Manifest Stupidity: Labour Condemned by their Own Words

Loughton_Monkey

Generali wrote: »

The Milliband pic was on about page 3!

Luckily I can speed read to an extent so I can rip through this stuff.

I'm looking forward to the Green and Nationalist manifestos. They'll be a laugh a minute.

I sincerely hope you don't miss out the Monster Raving Loonys.

http://www.loonyparty.com/about/policy-proposals/

If they had any sense, they would rename themselves to "Layber Party" so that the great unwashed, poor, and typically uneducated will vote for them in error.

To be safer, every candidate could change their names by deed poll to "Ed Milibent".

michaels

Generali wrote: »

On top of that, 31,000 more health staff will be employed by the NHS (apparently an 'investment' although it says a lot that Labour don't understand the difference between capital expenditure and spending).

You are forgetting the Labour manifesto can be summarised with two simple equations:
paying public sector employees more = investment
deficit spending on investment ≠ borrowing

Of course when you are no longer able to borrow any more to bribe the electorate with their own money and get voted out you can just leave behind a note saying 'there is no money left' and leave it for the next lot to go through 5 unpopular years tryign to get the accounts back in order before you get your next chance.

wotsthat

Generali wrote: »

The Milliband pic was on about page 3!

Ed is so lacking in the photogenic department they've taken the only barely reasonable shot of him in existence and photoshopped it onto a background of hard working people.

Having skimmed through the manifesto I can summarise that labour are going to spend more whilst simultaneously saving more too. The savings aren't from cuts either - they're from efficiency savings which are unspecified and always available in abundance.

Seems a far cry from the last election when the parties were campaigning/ lying about who could cut the deficit the quickest.

michaels

Unless I am missing something there is no plan (beyond a 'people led Constitutional convention - ie a talking shop with know timescales or fixed terms of reference) to address the West lothian Question - IE Scotish MPS who don't want to be part of the Union will be still be able to vote on Health, education etc in England but English MPS who do beleive in the Union will not have reciprocal powers over Scottish devolved services for the forseeable future.

Oh yes and MPS can not have real jobs but can be paid and sponsored by trade unions....

antrobus

Generali wrote: »

... a Green Investment Bank (Greenman Sachs?), ....

We've already got one.:)
http://www.greeninvestmentbank.com/

Backbiter

Generali wrote: »

Labour released their manifesto today so I thought I'd start a series on some of the very, very stupid promises parties are making for the next five years.

http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/BritainCanBeBetter-TheLabourPartyManifesto2015.pdf

Planning to increase the minimum wage is quite interesting as an idea given the current deficit. How many hospital cleaners, street sweepers and dinner ladies make more than minimum wage?

For Government employees on minimum wage, it should be cost neutral, as the Government has to top up the minimum wage (via tax credits etc) to enable people to live. So the higher wage bill will be offset by lower tax credits.
For private sector employees, the savings to the Government are potentially huge, as again the Government subsidizes private sector wages massively via tax credits etc. Multi-billion pound firms who could afford to pay their employees a living wage currently do not do so, as they know the State will top them up.

Tesco’s low pay culture is supplemented by the Treasury who had to top up their pay rates to the sum of £364 million in the last year, whilst pay for each low waged worker each year at the retail giant Next costs the taxpayer approximately £2,087.

http://www.citizensuk.org/taxpayer

So this policy could indeed help cut the deficit.

Loughton_Monkey

Backbiter wrote: »

For Government employees on minimum wage, it should be cost neutral, as the Government has to top up the minimum wage (via tax credits etc) to enable people to live. So the higher wage bill will be offset by lower tax credits.
........

So you put minimum wage up to £7.50. Now what makes you think all those (many) people being paid £7.50 already will simply say "well done" to their colleagues, and carry on working for £7.50?

... and so on up the line?

Cyberman60

stator wrote: »

To be honest they could put anything in their manifesto, I will vote for them because they are the only alternative to the current evil coalition.

When the country goes bust again we can blame people like you.

markharding557

This manifesto published today is worth the same as the one being published tomorrow and any others from any other parties.

Might as well wipe your butt on it!

Does anyone actually believe the fabrications written upon them.

BobQ

Generali wrote: »

Worse, I've committed to reading a load more over the next few days. :eek:

Here is another set of policies for your to evaluate.....

http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/ge10/man/parties/OMRL.html