A Damning Article in the Telegraph about Blairs Legacy

[oowee]

1 hour ago, 12gauge82 said:

So what's the answer? 

More £ in less £ out. We can play with the small ticket items and blame everyone else all day long but to make a difference it's the big ticket items that count.

Take your pick:-

A lower standard of living. Re balance income and expenditure. 

Work longer, work harder. Less pension and other benefits. Less health care, less subsidy.

Contribute to health care (? pay prescriptions, pay for doctors appointments), reduce health care benefits (change ratio of costs to outcomes), pay for social care, pay full cost of energy, pay more for education.

Increase economic output. Favour growth industries, favour education in target streams (stem subjects), tax breaks for new business.

Favour healthy lifestyle. Tax, sugar, tax salt, stop subsidising meat. Subsidise, health, sponsor fitness. 

 

 

[Gordon R]

oowee - an impressive list which says very little. I note that abolishing "Foreign Aid" or bribes doesn't feature on the list, nor does reversing Brexit. 🙂. 

[Mungler]

32 minutes ago, oowee said:

More £ in less £ out. We can play with the small ticket items and blame everyone else all day long but to make a difference it's the big ticket items that count.

Take your pick:-

A lower standard of living. Re balance income and expenditure. 

Work longer, work harder. Less pension and other benefits. Less health care, less subsidy.

Contribute to health care (? pay prescriptions, pay for doctors appointments), reduce health care benefits (change ratio of costs to outcomes), pay for social care, pay full cost of energy, pay more for education.

Increase economic output. Favour growth industries, favour education in target streams (stem subjects), tax breaks for new business.

Favour healthy lifestyle. Tax, sugar, tax salt, stop subsidising meat. Subsidise, health, sponsor fitness. 

Looking at the biggest pieces of the pie chart:

1. Stop importing the economically unviable - we can’t afford them

2. cut state hand outs - we can’t afford them. Rebalance what people take out against what they put in. If you’ve never put in, there should be no right or entitlement to take out.

3. Rationalise the NHS - badly run, wasteful and we can’t afford it. Start charging for access if need be. Look at the pie chart. Factor in 50% of the whole NHS budget is spent on the over 65s.

4. cut the state machinery - lose 25% of government sector jobs over a reasonable period. Bin all quangos and faux do nothing organisations and associations.

5. Implement accountability and penalties for anyone in the public sector who fails. Currently, if you’re employed by the state, get it wrong and cost the public purse a small fortune there are zero consequences - look at all the bankrupt councils (Thurrock is a good one) - no one nailed to a cross, sued or sent to prison. 

6. Through taxation, encourage people to go to work, to take risks and run businesses, employ people etc. Don’t penalise those who create wealth, who do and who put in. Cut red tape and business admin.

Edited September 18 by Mungler

[Gordon R]

Mungler - a more realistic list (scrub the "more").

[Dave-G]

I think its time the NHS started charging those who have not been here long enough to have paid a reasonable amount into UK taxes.

[Daz45]

On 17/09/2024 at 14:10, ditchman said:

22% to the junior doctors..(2 year deal) and after the 2 year deal they will go for another 22% ...............

and we will pay for it ..and it will make NO DIFFERENCE to productivity

Quite

3 hours ago, Dave-G said:

I think its time the NHS started charging those who have not been here long enough to have paid a reasonable amount into UK taxes.

YES YES YES

[oowee]

9 hours ago, Gordon R said:

oowee - an impressive list which says very little. I note that abolishing "Foreign Aid" or bribes doesn't feature on the list, nor does reversing Brexit. 🙂. 

I did think about it. Pensions, social care and runaway costs NHS are the killers we cannot afford. 

Harsh but pension out should be related to pension in. A very minimal state pension topped up with defined contribution schemes (take pension out of the hands of govt). We have a situation where pensioners expect to live well and be looked after bu the state having paid a minimum contribution. At the same time sitting on housing assets of thousands of pounds that they want to give to family. 

The numbers of pensioners increase by the day and those paying for it decrease by the day. We have to pay for social care with house sales if need be or relatives looking after relatives. The govt should not be picking up responsibility. 

NHS we are simply doing too much and it is not joined up with lifestyle choices. Tax poor health and subsidise healthy choices.

Get the economy moving by targeting support to growth sectors through education, tax breaks.

On 17/09/2024 at 14:10, ditchman said:

22% to the junior doctors..(2 year deal) and after the 2 year deal they will go for another 22% ...............

and we will pay for it ..and it will make NO DIFFERENCE to productivity

Settling the NHS strikes has saved a further £1,7bn. 

[Gordon R]

oowee - what do we lose if we cut Foreign Aid? Don't tell me we will lose goodwill. I don't see any goodwill from abroad. How much of the total aid is skimmed by various bodies? Why is the Civil Service so keen to carry on paying it? 

[old man]

22 hours ago, oowee said:

I agree completely. Far from excessive but..... we cannot afford to maintain it. Own house, own car, free health care, free education, independent army, navy, airforce, road infrastructure, prison service, legal service, subsidised heating, subsidised rail, subsidised roads, subsidised care service, paid for with increasing debt we can barely service and then we vote for Brexit. Something has to give. 

 

History says that a pummelling of the plebs  can only go on for so long?

Once their ability to afford some daily distractions is removed the fun maybe sought elsewhere?

[Mungler]

Well, it’s clear that what we don’t need is more government spending right now or state expansion. And of course what’s labour’s most favourite thing? That’s right, spending other people’s money…

 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Here's the answer;

 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/09/19/hopes-smaller-tax-rises-reeves-handed-10bn-budget-headroom/

 

"Rachel Reeves has been urged to restore winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners after the Bank of England handed the Chancellor a fiscal boost worth up to £10bn...

[old man]

On 18/09/2024 at 22:49, oowee said:

More £ in less £ out. We can play with the small ticket items and blame everyone else all day long but to make a difference it's the big ticket items that count.

Take your pick:-

A lower standard of living. Re balance income and expenditure. 

Work longer, work harder. Less pension and other benefits. Less health care, less subsidy.

Contribute to health care (? pay prescriptions, pay for doctors appointments), reduce health care benefits (change ratio of costs to outcomes), pay for social care, pay full cost of energy, pay more for education.

Increase economic output. Favour growth industries, favour education in target streams (stem subjects), tax breaks for new business.

Favour healthy lifestyle. Tax, sugar, tax salt, stop subsidising meat. Subsidise, health, sponsor fitness. 

 

 

Methinks you are touting for a job in the current regime? 😃