37 coalition climbdowns, u-turns and row backs

CLAPTON

dunstonh wrote: »

The Labour years saw a massive increase in public sector pay relative to private sector. It saw the scale of the public sector increase. A lot of what was paid for in those years was put into debt that rather than capital expenditure. The spending was based on the boom years being the norm and not a boom period where bust follows and the repayment for the spending spread over the years to come. The ultimate buy now, pay later scheme. This was at Government level, corporate level and consumer level.

It is widely recognised that Labour benefited in the early years because of the actions taken by the previous Government.

It's widely recognised that Conservatives blame labour for all the debt and spending and that labour blame the conservatives for running down hospitals, schools, police service, army etc etc.

However when you quote the deficits and spending then they are a matter of the record so it's worth getting the facts right.

So you say labour saw a 'massive' increase in public sector pay... just illustrate the point with the figures.

StevieJ

dunstonh wrote: »

The Labour years saw a massive increase in public sector pay relative to private sector. It saw the scale of the public sector increase. A lot of what was paid for in those years was put into debt that rather than capital expenditure. The spending was based on the boom years being the norm and not a boom period where bust follows and the repayment for the spending spread over the years to come. The ultimate buy now, pay later scheme. This was at Government level, corporate level and consumer level.

It is widely recognised that Labour benefited in the early years because of the actions taken by the previous Government.

You mean like PFI?

by 1996 there were enough PFI projects in play
to enable the economists from Goldman Sachs to express concern
at the time of Kenneth Clarke’s final Conservative Budget about
the extent of the government’s off-balance sheet private finance
liabilities

.
http://www.searchingfinance.com/news-and-views/the-history-and-horror-of-the-pfi.html

StevieJ

Thrugelmir wrote: »

GDP driven by financial services and the activity related to the property market ( estate agents, surveyors, solicitors, builders and so on).

Along with a doubling of public sector employment from increased Government spend.

Now the mist is lifting. All very illusionary.

Illusory indeed.

In 2008, 19.6 per cent of all jobs were in the public sector. In 1997, it was 19.5 per cent. Even today, the proportion of public sector jobs remains lower than it was at the end of the early nineties recession: 23.1 per cent of jobs were in the public sector in 1992, compared with 21 per cent now.

http://blogs.channel4.com/factcheck/how-many-public-sector-jobs-did-labour-create/2860

Mr._Pricklepants

dunstonh wrote: »

What gets me most about this Govt is the inability to get Labour's failings across whilst at the same time falling over themselves in silly little things.

It's not as they haven't been trying; bringing up the "labour mess" argument time and time again.
Luckily, the average UK citizen saw through that one quickly, realises it is indeed an international recession, and the current government, as much as the previous one, can only stand by, watch and tinker around the edges.
Labour didn't put us in a recession and the Tories won't get us out of it , the recession will end in due time when the global economy recovers.

exarmydreamer

Now that Britain is officially out of it's double dip recession, will the current government therefore stop blaming the previous government and take responsibility for it's mistakes from this day forward?

Hope so, sick of hearing - it's not our fault. They are now crowing over GDP gain, lets hope it does not faulter and they find they will have no one to blame in future.

Don't personally agree with any party, they are all equally corrupt and selfish to their own agenda's.

callum9999

CLAPTON wrote: »

maybe maybe not

many issues, once given the perspective of a few months, actually are seen in a different light.

so democracy often wins after all and the principled sometimes win too.

You are talking about Britain yes? The principled sometimes win? You make me laugh!

With the exception of this forum of course, the British electorate are (in general terms - obviously many people care passionately etc.) uneducated, disinterested idiots with regards to politics.

CLAPTON

callum9999 wrote: »

You are talking about Britain yes? The principled sometimes win? You make me laugh!

With the exception of this forum of course, the British electorate are (in general terms - obviously many people care passionately etc.) uneducated, disinterested idiots with regards to politics.

looks like one more thing we disagree on.

many problems are issues are difficult to fully understand and even more difficult to determine the best way forward.

callum9999

exarmydreamer wrote: »

Now that Britain is officially out of it's double dip recession, will the current government therefore stop blaming the previous government and take responsibility for it's mistakes from this day forward?

Hope so, sick of hearing - it's not our fault. They are now crowing over GDP gain, lets hope it does not faulter and they find they will have no one to blame in future.

Don't personally agree with any party, they are all equally corrupt and selfish to their own agenda's.

Why should they? It's highly ignorant to believe the economy starts fresh with every new government - I'd be surprised if some decisions made by the previous Tory government weren't still having an impact on the economy today... Not that I've noticed the current government blaming the previous one excessively - it's barely mentioned (and usually only in response to Labour moaning about something).

Selfish to their own agenda yes - that's the entire point of political parties. If they weren't there would be no point in them existing. Corrupt however, what exactly brought you to that conclusion? Hearsay and conjecture I assume?

Graham_Devon

StevieJ wrote: »

You mean like PFI?

.
http://www.searchingfinance.com/news-and-views/the-history-and-horror-of-the-pfi.html

PFI is a silly argument to use.

It exploded under Labour. It's even in Tony Blairs biography as a useful tool, but one of his major regrets is the labour party relying on it so much. There was something like a 1500% increase in it's use under labour if I recall correctly.

N1AK

callum9999 wrote: »

I love this country... If the coalition do something you don't agree with they get chastised (quite rightly). If they then recognise you are right and reverse that, they get chastised again.

The issue isn't that never changing your position is a mistake; it is that they constantly put out plans/policies etc that were never viable then either a) drop them instantly or b) refuse to budge for ages then collapse under the pressure.

This ineptitude, combined with the inevitable lurch to the right that the conservatives are going through in an attempt to hold those voters, means I now can't see myself voting for them at the next election unless they improve considerably.