Anything Political

[Brew 5,410]

Sunak wants to emulate Thatcher? Seriously? What a nightmare!

He wants to 'Thatcherise' tax. A situation where highly paid civil servants formed themselves into limited companies to avoid income tax.

This from a man married to a woman wealther than the Queen. A woman who claims she is British yet maintains non-domicile status and therefore pays no tax on £500,000,000. I'm not surprised he wants to change the tax rules.

 

I've read that 85% of MPs do not know where money comes from, (Cambridge University survey), I wonder if any of the contenders are among the 15% who claim they do.

 

Quite why they are making tax a major plank I'm not sure, perhaps they think it's the populist view and is what supporters want to hear. Have any of them mentioned the cost of living crisis?

As usual there is much banging of drums and throwaway quips, but almost no detail, nothing anyone can get their teeth into and challenge.

 

 

[MRS B 513]

Sunak  is a very clever guy for his own ends. Maybe he should be offering some education to the rest of the population on tax evasion?

Brew, you do make me laugh “wealthier than the Queen” 

[radfordred 6,284]

I’m quite missing that loveable rogue Boris, he was bullied, I hate bullies. 

[DJ360 6,721]

First thing to keep front and centre is that they are not pitching to the electorate, but to the 100 or so thousand Tory members, comprised in no small part of retired colonels and blue rinsed old biddies.

Most of them are reverting to well worn lies about low tax small state stuff, which pleases those who are convinced that only stupid lazy people need benefits or public services.

So, after 12 years of utter financial incompetence, they are about to vote in another morality free nobody.

The candidates were all happy to hang onto Johnson's coat tails for 3 years. They didn't oust him out of any sense of propriety or integrity, because if they had either, they would never have appointed him leader in the first place. They ousted him because he became a vote loser.

In my view he should be frog marched out of No. 10 and remanded on charges of misconduct in public office, fraud, corruption  and no doubt theft could be made to stick too.

A despicable creature, who even spun his resignation ('when I'm ready') speech to blame everyone but himself.

Lower than an amoeba in my view.

[Beekay 5,134]

Do I take it Col., you not exactly one of his fans.      B.

[DJ360 6,721]

BK, If I told you what I really think of him I'd get banned for life.

I can't believe the number of people on Facebook who seriously cannot see anything wrong with his behaviour, over partygate  but also over Owen Patterson, Pinscher etc.al. Such folks also seem oblivious to his previous misdemeanours in other jobs,comments by everyone from former colleagues, school teachers etc, etc..all confirming the same thing.

He has absolutely  no moral compass, appears to genuinely believe that rules do not apply to him,  believes he is entitled to office and is incapable of admitting to wrongdoing, even when seen to do it by everyone.

[Brew 5,410]

Not sure I agree with 12 years of incompetence. The economy had a reasonably steady rate of 2% from 1991 until the big crash in 2008. Lots of accusations bandied about austerity etc, but the Tories cannot accept all the blame.

After a quite rapid recovery things were almost back to the status quo until 2020 and covid, again we can't blame Tories for that. The cost to the country and the way the economy has been managed since Covid is moot.

 

The economy has no quick fix, even if they slashed tax rates tomorrow it would take at least a year to percolate down to our level, before they said the 'dynamic' situation had changed, and it must go back up.

 

True, they are speaking to the party, but saying what they think voters want to hear.

[DJ360 6,721]

On 7/13/2022 at 5:12 PM, Brew said:

Not sure I agree with 12 years of incompetence. The economy had a reasonably steady rate of 2% from 1991 until the big crash in 2008. Lots of accusations bandied about austerity etc, but the Tories cannot accept all the blame.

You lost me there Jim.

1991?

As I recall there was yet another Tory created recession around then. 'Boom and Bust' etc. I certainly recall that after some improvement,Youth Unemployment shot up again around then.

