Danger-Mouse Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Possibly. Instead of doling out the dosh, why not find out what is required - let's say a dam to improve a water supply - get several UK civil engineering firms to tender for the work and select the best quote and get that firm to build it. Money goes where it should, UK jobs, the dam gets built and the locals who need clean fresh water get it. Win win surely. Just a thought. It sounds good but there are a few problems with it. The UK firm comes out of it rather nicely but what about the engineering companies in the country that is receiving the aid payment? They lose out on a large payment, their workers don't get any work. The money that would have been paid to their workers isn't taxed within the country so it stays outside their system. That tax money then cannot be injected back into the country for futher improvements. So yes, they get their clean water but they miss out on many other benefits the project could have created. Essentially your idea "gives the man a fish" when we all know he needs to learn how to fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontastic Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Essentially your idea "gives the man a fish" when we all know he needs to learn how to fish. Ah yes give a man a fish and he eats for a day, give him the gear to catch fish and he can sell the gear on eBay and buy beer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danger-Mouse Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Ah yes give a man a fish and he eats for a day, give him the gear to catch fish and he can sell the gear on eBay and buy beer. Yeah that's the one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Far too sensible sir! Sadly a lot of skimming here and there as human nature shows it's colours. Actually, we've been doing this for decades - possibly even some 200 years. Usually in places where the British armed forces have had an historical presence. I expect you've heard of the company involved - The Royal Engineers. I concede that DM has a point. Obviously, if there is local expertise available then it should be utilised with a UK company acting as project management to ensure (as far as is possible) financial control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panoma1 Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Interesting if you look on google at the corrupt regimes and countries the U.K. gives aid to.....and how much! Somalia £86.8 mil... most corrupt country! Libya £6.7 mil... South Korea...£756,000 Afghanistan...£200.4 mil Sudan.....£50.5 mil Iraq....£5 mil Uzbekistan....£1.6 mil Turkmenistan....£416,000 South Sudan.....£107 mil Syria....£38.5 mil Zimbabwe....£139 mil, does any gets past Mugabe? Dem Rep Congo.....£139 Pakistan.....197mil And plenty more countries I imagine? Anyone want to add that little lot up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Interesting if you look on google at the corrupt regimes and countries the U.K. gives aid to.....and how much! Somalia £86.8 mil... most corrupt country! Libya £6.7 mil... South Korea...£756,000 Afghanistan...£200.4 mil Sudan.....£50.5 mil Iraq....£5 mil Uzbekistan....£1.6 mil Turkmenistan....£416,000 South Sudan.....£107 mil Syria....£38.5 mil Zimbabwe....£139 mil, does any gets past Mugabe? Dem Rep Congo.....£139 Pakistan.....197mil And plenty more countries I imagine? Anyone want to add that little lot up? Don't forget to factor in the number of visits by our MP groups - c10-20 in number - swanning in for a fortnight's fact finding tour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontastic Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Don't forget to factor in the number of visits by our MP groups - c10-20 in number - swanning in for a fortnight's fact finding tour. Don't be stupid not even our MPs would want to visit them countries, not when they can attend global warming conferences in places such as the Seychelles or Mauritius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Don't be stupid not even our MPs would want to visit them countries, not when they can attend global warming conferences in places such as the Seychelles or Mauritius. Now who's being stupid. They're reserved for the front benches - the erks at the back have to take whatever they can get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveboy Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 They have not ruled out using some of the Forieign Aid Budget on Defence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oowee Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Interesting if you look on google at the corrupt regimes and countries the U.K. gives aid to.....and how much! Somalia £86.8 mil... most corrupt country! Libya £6.7 mil... South Korea...£756,000 Afghanistan...£200.4 mil Sudan.....£50.5 mil Iraq....£5 mil Uzbekistan....£1.6 mil Turkmenistan....£416,000 South Sudan.....£107 mil Syria....£38.5 mil Zimbabwe....£139 mil, does any gets past Mugabe? Dem Rep Congo.....£139 Pakistan.....197mil And plenty more countries I imagine? Anyone want to add that little lot up? Countries the aid is spent in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sitsinhedges Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Anyone who is feeling guilty can text WATER to 70300 and give £3 a month Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontastic Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 Now who's being stupid. They're reserved for the front benches - the erks at the back have to take whatever they can get. Like the poverty conference held in Vegas, bet there was a canny scrap to get onto that committee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wandringstar Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 how hard can it be to lay a fresh water pipe system? obviously very difficult for some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
four-wheel-drive Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 One thing worth bearing in mind is a lot of this so called foreign aid may not be money paid to foreign governments it can be supplying arms building bridges etc etc using things made in this country thus providing work for British people just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spanj Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 But if the disenfranchised don't vote then that leaves the door open to a wrong result, Again, and only my opinion is that voting should be compulsory...... In which case vote for an independent......they rarely win but some of them actually stand for a local concern, Or vote and spoil your ballot paper thereby registering your disenfranchisement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 £4,000,000 given in aid by the U.K. to North Korea in the last six years!!!! Buying them the nuclear bombs with which to bomb us!....whilst our own people stand outside waiting for the food banks to open! Whilst I agree that no-one in this country should have to rely on food banks, there are plenty who go to them because they want to, not because they need to. That, however, is perhaps for a different thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robkat Posted April 22, 2017 Report Share Posted April 22, 2017 it is easy to stop this practice if you live in Scotland, vote SNP. Freeedom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontastic Posted April 23, 2017 Report Share Posted April 23, 2017 how hard can it be to lay a fresh water pipe system? obviously very difficult for some. It's actually quite a lot of work, many years ago I was on a detail providing security for a group of gap year students connecting a water supply, and as all those 20 something hotties sweated in the sun while I drank ice cold beverages and played with my gun I couldn't help think to myself that wouldn't it have been far easier to have just set up the village closer to the water hole in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wandringstar Posted April 23, 2017 Report Share Posted April 23, 2017 (edited) But in the scheme of things, a water system is pretty achievable, its not like building a telecommunications system, you would have thought that the governments of these countries would have at least had the urgency to insist on fresh water.......i mean how difficult can it be with billions of pounds in free money and knowledge, yet, another charity called water aid is required to sort it all out. Edited April 23, 2017 by wandringstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.