The Lib Dems have read the polls and tested public opinion. They have been told many of us are fed up with high taxes and huge public sector waste, so they are seeking to position themselves as the waste and tax cutters.
There is no evidence from local government that this is what they do in office. There is no Lib Dem Hammersmith and Fulhan, cutting the Council Tax each year. There are plenty of Lib Dem Councillors voting to spend more and tax more.
At the national level we are told they now favour cuts in Income Tax, but what they want to give with one hand they would more than take with the other. They are after all pledged to a local Income Tax where your local Council could plunder your wage packet. They also favour financing the loathsome regional government in England from Income Tax. They support all this extra government as part of their passion for the Euro project.
This most Euro federalist of all the parties is in love with nationalisation, regulation and more public spending. We should not believe that they will cut the waste and taxes given their belief in doing the opposite in ocal government.
September 13, 2008
Income tax, might that be the local income tax which is replacing our council tax.
September 13, 2008
Yes, I know. They are European Unionists, they firmly believe in taxation and they are neither liberal nor are they democratic.
But they are deeply political in the meanest way possible and also they like to take the short cut to cheap popularity.
Next week's conference will show the cracks in their facade.
What is also going to emerge as the economic crisis deepens is the fact that they are stupidly green – anti coal, anti nuclear, anti car, anti food, anti holidays, anti rubbish collection.
These are the kind of people who like to stop all effective power production and any form of workable transport; to promise lots of goodies for the welfare state, and then promise to put taxes down.
The worst thing I ever did was to stand for them for the Council.
October 9, 2008
This says otherwise
October 9, 2008
http://gvdc.googlegroups.com/web/Natl_Debt_Chart….
September 13, 2008
To smoke the Lib Dems out why not offer a Tory stimulus package funded by selling off all state owned shares in utility companies that where returned to private ownership in the 1980's & the Tote ? That could fund a more generous tax cut than the 10p tax compensation offered by Mr Darling . Rather than a measly £120 payment for basic rate taxpayers aged under 65 and paid for by a higher PSBR the Tories could offer a £360 rebate for such people as a one off measure paid for via asset sales . So a funded one off measure could offset the impending deflation by getting money to those who are both in most need ( coping classes & the lower paid ) and who are most likely to spend the extra cash . That is fair and economically sensible while being very popular with the millions of people fed up with paying too much tax as it would not hit public services .
That would remind the voters who can boost the economy by making the majority of taxpayers better off – the long term aim should be to raise the basic personal allowance to £14,000 p/a for all taxpayers while limiting top rate tax to incomes exceeding £100,000 a year so that social mobility and enterprise can be rewarded . That would thwart the Lib Dems as a Growth Rule a la Eire could limit public spending growth so that taxes could be cut for the very people that the Lib Dems say they wish to help .
We can beat the Lib Dems by being positive about the future and addressing the desire for cuts in taxes and public spending that their u-turn proves many voters want . An end to the QUANGO state and less tax for everyone would be a God send for many hard pressed people and the economy – as Lord Forsyth proves it might be popular with the voters too !
September 13, 2008
My understanding of history is that the Liberal Democrats where once the Tories. I have only secondary education. I left school at sixteen for all you thickies.
September 14, 2008
And allow me to say that you were one of the lucky ones. Today, under a Caring and Sharing Government, it would be a useless Comp until you were 18, then, virtually illiterate, you would be syphoned off into College for a couple of years, before being dumped onto the Dole with Mickey Mouse qualifications and a huge debt round your neck.
The only thing you would have learned is that the lounge is a better place than work.
September 14, 2008
Talking about being in love with regulation reminded me of recent news from Telford, Harlow, Ealing and Chichester. All Tory Councils enforcing New Labour laws with an unhealthy zeal. A dearth of spying, snooping and authoritarianism. If that is a taste of what is to come from a Tory Government the future looks extremely grim for this country. It's the same with Boris in London. The first thing he did was to ban alcohol on the underground. What we want are all these authorities off our collective backs.
September 14, 2008
As a liberal pure in spirit my feelings towards the three main parties are as follows; disappointment in Labour, distrust in the Conservatives and contempt for the Lib Dems. They should be required under the Trades Descriptions Act to change their name.
September 14, 2008
Flicking through my channels yesterday I unintentionally landed on the Parliamentary Channel to hear some typically bearded Liberal speaker giving his all to Europe as if the place gave birth to every good thing on the planet. Europe was ( apparently )ravaged by wars until we all joined hands in a circle singing Oh Hokey Cokey Cokey with everyone and everyone's neighbour !
Where on earth they dream this up heaven knows.
I wanted to stick my fingers down my throat and hoyk up at his pitiful silly wailing that we should all "celebrate" what Europe has achieved !!
Instead, I flicked to the news, only to land on BBC News 24 giving my ears another drumming of a "tropical storm" in Galveston and the reporter telling us the storm was blowing at 125 "kilometers" an hour……"What's that in real money" I says to the wife, so that set me off again chuntering on about why the BBC are reporting an American tropical storm and not even bothering to measure it in MPH when just then they went rabbiting on about something they were saying about LITRES of water……"Why are they talking kilometers and litres when this place is imperial MPH and pints and gallons"? = "They're trying to indoctrinate us I tell you" !! I says to the wife.
Then they started giving a news item of something in England.
No sooner had the bloke started talking then they cut him off abruptly "Taking us over to the President of the United States" – "I was watching that"! I says to the wife.
Bush came on and said something like "And we have to mobilise the gas companies to stop 'gassing people' ! – Eh ? I says to the wife, did he just say what I thought he said "gassing people", what's he on ?
What is the BBC on and what is that Liberal bloke with the beard on ?
Let's put a DVD on she says…..
September 14, 2008
Eddie, if you are a fan of the BBC World Service radio – the only reason why I bought a DAB radio – you will have noticed that all monetary values are now quoted in US Dollars, including UK items; but, programme times are now quoted in GMT, so we have some balance!
Personally my day job would be much easier if the whole planet adopted the S.I. (System International) measurement system. [metres; kilograms; seconds etc.] Then I would not spend time having to convert from BTU to Kilojoules; cubic feet to cubic metres; barrels to litres; million tonnes of oil equivalent to gigajoules etc etc.
Please do me a favour and get your kids and your grand kids to read the following. There are some of us trying to illiminate energy iliteracy; and, having to stop explaining why peoples gas bills are in kilowatt hours and no, it is not your electricity bill. http://www.kajul.org/welcomeEN.php
September 14, 2008
Simon and FBJ have beaten me to it.
September 14, 2008
Since I was expelled form the Lib Dems for suggesting that cutting taxes, particularly business taxes would help the economy grow Irish style I think I am entitled to share your cynicism about whether they actually mean it. Way back then (2 1/2 years ago) my expulsion was on the grounds that such ideas were officially "illiberal", "incompatible with part membership" & "too right wing" to even be thought about. Today we see the Scottish LD leader is calling for a 2p cut in income tax, though he neglects to say how this will be funded.
However some of the blame for the LDs being able to spout this lies with the Conservatives who have been to nervous to say much beyond commiting themselves to match Labour's spending plans. By trying to hard to hold the middle ground they leave their own goal wide open. I see this in Scotland where, because there is a multi-party PR system they have even less to lose they have been extra cautious. In Scotland if you want low corporation tax & high growth vote SNP for that is their policy, the Tories oppose it. If you want lower income tax then vote LibDem for that is (now) their policy which the Tories oppose. The unique selling points of the Conservatives at the last election were more money for council houses & drug users (really). The wonder is that any Conservative still votes for them.