'm a non-taxpayer, so I don't contribute towards this load of corrupt self-seekers of whichever party they belong ;D ;D ;D

valmarg

[Gazfoz]

Do try to calm down a bit rc.  You really are asking for a heart attack, or a stroke.

I used to bother about politics, but since 1997 have realised (as I've said before) there's small choice in rotten apples.

Happily, I'm a non-taxpayer, so I don't contribute towards this load of corrupt self-seekers of whichever party they belong ;D ;D ;D

valmarg

Amen :)

[katynewbie]

Do any governments listen?

Orgreave

The Poll Tax

Right To Buy

3 things which ripped the heart out of many communities, no government since has changed anything.

Case rested.

[Gazfoz]

Well we don't have poll tax anymore, that much has changed.