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drmerlin's latest comments
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16th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?You have still not addressed the fact that despite more people being employed, the tax take from the employed is DOWN. This is because so many of these so-called new jobs are low-paid, zero hours contracts etc. Self-employment is the biggest con... For example, once upon a time, if you wanted to be a delivery driver, you joined a firm who supplied the van, petrol etc. You had a proper job with proper working conditions and rights. Now many van drivers have to provide their own van, service and maintain it etc. They have to work stupid numbers of hours to barely survive. However, all that is important for the Tories is to say, look at how unemployment is falling!!! At the same time, productivity remains an issue in Britain. Give people proper jobs for a living wage and watch productivity grow! More people in proper jobs will pay more tax and then we might begin to see sustainable growth in the economy that will benefit us all.ViewDate:
16th Feb 2015ViewDate:
14th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?The amount that this country owes since 2010 - vastly increased, The amount of tax that the government collects - vastly decreased. The number of working people using food banks - vastly increased. The effect on public services - utter decimation. Money wasted on crackpot schemes such as NHS reorganisation or free schools - billions of pounds wasted. Number of prosecutions for illegal tax evasion - 1! A cost of living crisis for the many while Osborne fights any attempt to limit bankers' bonuses... And you believe you can recognise economic competence??? Really???ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Oh yes... one more thing Archiebald. We look forward to working with you in coalition after May 5th ;)ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Archiebald... apologies my friend. I am indeed a proud lefty... I care about those who struggle and are disadvantaged. Thrilled to hear that you are a Green supporter. I completely support your views on the environment. The Greens are the only other serious party that I would consider voting for... Good socialist credentials :)ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Totally agree with you about Blair destabilising the Middle East. I think he and Bush should be tried as war criminals. As for the biggest financial crisis since 1929, that is what happens when you follow Conservative policies. However, I repeat, to suppose that the Conservatives would have done anything different had they been in power is naive. If you want to understand the roots of the financial crisis of 2008 you have to go back to Thatcher and Reagan. The biggest economic mess since 1929 was caused by a Conservative approach to government under Blair pursuing deregulation of the financial sector. That was pretty unforgivable. It is a shame that this government has not learned that lesson...ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Thank goodness... at least one other person on this site who is not sucked in by right wing propaganda!ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Come on... Let's apply a little intelligence here. "Employment is the highest it has ever been"... Whoopee! Then why is it that the tax take from employment is the LOWEST it has ever been??? Zero hours contracts, low paid jobs subsidised by the taxpayer and other 'scams' simply massage the figures to help Lynton Crosby and his like make out that things are much better than they are. The economic cycle means that the recovery was inevitable regardless of what this dreadful government did. The gap between the richest and poorest has soared. Most people are NOT experiencing economic recovery. In the NHS where I work we are about to have another 22 billion pounds chopped! Public services are being decimated, bankers bonuses (for complete incompetence) are rising and productivity is dropping because of the myth that if you make the rich richer then we all benefit. It is clear that this site is clearly conservative and the conservatives never let fact get in the way of dogma...ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Archiebald: I am sorry that you disagree. Let me be absolutely clear about what I am saying. Labour's huge mistake was following the Tory lead of capitulating to big business... They, like the Conservatives, got far too close. Might I remind you what actually happened... The banks squandered billions in casino banking... They bet, and lost, with our money. The government had no choice but to bail them out. This is what we are all paying for now. You would be naive to believe that the current government, had they been in power then would not have done EXACTLY the same thing. Let us not forget that as the opposition, the Tories never challenged what was going on. This does not excuse Labour at all. However, what happened was the inevitable result of Thatcher and Reagan's policies of the 1980's. Blair won the country over by persuading them that he could be more free market than the Tories and we all fell for it. You also blame Labour for what was an international crisis. Let us all clear up another issue. Labour is definitely NOT anti-business. They are very much pro-business. However, a distinction must be made between opposing large corporates who fail to pay their tax and also employ people on appalling contracts and pay which results in us, the taxpayers, having to subsidise them. There are numerous examples of superb big businesses in this country who care about their staff, pay their taxes and genuinely contribute to the economy. That is the kind of business that we need to back to the hilt. Until the international community tackles the abuses of many of the banks and those corporates who employ armies of accountants and lawyers to avoid tax and devise creative ways of avoiding their responsibilities as ethical employers, democracy will continue to decline and policy will be devised by a few immensely wealthy individuals who have the power to dictate policy to suit their own greed. I am all for success (and indeed wealth) that has been fairly and squarely earned. I (as I am sure you are) am a taxpayer who earns well and makes my fair contribution to our country and community. All that we ask for is that everyone should do the same. No rules for one group in society above another.ViewDate:
13th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?Oh dear... Poor Wombat. You really have fallen hook line and sinker for the Lynton Crosby effect haven't you? I know that whatever I write will not change your view because, as you say, "There's nobody as blind as those who don't want to see" but I will have a go at setting you straight on a few facts... Not Labour rhetoric... solid fact. First I will totally agree with you about the Balir administration... As I said, Tony Blair was Margaret Thatcher's greatest achievement. She actually said this herself. It is the pursuance of Conservative Policy by the previous Conservative Government, the last Labour government and this coalition that have resulted in the mess that we are in. Let me start with the NHS. I am a Consultant in the NHS with more than 30 years experience. I totally agree with you about the disaster of PFI contracts. Are you aware that PFI was John Major's flagship policy? So Blair continuing this is a continuation of a disastrous Tory policy.... as was the privatisation of Hinchingbrooke, turning the NHS into a market place etc. Of course it is the private sector that raises money for public services. Nobody is against ethical business who pay their staff properly and pay their taxes. Their are countless examples of such companies in this wonderful country and all power to their elbow! However, the blind faith that Tories have in big business is frightening. I believe in a democracy where people determine government and policies and NOT big business (watch this week's Panorama and see one of your Conservative colleagues admitting that big business influences government policy). Oh yes, let me deal with the pathetic counter-argument put by the right wing about the Unions funding the Labour Part... Of course they do! The Labour Party was started 100 years ago to represent the interests of working people because they were NOT properly represented by the political establishment of the time. I am not defending the abuses of the Unions 35 years ago but believe that the Unions are more representative of working people than the Conservatives can ever be. Back to the NHS. In the past 5 years 20 billion pounds has been taken OUT of the NHS. Over the next 5 years the Conservatives plan to take out a further 22 billion... This is a FACT! I go to the meetings every week where we are in the process of planning what are euphemistically called 'Cost Improvement Plans' (CIP). At the same time, social care has been slashed to the point where psychiatrically disturbed children cannot be admitted to hospital because of a lack of beds or alternative care. Once again, this is a FACT. Similarly, we have to contend with daily bed-blocking by people who need social care which is no longer available because of the decimation of social services budgets. This ends up costing us even more! This government spent 3 billion pounds on a reorganisation that even they do not understand. It has been pointless and achieved absolutely nothing. Now let's turn to the deficit. We now owe significantly more than we did in 2010. Cuts to welfare have caused untold misery with no savings. The bedroom tax costs more to administer than it has saved and, as a Consultant, I deal with suicidal people on a weekly basis who do not where to turn or how to resolve their situation. I could go on and on about the unbelievable incompetence and misdirected nature of this government but will just deal with another couple of points... The vast majority of the welfare budget is consumed by pensioners (who have just been given a tax giveaway by Osborne and who tend to be Tory Voters) and by low income families who are subsidised by the taxpayer because of the appalling way in which so many businesses treat them (zero hours contracts, being paid below minimum wages etc). I will leave out the absolute 'con' that many of the statistics are about new business start-ups. We need good business to actually generate taxes. We don't need governments to keep subsidising big businesses who enjoy huge profits and have their low paid staff cared for by the tax system. The last point I will make to you Mr Wombat is about immigrants. Immigrants contribute more to the economy than they take out... Immigration is GOOD for the country. I do not know if you are a UKIP voter or a Tory (It is never easy to tell the difference - if there is, indeed, one). Just be very careful about blaming particular groups of people for the ills of this country... That is how it all started in Nazi Germany. This is particularly dangerous rhetoric at a time when antisemitism and islamaphobia is gripping Europe. Hope you learned something...ViewDate:
11th Feb 2015drmerlin commented on:
Is George Osborne managing the economy well?It is true that Labour made some big mistakes when they were in office under Margaret Thatcher's prodigy Tony Blair. Just like the Tories, Blair and his disciples thought that the answer was to allow unethical corporates to get away with murder. Fortunately, Labour is now appropriately opposed to such business... unlike the Tories. The economy only works for the wealthy, The NHS is in decline because of Conservative policy. We MUST learn from history and vote Labour under Ed Miliband to start to do things differently