The Budget!

[doglover]

Not any more I bet

I remember in 1990 under a conservitive government we paid 14.5% motgage rate.We were one of the lucky ones not to have lost our home as a lot of others were. The wages were poor even then and prices were high. I also remember when we got married in 1969 we had to pay deposits at 33% if you bought anything on hire purchase. It was really hard then as school uniforms began to come into force and only the most expensive retailers were supplying them. You couldn't buy anything cheap like today even to buy a new kettle was a luxury. Icertainly would'nt want to go back to those days but I do think the country has gone to the dogs regarding the nanny state we now have to live with and I totally agree with debrad65 when she says that people on benefits are no worse off it seems than those who work. I am really so undecided and confused who to give my vote to this time.

[debrad65]

when I was younger, many moons ago, it was drummed into me that Labour were for the workers and would fight for the workers rights. What went wrong? I am at a loss as to who gets my vote, looking at it there is nobody who I want to run this country! Also at the time it was a good thing to work you could afford to have things that those not working could not, that was the incentive to work! Now you work, you get the feeling you are penalised for doing so. Some people who work are worse off than those claiming benefits. There should be a very big difference between working and claiming benefits, alas the minimum (slave) wage put paid to that!

Spot on Merlin! We as a family are worse off working. it's all wrong! I too am at a loss as to who gets my vote. they all promise this n that and never follow through

[sizsells]

Debrad65,its election time, they will promise you the earth to get elected! Then when they do they all go back on their election promises with the excuse ' We didn't realise things were so bad due to the previous government,so we can't give you what we promised!' Taxes up, in fact everything up due to the previous administration. We need a peoples party, like Labour is supposed to be. We need to take this country by the scruff of the neck, give it a good shake and start again before it is too late, if it is not already to late! The do gooders, nanny state activists and the pocket liners should be kicked into touch.The majority of the people of this country do not want or agree with policies of the major parties, we have to have a party who listens to the people, not one who tells the people what is best for the people, while meaning this is the best to line mine and my parties pockets! If this means revolution then so be it! For too long these people have ran roughshod over the decent people of this country, the time to stand and be counted is now. These people in power must not be allowed to drag this country deeper into the mire, we are at a cross roads, the choice is now ours!

Very well said and I agree totaly with your comments however can anyone see a LEADER among them all I can,t

[Malcolm Robinson]

This is the problem when you have career politicians who will say only what they think is needed to sway narrow sections of the electorate. Without core beliefs and principles (far too radical a thought these days!) they float around like jellyfish trying to appeal to everyone yet satisfying no one. Hardly any have done a days graft in their lives how on earth can they identify with the normal man and woman in the street, much less understand the concerns and pressures we have to deal with on a daily basis.

The Prime Minister we have has never stood for a national election as leader of that party and even if they win it looks likely he will face a mutiny amongst the ranks and himself be replaced. Already he has so little confidence in his group of MPs he has had to go outside of elected members to fill cabinet posts, that should be a clear signal as to the capabilities of the elected MPs he has to choose from!

The main opposition is led by a couple of Hooray Henrys who have absolutely no comprehension how the other 99% of the population live.

Even the third place offering didn't know if he wanted to be a conservative or something else having initially joined that party although he now claims he cannot remember that episode in his life!

It is therefore not surprising the electorate as a whole is having trouble identifying with any of them. We don't elect a government we only elect an MP, maybe its time for us and them to take that responsibility a bit more seriously?

One last point, Labour isn't a political party in the strictest sense of the word it is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trade Union movement paid for by their subscriptions. (OK as well as some rich guys buying grace and favours!)

[Andy Millne]

We don't elect a government we only elect an MP, maybe its time for us and them to take that responsibility a bit more seriously?

The thing is Malcolm, after reading through the Wansbeck candidate's campaign literature it's just more of the same. The stuff is full of "We need more jobs", "I'll help tackle crime & anti-social behaviour" This is all just stuff to get people nodding their heads and is all blatantly obvious (which is obviously the point). I can't find any real evidence of anything they are actively proposing to do and I fear we are going to have another term of the area not moving forward. I say moving forward in relative terms to the rest of the country of course, maybe I should have said move less backwards.

[threegee]

I remember in 1990 under a conservitive government we paid 14.5% motgage rate.We were one of the lucky ones not to have lost our home as a lot of others were. The wages were poor even then and prices were high. I also remember when we got married in 1969 we had to pay deposits at 33% if you bought anything on hire purchase....

You remember well, but you don't remember enough! Tell us what you paid for your house and what it would be worth at today's prices?

The reason that mortgage rates were 14.5% is that we'd just had a flirt with the Euro. That was something which Maggie wouldn't have any truck with. But she was stabbed in the back by her own party, half of who wanted the Euro at any price and half who were opposed. The Labour Party and LDs would also have dragged us in at any price. Once Maggie was gone the result would have been the same whatever party was in power.

The Labour Party learnt from this and decided that they'd only join "when the time was right"- which of course was a nonsense, as Mr B wouldn't tell us what that actually meant. The reality was that the time was never and would never be right! Here UKIP was the only sane voice in the asylum.

