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  Gary - very clear post there highlighting your responses to Barry's post point by point.
  
  My own view is the CAP got corrupted a long time and those in power knew it but chose to avoid reforming it. The answer is a to support farmers via some form of minimum farm gate income scheme which would ensure the poorest farmers benefit the most and the farming corporations etc get little or nothing. There should also be a continuation of payments to reinstate hedgerows, set aside areas for wildlife conservation etc.
  
  Whilst it is right that many pensions hold shares in utility companies and the dividends paid out by these companies help maintain pensions, it is also true that many pensioners are seeing an increasing erosion of the purchasing power of their pension in payment at a time when basic necessities such as power are rocketing - this is a circle that cannot be squared by dividend payments. We desperately need to find a way to ensure that the poorest in our society are able to fulfil the basic needs of shelter, heat/power and sustenance and to a standard that reflects our society in the best way.
  
  As for "benefit scroungers" of course this is an issue and at its most basic it is theft - taking something that you are not entitled to. BUT it is also an issue that all those "TAX THIEVES" withhold something that society is entitled to (i.e.take something they are not entitled to).
  From the early 1980's on there is ample evidence that every £ spent by HMG on pursuing tax evasion generates between 3 and 4 times the level of recoveries that each £ spent on benefits fraud investigations does. This of course is not to say we shouldnt pursue both.
  Obviously the way to solve this is to radically reform and simplify the tax code and the benefits system but no government has ever wanted to do both - wonder why?
  
  It is time we stopped scapegoating people and started all being honest about this issue, the Blue Book is clear that well in excess of 50% of the Benefit and welfare budget goes on pensions. There are however other areas of state expenditure that dwarf the welfare and benefits budget, frankly if the government is going to apply a haircut to state spending it should do so across the board.
  So lets see government leading by example and cutting their own wages, allowances and expenses by say 10% (including of course the wages they earn from their directorships, consultancies etc.) then roll that out across their departmental budgets.

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