Vince Cable

Jennifer_Jane

carolt wrote: »

snip...
Am I the only one to think Osborne looks about 9? Unnervingly, Osborne is my age and was at university with me - just can't take the guy seriously. I mean, what do I know about running the country? And nothing in his CV gives me the impression he has any more idea than I do.

Carolt - what did you and George Osborne both read at university? Just interested in what you were saying here.

Jen
x

Pobby

lynzpower wrote: »

what I dont understand in all this is why reduce IRs, is it so that those on SVRs can maange thier payments without going into default- or to increase lending?

If its to increase lending then where is the money going to come from for this? If Libor is dried up and interbank lending is , for so many dead in the water, then what next?

Lynz I can give you first hand experience of the 70`s if you like. 1970 I was earning about £1200 a year which was an OK wage then. 10 years later that wage had risen to £10,000 a year which was a good wage. I had job changes and by then I was a director of a small company, about £800,000 per annum turnover but £7 or £8k a year would have been fairly normal.

As inflation roared away so did earnings. My first house in 1975 was £9,995 with a 10% deposit. Sold in `78 for a thousand pound more It was bought after a strong housing boom but however when I bought it I guess with 2 wages it was about 3.5 loan to value. So imagine that we hadn`t moved our combined salaries, around £18k a year had melted that mortgage debt away.

Interestingly enough the next house was a tad under £15k which ten years later we sold for, I think, £60k but my wages hadn`t gone up 400%.

I think our combined salaries then would have been about £26k so again that figure of £60k was very affordable. Compare that to now.

£26k, combined, looking back, in fact was a good wage. I don`t live in the south east now but there are many couples earning £26 to £30k a year where we are now. The figure given for the average property price in the county I am in is £237,729. :eek::eek::eek::eek:

You might like this link but it`s not for the fainted hearted.

http://www.whatprice.co.uk/financial/housing-market/house-prices.html

olly300

carolt wrote: »

I think Vince has had a better grip on the housing issue - my particular interest - than the other 2 main parties, and has been warning re the dangers facing the housing market for a while.

He's not perfect, but he does seem to have a better grip on the economy than Gordon or George Osborne do.

Am I the only one to think Osborne looks about 9? Unnervingly, Osborne is my age and was at university with me - just can't take the guy seriously. I mean, what do I know about running the country? And nothing in his CV gives me the impression he has any more idea than I do.

Vince Cable former job before being MP - Chief Economist for Shell

George Osborne - degree in Mordern History. No real job experience unless you count data inputting for the NHS and working in Selfridges. (BTW he was born in 1971)

Alistair Darling - previous job before coming an MP a solicitor than an advocate.

If we were choosing on qualifications alone then Vince Cable would be the only one qualified to be chancellor.

ginandtonic1988

amcluesent wrote: »

Letting rip with inflation like Labour did in the 1970's is pretty much inevitable, which is why the smart money is piling into gold and index linked bonds.

Eroding their debt with inflation is great for mewers and the government; the fact it wipes out pensioners and the hated middle-class savers well be a welcome bonus to Clown and Mandy.

I've read several articles on mortgage debt being eroded by inflation, (sorry I'm a bit daft and don't understand) please could you explain for me?

amcluesent

>As inflation roared away so did earnings.<

NOT if you were a public sector employee. I well recall how my pocket money was eroded due to inflation and my parents quality of life was hammered due to public pay being capped at some fraction of the real rate of inflation.

lynzpower

olly300 wrote: »

Vince Cable former job before being MP - Chief Economist for Shell

George Osborne - degree in Mordern History. No real job experience unless you count data inputting for the NHS and working in Selfridges. (BTW he was born in 1971)

Alistair Darling - previous job before coming an MP a solicitor than an advocate.

If we were choosing on qualifications alone then Vince Cable would be the only one qualified to be chancellor.

Miss Lynz power. Commercial Property Area Manager/ previous social worker/ presented the UK at Un conference i/worked for a variety of charities/presented to a previous failed EA/ BA Hons Politics.

Id suggest most of the people on this board could do a hell of a better job than the current pack of jokers. :cool:

olly300

lynzpower wrote: »

Miss Lynz power. Commercial Property Area Manager/ previous social worker/ presented the UK at Un conference i/worked for a variety of charities/presented to a previous failed EA/ BA Hons Politics.

Id suggest most of the people on this board could do a hell of a better job than the current pack of jokers. :cool:

Unfortunately with the 2 main parties most of the people who seem to enter politics now are career politicians. Hence the stupid policies they come up with.

lynzpower

I agree.

How can you make decisions about theworld with !!!!!! all life experience. Some MPs are my age! 30s, I dont know how they feel confident enough to be able to do whats expected of them, let alone be able to influence policy with such a narrow experience of the world.

olly300

ginandtonic1988 wrote: »

I've read several articles on mortgage debt being eroded by inflation, (sorry I'm a bit daft and don't understand) please could you explain for me?

Your not daft.

Anyway if you brought a house in 1990 and had to pay £500 a month for the mortgage and was still paying that amount in today, that £500 is worth less due to inflation. You should have also had some pay rises so the monthly payment takes up less of your income.

However this is ignoring things like fluctuation in payments due to interest rates, the fact that in some industries people don't get significant pay rises and the cost of some manufactured goods is getting cheaper.

pickles110564

JonnyBravo wrote: »

This morning he was on the Andrew Marr show and was saying the chancellor should write to Merv and tell him to forget his inflation target for a bit and significantly cut interest rates. ie to temporarily have interest rates back under political control.

Clueless interest rates need to go up by at least 2%, that way it will be over sooner than later and all us savers will be rewared very well.