 

From 1997 to 2008 I seem to recall some progress on public spending, services etc, under an economically sensible Labour Govt. Of course neither Labour nor Tory can be specifically blamed for the 2008 crash, but the UK press and the Tories managed to stick the blame on Labour, despite the fact that it is Tories who have more allegiance to and affinity with the 'institutions' (Rogue Traders) who caused the crash. And of course it was Tories who were calling for even more deregulation of banking prior to the crash.

 

The blame for Austerity lies firmly with the Tories and especially Osborne.  It was not economically necessary. It was more of a Political stunt,with a political objective.  It was simply an excuse to implement those policies which Tories get all orgasmic about.  Cutting public spending, cutting services, punishing the poorest and weakest in society, blaming the victim, etc.  Think back and recall the endless Daily Mail howling about 'Benefit Scroungers' etc. 99% bullshit but it appeals to the baser 'I'm allright Jack' instincts of many. Austerity wasalso away of trying to make the public blame Labour, for an economic situation which was not their fault.

 

Right, can't sit at the PC any longer for now.  Will respond further later.

[Cliff Ton 10,459]

Not my creation, but an interesting comparison. Different people will have different views on the degree of similarity.

 

[DJ360 6,721]

The fact that she is trying to emulate possibly the most hated British politician of all time says rather a lot about how in touch she is.

[Brew 5,410]

Perhaps not explained myself well. Ignoring who did what and why the economy from the mid-eighties climbed steadily to a peak in 2008 then the crash. And whether we agree with the why and how, it started to recover at a similar pre-crash rate until covid.

Both Labour and Tory policies produced a similar result in growth. In 2019 GDP per capita was a tad in front of Japan and France and unemployment is less than half that of the latter. Taking all that happened, much beyond our control, I can't say I agree with 'mismanagement'.

[Brew 5,410]

41 minutes ago, Cliff Ton said:

Not my creation, but an interesting comparison. Different people will have different views on the degree of similarity.

 

She's not the first to emulate the look of someone they admire. Corbyn, with a 'Shoreditch market' hat,  and beard was accused of copying  Trotsky's look.

 

And wiggy Fabricant, possibly the greatest lickspittle in modern times...

They will deny it of course, and put it down to 'mere coincidence'.

 

 

[DJ360 6,721]

On 7/16/2022 at 10:52 AM, Brew said:

Perhaps not explained myself well. Ignoring who did what and why the economy from the mid-eighties climbed steadily to a peak in 2008 then the crash. And whether we agree with the why and how, it started to recover at a similar pre-crash rate until covid.

Both Labour and Tory policies produced a similar result in growth. In 2019 GDP per capita was a tad in front of Japan and France and unemployment is less than half that of the latter. Taking all that happened, much beyond our control, I can't say I agree with 'mismanagement'.

 

Thing is Jim, it all depends upon how you define a 'well managed' economy, and who exactly it is being managed for.  I'm drawing here on a couple of things I learned many years ago.

 

1. It is entirely possible to have a successful national economy which huge numbers of the population neither participate in, nor benefit from.

 

2. Growth is by no means the only metric on which an economy should be judged and there have long been economic arguments around the fundamental insanity of a finite World in which continuous economic growth is pursued as a 'holy grail'.

 

3. Reductions in taxation, (especially Direct Taxation) are of course built in to Tory ideology, but within the current tax structure of the UK, they always disproportionately benefit the more wealthy. Cutting tax for those who barely pay any and yet still struggle to exist, is just a cruel joke.

 

The present bunch of Wannabe Prime Ministers, have mostly argued for Tax Cuts and even where they disagree on timing, they see low tax small state as the way forward. They still insist, despite evidence here and World wide to thecontrary, that their approach will bring wider prosperity, via 'trickle down' effects. It just won't. It never has and never will.

 

Direct policy intervention, such as actually levelling up rather than just blathering on about it, is what is needed, to halt, and reverse, the ever increasing wealth gap and North South Divide.

