Toynbee - Plan C for public sector workers

ruggedtoast

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/10/public-sector-workers-plan-c

The number of public sector jobs lost since April is already five times greater than projected for the whole year...

These are shocking figures, an extra 200,000 more jobs to go than predicted.

So try plan C, from Glasgow University's Professor Greg Philo: a one-off windfall taking 20% of the accrued wealth of the richest 10% would solve the debt problem overnight. Graduated so the top 1% pay most, taking a fifth of the £4tn they own would only push back downwards the money hoovered upwards in the last decade. They can pay it after death if they prefer. YouGov found 74% support for the idea, hardly surprising as the Insitute for Fiscal Studies on Tuesday reports that average households have lost 7% of income, with the poorest hardest hit.

I like that idea.

Blacklight

You have just as much right to do that as you do to take 50% of everything the poorest 25% of people own.

WestonDave

The one constant in this situation is that pretty much everyone is looking around for someone else to clobber to pay the bill. Ms Toynbee declared her income as £106k in 2009, and as she makes her living pretending to be a socialist, the obvious target is to go for those even more well off than she is!

That said I agree with her that simply handing out the £75bn to pay off the unsecured borrowings of those who have overspent is probably more politically explosive than this idea!

ruggedtoast

Blacklight wrote: »

You have just as much right to do that as you do to take 50% of everything the poorest 25% of people own.

Calm down, its not actually going to happen.

Britain will continue to be unfair and unequal, you arent going to wake up tomorrow and realise you are in some socialist nightmare where obscenely rich people have 10% less money and everyone else is comfortably off.

angrypirate

ruggedtoast wrote: »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/10/public-sector-workers-plan-c



I like that idea.

So that will pay off the public debt as it currently, but we'll still be running at a £130bn deficit each year.

ruggedtoast

angrypirate wrote: »

So that will pay off the public debt as it currently, but we'll still be running at a £130bn deficit each year.

You're right, the idea of extraordinarily rich people handing over a comparatively small portion of their assets to filter wealth down through the rest of society is preposterous.

oldvicar

ruggedtoast wrote: »

You're right, the idea of extraordinarily rich people handing over a comparatively small portion of their assets to filter wealth down through the rest of society is preposterous.

You don't want to be giving money to POOR people ... they will only go out and spend it. Then where would we be? Back to square one.

The_White_Horse

the idea, like most socialist ideas, is ridiculous. what happens long term if rich people (who own the businesses that the poor work in, who create all the money to pay for the bloated public sector) think that the govt will raid them like vindictive socialist robin hoods? that is right, they will go elsewhere.

stupid lefties.

IronWolf

Lol, you would have a mass exodus of all the rich from the UK and UK assets. The stock markets and banks would collapse as the rich withdrew their fortunes to reinvest overseas.

Idiotic idea

MGCP

Risk averse wealthy types tend to want to invest in countries where their assets won't suddenly be seized on the whim of a gevernment because it is strapped for cash. It would be a wonderful way of destroying our international reputation for generations to come all for the sake of making a quick buck. Next we'll be selling off all our gold at discount prices. Oh...

Anyway, other than that it is a great idea, well done Polly.

heathcote123

ruggedtoast wrote: »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/10/public-sector-workers-plan-c



I like that idea.

Seems like Toynbee doesn't want to give up the tuscany villa until she is dead....