Budget

[smart1]

Anyone else think it sucks? Anyone else wonder how FISCALLY RICH or not we would be had Thatcher not sold off everything British, such as gas, telephone companies, and she was intent on getting got rid of the mines in this country by buying coal cheaper from what was then the Eastern Bloc. I would be inrerested to know how we would stand, had all that not happened. Any answers?

[smart1]

All tories then?

[NOX]

Wash your mouth out calling me a Tory.

[factor-fiction]

I'm not sure why you think we'd have been richer as a country if we hadn't privatised the utilities. The old utility organisations were innefficient and we couldn't afford to finance them, so we sold them off and raised money from the sale. I would agree, however, that the idea that competition would drive down prices to consumers doesn't seem to have worked.

[New Judge]

You asked whether the budget "sucks". If you want to understand why we are not “fiscally rich” just look at the proposed expenditure figures in that budget.

Total expenditure - £710bn. Of that total: Social Security - £200bn; Housing [for which read “social” housing] - £21bn; Individual Social Support - £23bn; Debt Interest - £40bn. The total of those four items (£284bn) far exceeds the revenue from Income Tax and National Insurance combined.

That is one of the main reasons why the UK is “fiscally poor”.

[dzug2]

Britain IS fiscally rich.

It's just badly distributed - the poor have too much and the rich not enough of it - if you believe standard right wing rhetoric.

[Red_John]

we would have been far poorer had she not privattised the utilities. They would have remained public sector which everyone knows are a useless sh0wer of sh1te, cost a fortune and are inneficient beyond belief. smart1? I think a rethink on the user name may be in order!

[smart1]

Feeling a real blue streak here .....

[Red_John]

lefties love to portray privatisation as "selling off the family silver" but in reality it is the removal of millstones and the injection of dynamism from the private sector. There is also the introduction of competition in what were previously state run monopolies which in turn drives prices down. Things like gas/electric etc would be much more expensive had they not been privatised, So smarty, thank MrsT for keeping your bills down.

[Twenty20]

It's now what, 21 years since Margaret Thatcher left Downing Street and yet people still love to bring up what she did and didn't do during her time as PM.

Of course, it's now fashionable to say how much we hated Thatcher etc etc, yet we elected her for three terms in office from 1979 - 1990.

If we think things are bad now then just think back to the state the country was in during the 70's.

[smart1]

Red Johnny needs to calm down - I asked a question is all.

[Red_John]

all I did was answer it, sorry it wasn't what you wanted to hear. Not me that needs to calm down.

[smart1]

'All I did was answer it'
No, you did not.
You had a rant and made snide remarks about my user name.

[Red_John]

Well you have to admit your ignorance of the situation is somewhat at odds with your user name.

[starone]

Isn't red john the name of the serial killer in The Mentalist? Also - a funny colour to pick for someone who should have picked blue. But then blue john doesn't sound quite the same does it.