I don't see any chance of that happening under the 'leadership', of a bunch of nobodies who hung on to Johnson's coat tails until his obvious vote losing antics forced them all into a 'Road to Damascus' conversion and an outbreak of 'integrity' of embarrassing proportions.

 

And of course while they have been arguing about how best to implement their narrow ideology, I'm pretty sure that not one of them has mentioned the near collapse of the Ambulance Service, the chronic understaffing of the NHS, food banks, etc.,etc.  All of these were of course revealed, or exacerbated by Brexit and Covid, but neither were caused by it. They were caused by deliberate neglect of training, recruitment etc.

[radfordred 6,284]

Can anyone tell me if this Tom Tugendhat fellow served in the army? 

[Jill Sparrow 10,304]

TA, I think.

[Stuart.C 491]

From Wiki, assuming correct;

 

Thomas Georg John Tugendhat^[2] MBE VR (born 27 June 1973) is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee since 2017. Tugendhat has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tonbridge and Malling since 2015.^[3] Before entering politics, he worked as a journalist and as a public relations consultant in the Middle East. He also had a part-time role as an officer in the British Army reserves, the Territorial Army; he served in the Iraq War and the Afghanistan War.

[Brew 5,410]

5 hours ago, DJ360 said:

Growth is by no means the only metric on which an economy should be judged and there have long been economic arguments around the fundamental insanity of a finite World in which continuous economic growth is pursued as a 'holy grail'.

 

Not the only means, but GDP is  universally accepted as the premier indicator of economic success or failure, second is CPI, but there are far more variables with that. Anything else simply comes down to differences of opinion.

Low taxes, as you rightly point out, do not lead to growth, and trickle down doesn't trickle anywhere they think it should.

 

Levelling up is a pipe dream. Every PM in living memory has acknowledged the North/South divide, and despite grand words and unviable schemes (Blair's 'northern power house' sound familiar?), have failed comprehensively to change it.

 

The wannabes are ignoring the Elephants (plural). An NHS not fit for purpose. Food banks in the sixth-richest country on the planet. The cost of living that is out of control. The NI border dispute, and though it may not be PC to mention it, virtually unchecked illegal immigration.

 

What are they arguing about? Mainly tax because they think voters want to hear it, and last week it seemed that even gender identification was a major bone to be chewed over! 

 

Petulant Sunak and Truss are refusing to appear on TV because it becomes a slanging match… I wonder who's responsible for that?

The situation is rapidly descending into a farce.

 

And what has Starmer come up with today? "Why has Johnson failed to prepare the country for the heatwave"! Seriously? That's all the criticism he can come up with?

[philmayfield 6,115]

Labour did appoint Dennis Howell as a minister for rain after a drought in the 70’s and it p***ed down not long after his appointment.

[Brew 5,410]

Yeah, and didn't we also have American Indians or some sort of shaman do a rain dance?

[philmayfield 6,115]

Our hay's being mown this Thursday. I don't want any of those rain making rituals happening until it's been baled and carted away! 

 

 

[radfordred 6,284]

It's obvious you did not watch last night's live TV debate @Stuart.C if only Owd Tom could have had another hour  

I'm liking Ms Mordaunt for PM

[Brew 5,410]

Announced today is approval for a new nuclear power station. Cost is estimated at 20bn, a lot of money and mainly funded by the French (EDF).

With almost the same size, some say bigger, economy, how come they can afford it, and we can't? Why do we have to be beholding to foreign powers for our energy?

[Brew 5,410]

"Never give up, never surrender".   Boris claims his mission is 'largely finished'............. for now!

I wonder what he has in mind next?

Apart from his million pound book deal, what is he plotting for the future? He sabotaged Theresa May, can he outsmart Sunak?

[Brew 5,410]

I may have dreamed this, have I just read that a significant number want Johnson to retract his resignation?

 

[Beekay 5,134]

Can we really be that lucky Brew?