Cameron: "Cuts will change our way of life"

[mattyq]

Bad news about the HPA. I work next door to their office and play cricket with a lot of them.

A lot of the work they do is statutory ie it has to be done by law so it seems a bit pointless. Instead of having a fully qualified scientist doing all the work they'll probably get minimum wage spotty teenagers checking our food & water supply to save a few quid

[dennis tooth]

Bad news about the HPA. I work next door to their office and play cricket with a lot of them.

A lot of the work they do is statutory ie it has to be done by law so it seems a bit pointless. Instead of having a fully qualified scientist doing all the work they'll probably get minimum wage spotty teenagers checking our food & water supply to save a few quid

 

Be a bunch of fucking volunteers singing 'We are all in this together, the big society' (Remix) Wearing wellies, eating reformed ham sandwiches brought on a platter personally by David Cameron and Nick Clegg, wearing wolly jumpers where once there was a hoody.

 

I'm finally getting their coalition vison. It's one big statutory law rave.

[Strontium]

UK economy 'on the mend', says IMF | Business | guardian.co.uk

 

UK economy 'on the mend', says IMF

• IMF says planned cuts will not derail growth

• Fund praises coalition's debt reduction plans

 

Larry Elliott, Economics editor

guardian.co.uk, Monday 27 September 2010 15.41 BST

 

The International Monetary Fund today said the UK economy was on the mend after its deepest postwar recession and praised the coalition government for its hardline approach to cutting the budget deficit.

 

In its annual health check of Britain, the Washington-based fund said George Osborne's planned cuts in public spending were unlikely to derail growth.

 

"The UK economy is on the mend. Economic recovery is underway, unemployment has stabilized, and financial sector health has improved."

 

In a strong endorsement of the chancellor's plans to slash the UK's record peacetime deficit, the IMF added: "The government's strong and credible multi-year fiscal deficit reduction plan is essential to ensure debt sustainability.

 

"The plan greatly reduces the risk of a costly loss of confidence in public finances and supports a balanced recovery. Fiscal tightening will dampen short-term growth but not stop it as other sectors of the economy emerge as drivers of recovery, supported by continued monetary stimulus."

 

After assessing the state of the UK, the IMF team said economic recovery would proceed at a moderate pace, with growth of 2% in 2011 rising to 2.5% in the medium term.

 

It said the Bank of England would need to be "nimble" if the impact on growth of the budget cuts proved to be more severe than expected. The IMF saw no reason why interest rates needed to be raised from their current emergency level of 0.5%.

 

The report warned the government against getting cold feet about reform of banks. "The UK authorities should continue to provide leadership and build support for ambitious global reform of financial regulation. Ensuring a smooth transition to a new supervisory architecture at home will also be important to secure a safer post-crisis environment."

 

Although the IMF saw no evidence of a double-dip recession, it stressed that it would take time for voters to feel the impact. "Households are likely to remain thriftier than before the crisis but will be in a position to gradually raise their consumption as labour markets recover."

 

 

Good news I'm sure we can all agree.

[dennis tooth]

No SD that's wrong wrong wrong.

 

Go and look at the history of the IMF, everyone they praises fails. Look at Ireland for even a cursory example, u need to learn your onions.

Edited September 28, 2010 by dennis tooth

[Section_31]

Haha the IMF, that bastion of fair-minded social progress.

[lifetime fan]

Haha the IMF, that bastion of fair-minded social progress.

 

And the fat boy attempting to take credit for measures implemented before the coalition in his speach.

 

Top draw.

[dennis tooth]

The IMF is a curse. Any time they praise you you better baton down the hatches. Unless you are rich maybe.

[Creator Supreme]

If you don't provide a good service you don't make a profit.

 

 

 

 

What has happened is that people are sick of being held to ransom by Trotskyites.

 

And you say you're not a Tory, fucking hell!!!

 

Night Night Maggie!!

[JER]

No SD that's wrong wrong wrong.

 

Go and look at the history of the IMF, everyone they praises fails. Look at Ireland for even a cursory example, u need to learn your onions.

 

This. Ireland tried the Osborne austerity/no growth package - widely praised by the IMF last year, and now on the verge of going bust. The IMF verdict means nothing, as they have such a dreadful track record.

[Section_31]

"Your country needs you!"

 

* cringe

 

David Cameron: Your country needs you | Politics | guardian.co.uk

[Dirk]

The coalition's assault on single mothers and women is absolutely fucking sickening.

 

Yet again it's women and children who must pay (Welfare reform, 5 July). More than 70% of the revenue raised from direct tax and benefit changes announced in the emergency budget came from women. The latest coalition revenue-raiser, removing child benefit from families in which one earner pays higher-rate tax, falls nearly 100% on women (and 100% on children). Iain Duncan Smith says that an alternative would have been to raise taxes, which people wouldn't have liked either. Has he forgotten that non-parents and men pay income tax too, so any such tax rise would be much smaller since spread more widely? A tax rise would also not have impacted on those women looking after children full-time who have no other income of their own, while removing child benefit will leave most without any money of their own at all.

 

Susan Himmelweit

 

Professor of economics, Open University

 

Letters: Women and children take the hit again | Society | The Guardian

[tea]

On a brighter note, I can't see it being too long before the traitors deflect and another election is called. If not, we can divert our energies and actions once the club is sold, and have a revolution.

