Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
A week is a long time in politics and a year is certainly longer. This time last year, a mere few days into his Premiership, young Cameron put his foot in it PR wise in a speech in India..when he said the Pakistanis were turning a blind eye to terrorism.
This, you will not be surprised to hear, went down like the proverbial lead balloon in Karachi. Not only was the new UK Prime Minister giving them a rubbishing, but he was doing it in India. Very bad news that for Pakistan. Getting rubbished is one thing but getting rubbished in front of your sniffy neighbours is something else.
Cameron of course was inexperienced those days. Having grown up into Conservatism and a Conservative Party that were forever in opposition, thanks to the buoyancy of one Tony Blair, he didnt I expect fully understand the mantra of government.
There was furore..and no doubt young Cameron learnt the error of his ways. Now, one year later he shuffles over to Pakistan bearing Gifts to make up for his earlier error. The Gifts are quite substantial..£650,000,000 in aid ..supposedly to go towards education and other stuff.
Quite a heck of a nest egg that, lotta zeros...I expect the Pakistani's will greet him well.
Just added Picture...it shows Prime Minister Cameron in The House last week defending his position against Ed Miliband. To his right you can see the ever-so-dozy Kenneth Clarke who surely before long is destined for the Lords where he can nod offf to his hearts content all day everyday.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
he has certainly seen the importance now of getting on with pakistan, not least because of the huge vote over here.
despite all that he had a bullet proof car and a full medical unit on standby solely for him on his visit.
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
paulb,thats alot of money coming from a so called broke country.it would all most pay off our so called deficit.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Yes Howard there are 1 Million Pakistani voters here according to one of the news channels earlier.
But yes Brian, its an absolute fortune and surely it would pay off most of our deficit or a great deal of it. The population at large dont understand how we can give away vast amounts of money like that and still have to make soldiers serving on the frontline redundant.
We have heard today how Lansley is failing to sell his NHS reforms, hence the pause in production, but neither is the government generally selling us the idea of aid...on one hand we are so broke we are cutting our care servicves and on the other hand we are giving £650 million to Pakistan for their care services.. Odd isnt it!!?
Brian Dixon- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
paulb,you could be right there,but saying that its about time this country put its house in order first before throwing large chunks of dosh in aid to other countrys.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
a lot more than a million paul, that figure does not include 2nd and 3rd generation ones who still consider themselves pakistanis even though they may never have been there.
we see that at crticket matches and also how they vote at elections.
Guest 696- Registered: 31 Mar 2010
- Posts: 8,115
650 Million £s is a huge figure, but the deficit is over 900 billion of them! A billion is a thousand times one million.
In theory, there is no way Britain could ever pay off the State deficit in conventional terms. Alone the annual interest on the deficit exceeds by far 650 million pounds, and no-doubt goes into the billions.
I'm not too sure if Brian is aware that other EU countries have similar deficits.
Brian, the deficit is more than a thousand times higher than you think it is! May-be this explains a few things regards enthusiasm to the EU which most of us cannot understand?
Guest 698- Registered: 28 May 2010
- Posts: 8,664
Pedant's corner. The national debt is over £900 billion, the deficit is the amount by which the national debt increases each year. The £650 million would pay the interest on the national debt for less than a week.
I'm an optimist. But I'm an optimist who takes my raincoat - Harold Wilson
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
why waste such a pitiful amount on paying off the national debt?
send the £650 million to me, i know better than any politician how it would be best spent.
Guest 677- Registered: 8 Jul 2008
- Posts: 150
Definitely with Howard on that point, we could divide it up between the deserving residents of Dover (of which of course I am one
), that would certainly get Mr Cameron a few more votes.
Alternatively if you'd like to be a bit more altruistic we could get him to give it to all those people who have been made redundant since Mr Cameron came to power.
It's not the man in my life, its the life in my man!!
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
to tell the truth stephanie i was planning to spend it all on myself.
i suppose i could set aside a tenner for the people that dave consigns to the workhouse.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Aid is probably justified in some circumstances but only recently wasnt there broad criticism of the UK giving vast amounts to India who now have more millionaires than anywhere else, with the possible exception of Monte Carlo who have more millionaires per square mile than anywhere else...This is part of our heritage of empire I suspect, dolling out the dosh to the lowly menials.
