What will the new government do about the deficit?

nexus · Post by **nexus** » 02 May 2010, 22:47

The Tories are still not clearly setting out what they will cut and where (if elected), but this piece from the Guardian gives an idea of the depth:

One shadow minister said: "It will be as tough as you can imagine. It will be Osborne's political judgment to decide how hard the pips can be squeezed.

from http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010 ... ts-deficit

Cameron reckons that if elected, they'll have a six month window of goodwill from the electorate to lay out and start their massive programme of cuts.

Would be good to know their full plans before voting time (and that goes for the other parties too).

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 03 May 2010, 08:22

Tories would put VAT up to 19.5%
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-storie ... -22219836/

19.5? WTF? Save us the arithmetic and make it 20.

Or 10.

2 As and a B · Post by **2 As and a B** » 03 May 2010, 09:19

nexus wrote:Cameron reckons that if elected, they'll have a six month window of goodwill from the electorate to lay out and start their massive programme of cuts.

Hopefully there will be another election under some form of PR after about 6 months.

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 03 May 2010, 09:52

The Real History of the Conservative Party

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 03 May 2010, 14:36

labour geezers on youtube, about the Con servatives wrote:Progressive my arse

Love it

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 03 May 2010, 18:30

When I lived at home with my parents we had my grandfather living with us and, when he died, a great aunt came to stay until she too died. My other grandparents both lived in their own home until they died.

Old people's homes? Didn't exist then and possibly won't in the future. They are a modern invention spawned by the oil age, the age of plenty. I'm hoping that us oldies will become useful again in the future and will be too valuable to be tucked away in an old folks home.

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 03 May 2010, 18:44

nexus wrote:The Tories are still not clearly setting out what they will cut and where (if elected), but this piece from the Guardian gives an idea of the depth:

One shadow minister said: "It will be as tough as you can imagine. It will be Osborne's political judgment to decide how hard the pips can be squeezed.
from http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010 ... ts-deficit

Cameron reckons that if elected, they'll have a six month window of goodwill from the electorate to lay out and start their massive programme of cuts.

Would be good to know their full plans before voting time (and that goes for the other parties too).

Get real, will you! Whoever gets in will have to make massive cuts eventually. The longer they are put off, the bigger and more harmful they will be. The longer they are put off the more likely it will end with a Greek style, begging bowl bearing trip to the IMF again, just like the previous Labour government.

If you believe anything in the Mirror, you really are grasping at straws. Sorry Mirror, you often get the news right about Eastenders or Corry or Emmerdale. But then that's all fantasy, isn't it?

All taxes are going to have to go up sooner or later and whether or not it's the IMF who says so will depend on how soon the cuts come.

The Tories were honest about the level of cuts at the beginning of the campaign and got hammered in the opinion poles so they are now adopting the same level of dishonesty as Labour and the LibDems. Can you blame them? We all know we're in for a hiding so we're all willing to shoot the messenger for letting us know.

contadino · Post by **contadino** » 03 May 2010, 18:50

kenneal wrote:When I lived at home with my parents we had my grandfather living with us and, when he died, a great aunt came to stay until she too died. My other grandparents both lived in their own home until they died.

Old people's homes? Didn't exist then and possibly won't in the future. They are a modern invention spawned by the oil age, the age of plenty. I'm hoping that us oldies will become useful again in the future and will be too valuable to be tucked away in an old folks home.

As far as I can tell, the disposal of old people is something that only really exists in the UK and the US. Pretty much all other countries value the old, with the inherent knowledge, experience, and funny stories that they have to offer.

nexus · Post by **nexus** » 03 May 2010, 19:52

Get real, will you! Whoever gets in will have to make massive cuts eventually. The longer they are put off, the bigger and more harmful they will be. The longer they are put off the more likely it will end with a Greek style, begging bowl bearing trip to the IMF again, just like the previous Labour government.

If you believe anything in the Mirror, you really are grasping at straws. Sorry Mirror, you often get the news right about Eastenders or Corry or Emmerdale. But then that's all fantasy, isn't it?

Oh dear I seem to have rattled your cage Ken.

Erm YES I know that cuts need to be made which is why I said at the end of my post that it goes for the other parties as well as the Tories.

My concern is that the Tories will cut tax for the uber rich while leaving the rest of us swinging. I'm old enough to remember the Tories getting in in '79 and what happened after that and as a mum I am concerned for my family and our finances.

However I do not dispute we are up s*** creek without a paddle and drastic measures are needed. Personally I would like the parties to be up front beforehand so we can decide which way to vote, depending on who is cutting what.

Why did you mention the Mirror? if you are implying that I am a Mirror reader just because I disagree with you, then that is simply lazy and rather offensive. For your information I never read the tabloids and hate celeb culture. I get my information mainly from R4 and the broadsheets.

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 03 May 2010, 20:39

contadino wrote:
kenneal wrote:When I lived at home with my parents we had my grandfather living with us and, when he died, a great aunt came to stay until she too died. My other grandparents both lived in their own home until they died.

Old people's homes? Didn't exist then and possibly won't in the future. They are a modern invention spawned by the oil age, the age of plenty. I'm hoping that us oldies will become useful again in the future and will be too valuable to be tucked away in an old folks home.
As far as I can tell, the disposal of old people is something that only really exists in the UK and the US. Pretty much all other countries value the old, with the inherent knowledge, experience, and funny stories that they have to offer.

I have a theory that old folks' homes (and the promotion thereof by HMG/Councils) are a way of fleecing the middle-classes: were it not for that particular expense, many would, after 2 generations, own their home outright and be in the labour market on their own terms rather than in desperation with a huge mortgage.

Vortex · Post by **Vortex** » 03 May 2010, 20:55

The disposal of poor terminally ill people in the US is especially horrid ... locked wards, no publicity.

Americans don't get old or messily sick apparently.

Filter Feeder · Post by **Filter Feeder** » 03 May 2010, 21:38

Cuts are going to be to the bone regardless of who gets in. That's a given. But it won't be enough. Don't try to fool yourself that the colour of the individuals and clubs sitting in parliament will make any difference to that.

We are basically bankrupt. As is the US and the rest of Europe. We have all bought into an enormous monetarist ponzi scheme which collapsed the instant that investors realised that Peak Oil had arrived. With the advent of Peak Oil, no one can continue pretending that these "debt which can never be repaid", can actually be repaid. So the market in these debts collapsed.

The entire scam relies on continuous, unsustainable growth - the limits of this growth have now been met. So the system must now contract. Sustainability is no longer an aspiration, it is reality. This is death to monetarism, corporate capitalism and all sorts of other grand edifices.

The world is changing faster and more dramatically than at any other time since the industrial revolution. There will be blood. I would not be in any hurry to get rid of our military right now.

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 04 May 2010, 00:08

nexus wrote:Why did you mention the Mirror? if you are implying that I am a Mirror reader just because I disagree with you, then that is simply lazy and rather offensive. For your information I never read the tabloids and hate celeb culture. I get my information mainly from R4 and the broadsheets.

Sorry, Nexus. I was being lazy and having a go at Biff's contribution immediately after yours without quoting it..

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 04 May 2010, 08:13

Me? I don't read the Mirror either. Radio 4 for me too.