[Liverpool lad]

Johann Hari: A colder, crueller country – for no gain - Johann Hari, Commentators - The Independent

[Section_31]

The saddest thing is that nobody gives a fuck anyway. The people have got the government they deserve and are sleepwalking into a landscape that will make Escape from New York look like The Darling Buds of May. It actually amuses me on some level.

 

Of the people I know who supported the Tories at the last election, one works for a University, one is a teacher and one works for Ofsted. Let's see how long their jobs/perks/wage structures last.

 

 

"They voted for this Government, and now their little throats are being cut"

 

* makes throat-slitting hand gesture and funny noise

[Stu Monty]

If someone can point out to me why a single penny is still being paid out to the monarchy in this age of austerity then I'm all ears.

 

"We're all in this together".

[Strontium]

Isn't it conventional for nations to pay their heads of state a wage?

[Stu Monty]

Isn't it conventional for nations to pay their heads of state a wage?

 

How is that the point? I thought that this was a new dark age and so people were going to have to sacrifice. Could you please stop taking up positions contrary to what you actually believe in an effort to deflect any criticism from the government. It would be easier to treat you as an adult if you did.

 

Are you stating that you believe it's not immoral to keep the monarchy as it is? I thought you were all about equality of opportunity?

[Guest TK-421]

Cuts this, cuts that, cuts, cuts, cuts.

[Strontium]

How is that the point? I thought that this was a new dark age and so people were going to have to sacrifice. Could you please stop taking up positions contrary to what you actually believe in an effort to deflect any criticism from the government. It would be easier to treat you as an adult if you did.

 

Are you stating that you believe it's not immoral to keep the monarchy as it is? I thought you were all about equality of opportunity?

 

 

I'm not taking up positions contrary to what I believe at all. You know full well I would ideally like to scrap the monarchy.

 

However that's not on the table right now. And while the monarch remains our head of state, however "unfair" that is, it would be a bit remiss to not actually supply it with the funds necessary to do its job.

 

Your question was "Why are we paying money to the monarchy?", which I answered and which you berated me for. Clearly the question you intended to ask was "Why do we still have a monarchy?" which is a whole other kettle of fish.

 

(Either way it's still only tangentially related to the topic, since no matter who our head of state was, we'd still have to fund it, age of austerity or no)

[RedEagle]

Why have Cameron and Osbourne persuded this tactics of cutting when history has shown it does not work.

[Stu Monty]

I'm not taking up positions contrary to what I believe at all. You know full well I would ideally like to scrap the monarchy.

 

However that's not on the table right now. And while the monarch remains our head of state, however "unfair" that is, it would be a bit remiss to not actually supply it with the funds necessary to do its job.

 

Your question was "Why are we paying money to the monarchy?", which I answered and which you berated me for. Clearly the question you intended to ask was "Why do we still have a monarchy?" which is a whole other kettle of fish.

 

(Either way it's still only tangentially related to the topic, since no matter who our head of state was, we'd still have to fund it, age of austerity or no)

 

So you don't think it's the place of the government to remedy this leak of finances to them then? How does it stop then? Who puts it on the table?

[dennis tooth]

Why have Cameron and Osbourne persuded this tactics of cutting when history has shown it does not work.

 

Its like asking why Christians believe in God. Its mostly ideological but partly due to people who think they can control these things and think they have the ability to squeeze a few drops of water out of a wet towel and claim that they therefore control the oceans, oh yes, our country and big business are ran by deluded king canutes. I think this country has enough food to feed us for 3 weeks at any one time if imports stopped tomorrow if the world economy ground to a halt. However it is unlikely to affect them. They'll all be over in Belize with their financer, maybe Nick has a ticket too.

[Strontium]

So you don't think it's the place of the government to remedy this leak of finances to them then?

 

 

I think altering our entire system of government would perhaps require a little more in the way of planning.

 

How does it stop then? Who puts it on the table?

 

 

Any party is welcome to include abolition of the monarchy in their manifesto and campaign on it as they see fit.

 

Of course, the monarch is also the head of the established Church of England, which does complicate things somewhat, so I would suggest that the first necessary step should be to disestablish the CofE. So I would look for a party that supports disestablishment and vote for them.

[Cardie]

So I would look for a party that supports disestablishment and vote for them.

 

You might want to add 'and hope they don't bin that election promise in exchange for some magic beans'

[Section_31]

Johann Hari: A colder, crueller country – for no gain - Johann Hari, Commentators - The Independent

 

These attitudes have real consequences. We're not in this together. Who isn't in it with us? Them, their friends, and their families. They were asked to pay nothing more in this CSR. On the contrary: they are being let off left, right and centre. To pluck a random example, one of the richest corporations in Britain, Vodafone, had an outstanding tax bill of £6bn – but Osborne simply cancelled it this year. If he had made them pay, he could have prevented nearly all the cuts to all the welfare recipients in Britain. You try refusing to pay your taxes next time, and see if George Osborne shows the same generosity to you as he does to the super-rich.

 

There is one stark symbol of how unjust the response to this economic disaster caused by bankers is. They have just paid themselves £7bn in bonuses – much of it our money – to reward themselves for failure. That's the same sum Osborne took from the benefits of the British poor yesterday, who did nothing to cause this crash. And he has the chutzpah to brag about "fairness."