You've forgotten two things: First that your house was going up in value much more than the inflation rate. Second that the Hire Purchase controls were to stop private sector debt getting out of control. They didn't actually cost you anything; in fact they saved you money as you didn't have to pay interest on the deposit! When those Hire Purchase controls were abolished by a spend-spend-spend government the result is the staggering levels of private debt we have today, and people simply struggling to meet interest payments on credit cards rather than have the discretion to spend their money on anything useful.

Today one pound in every four that is spent by big government (and it really is BIG government these days) is borrowed. Gordon wants you to believe that this party can go on, and somehow it will all work out right in the end. It wont! We have to stop spending, and right away. You and I have been repaying our debts for quite some time, but Gordon Brown is planning to go on borrowing at this ludicrous rate for another four years! The bill is already staggering; to carry on under the false assumption that the party can resume at some point is madness. Sooner or later roaring inflation is going to break out to match the huge printing of money that has been going on. That is inevitable - it's simply a matter of when and how bad it will become.

The choice now is to wake up to reality and take some medicine right away, or carry on with Gordon's public spending binge. If the Country chose the latter Sterling will get devalued, the price of imports will rocket and we'll be into the biggest bust of all time (we are already carrying by far the biggest debt of all time).

All this talk about the recovery being put at risk is complete nonsense. There will be no recovery in the sense that we can get back to the former ludicrous government spending splurge. I'm afraid that things can only get worse - it's just a matter of how worse! This is the price to pay for being fooled by Tony at the last election. He said he'd serve a full term; maybe he believed that at the time, but he saw this mess coming a lot sooner than Gordon!

So you either vote Nu Labour out of mistaken self-interest, and get screwed anyway. Or you vote LD or Tory for the Country as a whole. Either way it's not going to be pretty. But in NOT voting Labour, you'll be voting for some sort of sanity; you'll be voting against the man who got us into this mess; and you'll be voting against the career politicians (particularly the likes of slimy Mandleson and Balls) who have been taking us all for a ride.

It's not a choice for the sunny uplands as depicted on the old colliery banners, but it's not entirely Hobson's choice either!

[threegee]

The thing is Malcolm, after reading through the Wansbeck candidate's campaign literature it's just more of the same. The stuff is full of "We need more jobs", "I'll help tackle crime & anti-social behaviour" This is all just stuff to get people nodding their heads and is all blatantly obvious (which is obviously the point). I can't find any real evidence of anything they are actively proposing to do and I fear we are going to have another term of the area not moving forward. I say moving forward in relative terms to the rest of the country of course, maybe I should have said move less backwards.

It's quite simple: To Nu Labour we are taken for granted. To the Tories we are no-hopers, to be ignored. To the LD's - well they haven't got the clout at the national level.

The way to break out of this is to vote with our heads, and not be taken for granted. The most productive thing a life-long Labour supporter who can't bring themselves to vote against Gordon Brown can do is to stay at home! What a pity they don't have the guts to put a none-of-the-above box on the ballot paper!

[Stephen]

The thing is Malcolm, after reading through the Wansbeck candidate's campaign literature it's just more of the same. The stuff is full of "We need more jobs", "I'll help tackle crime & anti-social behaviour" This is all just stuff to get people nodding their heads and is all blatantly obvious (which is obviously the point). I can't find any real evidence of anything they are actively proposing to do and I fear we are going to have another term of the area not moving forward. I say moving forward in relative terms to the rest of the country of course, maybe I should have said move less backwards.

I read somewhere that a good test of real content in a political slogan is to see if the opposite makes any sense, e.g. "we need less jobs" and "don't tackle crime and anti-social behaviour'

As we're in an election period now I suppose I should wear my party hat for a moment, so I have to say I was a bit shocked (in a good way) to see the national party saying that it would pay to re-open the Ashington, Blyth and Tyne railway (among others, but our line got a namecheck) by diverting money from roads. If I was writing our local leaflets I'd stick that on every one of them.

[Stephen]

What a pity they don't have the guts to put a none-of-the-above box on the ballot paper!

I've always thought that Re-Open Nominations should be on the ballot paper so that if RON wins, there has to be a new election. There's a general assumption in politics that low turnout is down to apathy. No doubt some of it is, but if there was a 'none of the above' option that could make a real difference to the outcome, we'd see just how much is due to people not feeling they had anyone worth voting for.

[Mr Darn]

I totally agree. I'd like to see a "none of the above" added to the ballot papers.

What a storm that would brew!

[threegee]

So how does this help Bedlington Stephen? Due to a political stitch-up in former centuries the station is in the wrong place anyway! If Stevenson had had his way and put the station in the natural place the town would be a lot bigger and more prosperous than it is now. The local landowners and politicians screwed this one up for sure!

Where is the mention of Bedlington Station in this LD proposal? Seems to me this is a recipe for being told that we are subsidised for x millions already for a transport link that it is impractical to use. Probably better for us that main-line Morpeth is made more accessible by a better bus service and stopping main line services - even Cramlington station!

