Austerity

[Master]

The government now have admitted their mistake to this experiment having wasted £500 million.

God bless you Master, thank you for admitting that the government wastes money. Here I was thinking you only thought they withheld money, no, no they waste it, yes indeed all governments do it even Trump's government wastes money perhaps/perhaps not at the Executive level, but on the whole, yes they WASTE money.


I look at the Paris Climate Accords, I see America making headway in addressing emissions and I see China saying "We thought we were going to top out a few years ago, but nah, we need to emit more CO2 for the next decade or so" and then I wonder who audits where the funding for this deal goes? Who decides it's being spent right? And isn't it odd how Congressmen can be paid 6 digits but wind up being multimillionaires in a matter of a few years? Isn't it odd how THAT happens? Worth a gander? Worth a discussion? Naaaaaaaaah, just stick to type straight white european males are horrible and all need to die because of the sins of their ancestors.

I agree on the fact that once the MP's retire they find themselves on boards of the companies they have privatised. That is corruption and should be exposed.

[El Kabong]

I agree on the fact that once the MP's retire they find themselves on boards of the companies they have privatised. That is corruption and should be exposed.

And their families as well, they certainly set their family members up right nice......like Hunter Biden for example

[Master]

I agree on the fact that once the MP's retire they find themselves on boards of the companies they have privatised. That is corruption and should be exposed.

And their families as well, they certainly set their family members up right nice......like Hunter Biden for example

Scandalous and it should be exposed. The rich have got richer and the poor even poorer. The divide in inequality has grown under austerity.

[Dia bando]

Yes Master all spot on mate the blame rests with the Tories no doubt.
I work for local authority as you know it has been devastated by cuts.
Education social services to name but a few roads etc the list goes on.
Bloody Tories just renamed cuts as austerity every time they are in power they cut nothing new.

[Master]

Yes Master all spot on mate the blame rests with the Tories no doubt.
I work for local authority as you know it has been devastated by cuts.
Education social services to name but a few roads etc the list goes on.
Bloody Tories just renamed cuts as austerity every time they are in power they cut nothing new.

Another thing is youth clubs being closed. I attended these clubs as a kid but kids have very little to do, unless you have rich parents, so can get caught up in trouble.

[El Kabong]

Seems like you lot are dependent on the government providing money to charities....why? Is there no sense of community? Why?

[Master]

Seems like you lot are dependent on the government providing money to charities....why? Is there no sense of community? Why?

Central Government do not routinely give money to charities. Normally local governments will give grants to local charities. However our Charity never asked for funding from them, we applied to lottery, comic relief, children in need, Lloyds Bank and various Trusts. The voluntary sector, which you may call not for profit organisations, have had their funding cut year on year. They normally provide a service to the community at a more cost effective way than statutory services but they are the first to be cut as it is easier to do.

[El Kabong]

Central Government do not routinely give money to charities. Normally local governments will give grants to local charities. However our Charity never asked for funding from them, we applied to lottery, comic relief, children in need, Lloyds Bank and various Trusts. The voluntary sector, which you may call not for profit organisations, have had their funding cut year on year. They normally provide a service to the community at a more cost effective way than statutory services but they are the first to be cut as it is easier to do.

Well I can't say I understand why ya'll have done things that way, perhaps it's a hand-me-down from Kings and Queens providing crumbs for their subjects I honestly don't know. But I do know that one of the Founding Fathers of America, James Madison said "Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government" and I agree with that fully and I participate in charitable giving and service whenever I can...I think it's good for the community and it's something the extremely wealthy could use to endear themselves to the community rather than draw the ire of.

Al Capone ran soup kitchens (when he wasn't running booze and prostitutes and murdering people)


.....and people thought highly of the man (rightly or wrongly)

[Master]

The voluntary sector is just that, people who give their time for free and share their skills and experience to their particular cause that they have an interest in.

The funding pays for staff to do the necessary work. Our particular charity trained volunteers to support families with children under 5 years of age who were on the verge of crisis. The befriending service aimed to support the child and parent who were referred by social workers/health visitors.

[Gandalf]

Yes Master all spot on mate the blame rests with the Tories no doubt.
I work for local authority as you know it has been devastated by cuts.
Education social services to name but a few roads etc the list goes on.
Bloody Tories just renamed cuts as austerity every time they are in power they cut nothing new.

Another thing is youth clubs being closed. I attended these clubs as a kid but kids have very little to do, unless you have rich parents, so can get caught up in trouble.

I hate that excuse. I was poor but worked while at secondary school and thus always had my music and books. School always had sports clubs and you and your friends could always rustle up a cricket bat, wickets and a ball. All you need is a football and parks are a plenty too. There is nothing stopping kids from studying hard or having fun even if poor.

[Master]

Yes Master all spot on mate the blame rests with the Tories no doubt.
I work for local authority as you know it has been devastated by cuts.
Education social services to name but a few roads etc the list goes on.
Bloody Tories just renamed cuts as austerity every time they are in power they cut nothing new.

Another thing is youth clubs being closed. I attended these clubs as a kid but kids have very little to do, unless you have rich parents, so can get caught up in trouble.

