The Labour Government

[Hertzblue]

Wow. Mocking people for being concerned about genocide. Have the working people of this country no interest in stopping genocide? Do their values really stop at our borders?

When you do your door knocking it must be the first thing they bring up I imagine.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Maybe but it would be pointless discussing them with you.

You might be learning. We shall see.

 

[hampshireblue]

I didn't agree with the £17K as I am unsure where that figure comes from.
I do agree that he ruined the Pensions industry resulting in millions of defined benefit schemes closing early.

Apologies, it was our mutual "friend" Big Joe who gave the thumbs up to the £17000. But we know he's never been good with figures so we'll ignore that. I would ask him but that would involve him doing a bit of research.

Many companies' schemes at that time were in surplus so the "ruination" probably couldn't have been foreseen at that time. Certainly my company took a "pensions holiday" in the mid-late 90s as there was actually legislation at the time restricting how much a DB scheme could be in surplus by.

With the benefit of hindsight it was a poor decision but it was also an extension of the policy and actions initiated by Norman Lamont in 1993.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Edit: to add he was outstanding during the financial crisis.

Yes didn't he save the world ;-)

Joking aside, I agree. And I would also add his tests for alignment before we should join the Euro were also spot on. Greece would have never gone bankrupt had they followed that advice.

Unless states are economically aligned, the inflexibility of a common central bank and set of fiscal policies, ill-suited to the unaligned member, will spell disaster. As happened.

 

[Chippy_boy]

I take it you mean the shitshow after the 2 years of the GFC that the Tories managed to blame Labour for.

No, I don't mean that. I mean the huge national debt and deficit running at £150bn per year. Talk about a £20bn black hole. Try £150bn. Not all caused by the GFC. Labour presided over a sustained period of WW economic growth and instead of paying down debt during that period, they spent and taxed and spent and borrowed and taxed and spent some more. They left us desperately exposed. So when the GFC happened we were stuffed, and hit much worse due to our lack of bank regulation. And that is laid entirely at Labour's door. THAT's what I mean.

 

[Vic]

I said 5 years or so, did I not? I'm guessing you don't know that the overall budget is £1.3 Tn and that repaying £40bn per year through increasing tax receipts is like 3%. £30bn over 7 years is 2 percent which is well achievable if we get the growth we need.

What's your alternative plan? Oh wait, "tax the rich". Yes of course. That old chestnut.

You mean "old" as in how we used to do it.

 

[Chippy_boy]

You mean "old" as in how we used to do it.

Bring back Harold Wilson eh. Donkey jackets and strikes and IMF bailouts. The good old days.

 

[Hgblue2]

Bring back Harold Wilson eh. Donkey jackets and strikes and IMF bailouts. The good old days.

Look on the bright side, I don't think donkey jackets are coming back, I wouldn't bet against the other two though.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Not particularly a beef about Labour this (all parties seem to do it) but I am writing to my MP this morning about something and want them to forward a letter to the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms. Looking this up, I find said minister is Sir Chris Bryant MP.

I wondered what expertise he may have in the field of Telecoms and Data Protection. I am reassured to find he studied English at Mansfield College, Oxford, and theology at (ISEDET) in Buenos Aires and at Ripon College, Cuddeson, Oxford.

He'll be an IT and data protection expert then. FFS. Why do we keep appointing ministers into roles about which they have fuck all knowledge or expertise? Does my head in. Is it any wonder we end up with shite legislation???

 

[mosssideblue]

Not particularly a beef about Labour this (all parties seem to do it) but I am writing to my MP this morning about something and want them to forward a letter to the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms. Looking this up, I find said minister is Sir Chris Bryant MP.

I wondered what expertise he may have in the field of Telecoms and Data Protection. I am reassured to find he studied English at Mansfield College, Oxford, and theology at (ISEDET) in Buenos Aires and at Ripon College, Cuddeson, Oxford.

He'll be an IT and data protection expert then. FFS. Why do we keep appointing ministers into roles about which they have fuck all knowledge or expertise? Does my head in. Is it any wonder we end up with shite legislation???