If this is a real pitch for votes we need details to determine if it's something actually worth Bedlingtonians voting for. Too many completely empty promises here already I think! http://www.senrug.co.uk/campaigns/8/re-open-ashington-blyth-tyne-line-to-passengers

[Monsta®]

I totally agree. I'd like to see a "none of the above" added to the ballot papers.

What a storm that would brew!

that would be a bit of a waste of time if you are to actually turn up to tick a box for "none of the above" should you not just stay at home and give the same result?

how would it brew a storm? some weedy party like the greens would get in and have us all living in holes under the ground wearing potato sacks!

[Malcolm Robinson]

If I was going to stand in this election I would stand as the 'None of the above' party,if only to get it on the ballot papers!

I don't think it is apathy either Stephen just lack of connection with the main political parties.

The three main candidates (Wansbeck) have just taken part in a debate in Morpeth talking about rail infrastructure. They were given 10 minutes each to say what they thought about the topic. Thats whats wrong!!!!!!!! They should have taken part in an open debate where us mugs could have told them how we wanted them to act. They are OUR representatives its not the other way around!

[Mr Darn]

that would be a bit of a waste of time if you are to actually turn up to tick a box for "none of the above" should you not just stay at home and give the same result?

Because then there would be a result for how many people want to vote, but just dont like the choices. Then the "no vote" figure would actually represent the section of people who just dont vote, rather than a mix of the two.

how would it brew a storm? some weedy party like the greens would get in and have us all living in holes under the ground wearing potato sacks!

I personally think this option is not there, because it would show just how people are thinking.

Were not happy with the choices put forward, and should have a way to show this.

Its like having the choice between dying by electricution. the needle, hanging, or stay at home and starve.

Not much of a choice at all really!

[Stephen]

So how does this help Bedlington Stephen? Due to a political stitch-up in former centuries the station is in the wrong place anyway! If Stevenson had had his way and put the station in the natural place the town would be a lot bigger and more prosperous than it is now. The local landowners and politicians screwed this one up for sure!

For a moment there (just for a moment) when I read Stevenson I thought you meant the former Wansbeck DC chief exec...

I think it would help Bedlington Station a lot, not so much Bedlington town though there are some advantages to being part of a national network compared to a disparate system of bus timetables. We had an example on this site not so long ago of a potential visitor to Bedlington who just couldn't find out how to get here. Of course you also need to give people reasons to come in the first place.

Where is the mention of Bedlington Station in this LD proposal?

To be fair, it isn't mentioned though it is on the ABT line and SENRUG's proposal includes it.

Seems to me this is a recipe for being told that we are subsidised for x millions already for a transport link that it is impractical to use. Probably better for us that main-line Morpeth is made more accessible by a better bus service and stopping main line services - even Cramlington station!

The main-line services don't stop more often at Morpeth because it would affect their timetables, and because they don't stop more often it makes Morpeth impractical for main-line travel. I travel by train a lot on business and even when I used to travel to Glasgow I had to drive to Newcastle to get a train that would go back through Morpeth, and probably stop there too... but getting a train back to your car left parked at Morpeth was another matter, and a taxi from Alnmouth to Morpeth station when you get stranded isn't cheap.

There is a lot of travel on the Morpeth to Newcastle line though - it's one of the 10 most overcrowded services in the country - and I think the SENRUG idea of extending that line to Bedlington Station was a good one. If it hadn't had a new station with park and ride at Choppington added to it then I think the capital costs would have been far less (they were estimated at £5 million) and the annual subsidy of £50,000 is something that East Bedlington Parish Council could probably afford on its own.

[Malcolm Robinson]

If the economic 'white paper' NCC have just published is anything to go by they are setting great store in becoming carbon neutral, a decent passenger rail infrastructure would seem complimentary to that ideal?

Course we are now talking about influencing a private company in the private sector, I wonder just how much clout we really have in those decisions?

[Merlin]

If the economic 'white paper' NCC have just published is anything to go by they are setting great store in becoming carbon neutral, a decent passenger rail infrastructure would seem complimentary to that ideal?

Course we are now talking about influencing a private company in the private sector, I wonder just how much clout we really have in those decisions?

Malcolm and the G's, As much as I respect your views and those of others, this thread has degenerated into the usual political clap-trap. Normal everyday people(voters) have come on here and said what they want and as usual the political high brow talk comes in and clouds the issues. This is what me and others do not want, we want un-adulterated truth! Like I have said in numerous previous posts, I want, no need, for people to say and mean what they say! Is that too much to ask? Plain speaking will gain a lot of respect, trying to bamboozle people with spin just inspires mistrust! Just ask anyone with one iota of common sense! Something the politicians seem to severely lack!

Edited April 7, 2010 by Merlin

[threegee]

Cider Tax scrapped! Is there a single measure in Darling's pointless April budget that now still stands?

20% V.A.T. - as long predicted here - won't come in until 4th January 2011, so a tiny bit of relief there.

The welfare cuts are going to take a long while to sink in. 25% cuts to many government department budgets are going to be very traumatic. But for once the North East has come out better than many other regions, especially if it can rise to the challenge and start creating many more private sector jobs over the next few years.