I hate that excuse. I was poor but worked while at secondary school and thus always had my music and books. School always had sports clubs and you and your friends could always rustle up a cricket bat, wickets and a ball. All you need is a football and parks are a plenty too. There is nothing stopping kids from studying hard or having fun even if poor.

It is not an excuse.

Austerity has led to cuts in public services. In my city we had local youth clubs, mines was at a local church and we would play football, table tennis, pool and hang out there. Now they decided to close all the clubs and have one in the city centre which is too far for them to go and you are more liable to meet people that are up to no good.

There has always been knife crime but the increase in it and at such a pace means that austerity must have something to do with it. Typically the government have increased the number of police but other services need funding which can divert children away from crime and into more productive lives.

[Gandalf]

Yes Master all spot on mate the blame rests with the Tories no doubt.
I work for local authority as you know it has been devastated by cuts.
Education social services to name but a few roads etc the list goes on.
Bloody Tories just renamed cuts as austerity every time they are in power they cut nothing new.

Another thing is youth clubs being closed. I attended these clubs as a kid but kids have very little to do, unless you have rich parents, so can get caught up in trouble.

I hate that excuse. I was poor but worked while at secondary school and thus always had my music and books. School always had sports clubs and you and your friends could always rustle up a cricket bat, wickets and a ball. All you need is a football and parks are a plenty too. There is nothing stopping kids from studying hard or having fun even if poor.

It is not an excuse.

Austerity has led to cuts in public services. In my city we had local youth clubs, mines was at a local church and we would play football, table tennis, pool and hang out there. Now they decided to close all the clubs and have one in the city centre which is too far for them to go and you are more liable to meet people that are up to no good.

There has always been knife crime but the increase in it and at such a pace means that austerity must have something to do with it. Typically the government have increased the number of police but other services need funding which can divert children away from crime and into more productive lives.

I am sorry, but I disagree about the need for 'youth clubs'. I never had youth clubs and I was one of those wild eyed terrors without a father, except I was bookish and disciplined with my morning money making. I had friends to play sports with, books to read, games to play, a bike to ride. It certainly did not result in any stabbing and the government wasn't buying our cricket bats or telling us what to do. GOOD PARENTS are the best way to divert children into healthy productive lives, not the government. If you want to play pool, then go to a pool hall. If you want to play football, then go to a park. It isn't complicated.

Are you telling me without government support you could not play football, cricket, or any of these things? I don't think it is on the government to provide entertainment for kids. I think kids make their own fun and if they cannot have fun without stabbing one another, then they belong in prison or if on a second passport, a good old deportation.

[Fatboxingfan]

2015:.

Minimum income required for acceptable standard of living, excl rent (Joseph Rowntree Foundation study)
Item Cost per month for a single adult
Social/cultural participation £196
Food £187.98
Travel costs £115.61
Energy bills (electricity/gas/water) £96.50
Household goods and services £78.09
Council Tax £64
Personal goods and services £59.24
Clothing £31.42
Alcohol £21.15
Total £849.99

[Gandalf]

2015:.

Minimum income required for acceptable standard of living, excl rent (Joseph Rowntree Foundation study)
Item Cost per month for a single adult
Social/cultural participation £196
Food £187.98
Travel costs £115.61
Energy bills (electricity/gas/water) £96.50
Household goods and services £78.09
Council Tax £64
Personal goods and services £59.24
Clothing £31.42
Alcohol £21.15
Total £849.99

With a full time job, you are earning that and more.

[Gandalf]

If we mean by austerity low interest rates, few pay increases, and limited public spending, then it is something I have experienced, but do not consider it a huge issue as you live within your means and carry on with life. How much does one need to get by? Not much. If you don't smoke or drink a lot then life is hardly a burden. Austerity is a global issue in many developed countries. I could get 5% interest on a savings account a few years ago, now you are lucky to get 2%. They have screwed up the economy that way and rather than let the silly fools out of their depth sink, they continue to screw with interest rates on savers who have been responsible with their money and continue to go easy on people who should not have been given the debt they have.

It hasn't been helped in countries like the UK though with continued open borders. Currently mainly to those beyond the EU who generally cost money. That is money that shouldn't be going to them. It pushes up housing, means more benefits, and for those who do work, pushes down wages.

I continue to be shocked by the notion that young people need youth clubs to occupy them. Why can they not have conversations in homes, go to coffee shops, read books, play games, play football etc, and pick up constructive hobbies? We make too many excuses when really the problem makers are typically the result of terrible family planning and a lack of self responsibility. A teenager can be productive and busy without reams of money or government programs.

Plus with the modern Internet it is not like they are paying 12 pounds a CD anymore which I was way back when music was still good. They nick everything off the Internet so the decent bands die off. In many ways the young are quite spoiled with everything available for free. You can download the entire works of Orwell for a couple of pennies. You couldn't do that when I was young. You had to spend and nowadays you can find so many rare things that you simply couldn't find then and the information is much more plentiful. Spoiled in that sense, but obviously many are deprived emotionally because of the decisions of terrible parents.

I asked the question a while back why do the poor stay poor and I think it is often a result of bookies, booze, drugs and general bad decisions. But then you add in a Labour caused bank bail out and you have some problems and it hasn't been the same again. Those bonuses came back and the ordinary people were so into their phones they barely flinched.