SPADs

 

[Chippy_boy]

SPADs

Sure but at the end of the day it is the Minister who is supposed to use their final judgement, or else why bother having them. Just let the SPADs run the country.

And that's half our problem. Effectively they do.

 

[metalblue]

Sure but at the end of the day it is the Minister who is supposed to use their final judgement, or else why bother having them. Just let the SPADs run the country.

And that's half our problem. Effectively they do.

The Civil Service offers options to ministers, they are the experts, the minister decides which is politically acceptable.

That’s how we ended up with the WFA fiasco, Reeves didn’t come up with the idea, she was presented with it and decided it was a good idea and so did Starmer.

You can bet your life the MOD has offered differing options for Gaza and Ukraine, one option will likely include UK military involvement.

 

[metalblue]

Sure but at the end of the day it is the Minister who is supposed to use their final judgement, or else why bother having them. Just let the SPADs run the country.

And that's half our problem. Effectively they do.

Technocracies are dictatorships. Will give that a miss if you don’t mind.

 

[Vic]

Not particularly a beef about Labour this (all parties seem to do it) but I am writing to my MP this morning about something and want them to forward a letter to the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms. Looking this up, I find said minister is Sir Chris Bryant MP.

I wondered what expertise he may have in the field of Telecoms and Data Protection. I am reassured to find he studied English at Mansfield College, Oxford, and theology at (ISEDET) in Buenos Aires and at Ripon College, Cuddeson, Oxford.

He'll be an IT and data protection expert then. FFS. Why do we keep appointing ministers into roles about which they have fuck all knowledge or expertise? Does my head in. Is it any wonder we end up with shite legislation???

You'd like America, where the president knows everything about everything.

 

[Chippy_boy]

The Civil Service offers options to ministers, they are the experts, the minister decides which is politically acceptable.

That’s how we ended up with the WFA fiasco, Reeves didn’t come up with the idea, she was presented with it and decided it was a good idea and so did Starmer.

You can bet your life the MOD has offered differing options for Gaza and Ukraine, one option will likely include UK military involvement.

Agreed on all of that but at the end of the day the person in charge has to be savvy enough to at least understand the issues, or they may as well just throw a dart at the wall.

 

[hampshireblue]

Not particularly a beef about Labour this (all parties seem to do it) but I am writing to my MP this morning about something and want them to forward a letter to the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms. Looking this up, I find said minister is Sir Chris Bryant MP.

I wondered what expertise he may have in the field of Telecoms and Data Protection. I am reassured to find he studied English at Mansfield College, Oxford, and theology at (ISEDET) in Buenos Aires and at Ripon College, Cuddeson, Oxford.

He'll be an IT and data protection expert then. FFS. Why do we keep appointing ministers into roles about which they have fuck all knowledge or expertise? Does my head in. Is it any wonder we end up with shite legislation???

Try finding any transport secretary that knows anything about Air Traffic Control. We had one visit our workplace a few years ago and he asked what time we closed for the night. It was the ATC centre that controls everything over the UK!!

 

[Vic]

Try finding any transport secretary that knows anything about Air Traffic Control. We had one visit our workplace a few years ago and he asked what time we closed for the night. It was the ATC centre that controls everything over the UK!!

Might that be Chris Grayling who gave a £13m contract for a ferry service to a firm with no ships?

 

[BigJoe#1]

Does anyone have an insight into the latest blunder?

It is being reported that the Chagos Island deal that we were told would cost us £3.4bn whereas in fact the real figure is £34.7....

What will this do to Rachel from accounts black hole? Will it go from the £20bn she inherited to £50bn that she created to now be £80bn? Surely not.

 

[TinFoilHat]

Wasn't the internet bill a Tory one passed in their last parliament?

 

[Ifwecouldjust.......]

Wasn't the internet bill a Tory one passed in their last parliament?

It was initiated by the Tories but passed whilst the current Labour Party were in charge.