But the boot is on the other foot now...the menials have risen from the ashes of destructive empire and are launching rockets to the moon and before long will be taking passengers into outer space.
I was listening to homespewn economics on the radio this morning. Ed Balls, genial and lovable economist of the Labour government, was locking horns with economist and radio presenter Euen Davis, but all the political economic tooing and froing came across as muddled mayhem to the listener.
Here it is in simple terms.
A guy buys a car on the installment plan. Under the Labour installment plan he borrows 10,000 and pays it back over say 7 years. His regular pay pack costs are low and this leaves him more money in his pocket on a daily basis to spend in Boots and M&S and in fact in all High St stores. Very good for the economy all round...but the loan for the car costs him more over the longer term, as it takes him longer to pay it back. Interest is higher and so on, so overall it costs more. The upside was his payback terms were softer so it left him with more daily cash in his pocket.
A guy buys a car under the Conservative installment plan. He pays it back over three years. During those three years he is borassic lint skint because the costs of the payment are almost too high for him to bear. He cant go spending in the shops like he used to, as all his money is going on servicing the debt for the car, so sales in the High St shops become flat. Of course where he gains is this...the cost of the car over the full term of the debt is lower, as its paid off sooner. He also gets rid of the debt sooner so when the debt is gone, he returns to a semi shangri-la life and can now again go to the High St and buy CD's and Books and even Food just like he used to.
So...which is best? Well...each system works. Its a question of choice, political choice in this case as to which is the better route.
Guest 698- Registered: 28 May 2010
- Posts: 8,664
The third way- keep the old car for another 2 years while saving hard. Put down a bigger deposit and pay it off over 3 years at the same monthly repayments as the seven-year deal.
I'm an optimist. But I'm an optimist who takes my raincoat - Harold Wilson
Guest 671- Registered: 4 May 2008
- Posts: 2,095
Peter,
Assuming he had a job in the first place, to save up and buy his old car, if he is still lucky enough to have a job, would he be able to save, given increase in petrol, insurance, cost of everything going up because of VAT, etc?
"My New Year's Resolution, is to try and emulate Marek's level of chilled out, thoughtfulness and humour towards other forumites and not lose my decorum"
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
PaulB - your anology is deeply flawed for one simple thing.
Under the Labour plan the amount borrowed over 7 years for the 'car' is more than we can afford. In fact it costs so much we are spending £500 for every £400 of income, therefore the credit card debt is piling up and up and up.....debt costs are going up and up - the situation is getting worse and worse and at the end of the 7 years you will have even more debt than at the start of it....
Under the Conservative plan we are still spending more than we have income, the debt is still piling up and will still be higher in 7 years than it is now. The difference is that spending is being cut so that debt will not pile up so fast.
I have said it before, the problem is not that we are cutting spending it is that we are not cutting enough.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
seems like a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea.
it appears that if dave and nick get elected again it will be halfway through their next term before we even start to bring the debt down.
Jan Higgins
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 5 Jul 2010
- Posts: 13,886
As Paul says it is a question of choice.
My husband would have gone for option one as he liked to go out and spend his money on the good life never mind the cost. I absolutely hate being in debt as you never know what is round the corner so I would go for option two.
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I try to be neutral and polite but it is hard and getting even more difficult at times.
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Guest 645- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 4,463
Jan
"My husband would have gone for option one as he liked to go out and spend his money on the good life "
Sounds like a good lad and a man after my own heart....
Enjoy the champagne and chics, the booze and birds, the wine and the women whilst you can...you're a long time married..
(he says hammering the aliteration )
Marek
I think therefore I am (not a Tory supporter)
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
And let your kids pay the bill, eh Marek?
Howard - it is the same choice you have with your family finances. A choice in fact a lot of families have had to make, to cut their spending to live within their income. When your spending is that far out of control there is very little choice indeed and it would not be long before your creditors get nasty if you dont get a grip.
How can we afford to send the pm to Pakistan ? May be its a one way ticket .
