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Unemployment breaks through 2.5 million 
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Legend
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010 ... n-16-years

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Wed Apr 21, 2010 11:20 am
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I've not really paid much attention to unemployment levels since Thatcher started tinkering with them and Labour continued the trend. There are far more than that not working for one reason or another.

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Wed Apr 21, 2010 12:29 pm
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Yes that is the problem the figures have been fiddled so much that it is meaningless. It will still climb for months yet, and if the government of which ever party cut too drastically then it can only go up faster.

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Wed Apr 21, 2010 1:44 pm
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Amnesia10 wrote:
Yes that is the problem the figures have been fiddled so much that it is meaningless. It will still climb for months yet, and if the government of which ever party cut too drastically then it can only go up faster.


I don't know about that. Labour are always saying they're going to continue throwing money into more public sector jobs if they get re-elected. Are we going to be the first country in the world where more people wre employed by the Government that the private sector?

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 7:12 am
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dogbert10 wrote:
Amnesia10 wrote:
Yes that is the problem the figures have been fiddled so much that it is meaningless. It will still climb for months yet, and if the government of which ever party cut too drastically then it can only go up faster.


I don't know about that. Labour are always saying they're going to continue throwing money into more public sector jobs if they get re-elected. Are we going to be the first country in the world where more people wre employed by the Government that the private sector?

No that will not happen. The problem is that no matter what party is in power the markets are lead by deficit hawks. That means they will not be happy to lend to us if the government borrow too much. The price they will demand is higher interest rates. So the issue is who will cut public services hardest. Well the Tories will slash and burn like normal to pay for tax cuts for the super rich. Labour will probably hold off as long as possible then have to do cuts almost as savage. The Liberals who have been most upfront about the cuts have been more honest than the rest but even they might have to go further if we are to avoid a big hike in interest rates. So the public sector will not grow any more not until the economy is booming again, and that will be probably a decade away.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 9:49 am
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What is is about tax breaks for the "super rich"? There are so few of them that any changes to tax has a negligable impact on the overall finances of the country - the Treasury expects to get around £1 billion from the 50p tax this year. Considering that the Government borrowed £35 billion last month alone, it's a drop in the ocean. Public sector spending last year was £1.4 billion. I'm sorry but the tax on high earners is just a red herring to divert attention away from the bloated public sector.

The public sector currently employs over six million people - 28% of the workforce. You can't tell me that every one of those jobs is vital to the running of this country. Take the NHS - spending has gone up by 50% but output in frontline care has gone down. This type of waste is unsustainable and has to be brought under control. We need to move these people into the private sector where the wealth is generated, rather than leave them where they are, gobbling up taxpayers money and generating nothing in return.

In the end, I don't really care which party forms the next government (ideally, none of them), but unless they get a grip on the finances of this country, things are never going to improve.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:11 am
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Yes I agree about the bloat. It is impossible to expand spending as rapidly as has happened without waste. They do need to cut some of the bloat, but I would cut it in management rather than at the front line. This will lead to less promotion prospects for teacher, police and so on. Though while there may only be a few super rich the taxes that they pay can be substantial so any tax break to them will cost you money.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:22 am
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Okay bloat:

Can someone please tell me why East Lancashire Hospital Trust require a PR officer at 45k p.a.?

Why the hell does a hospital trust need PR? Are they losing customers?

:x

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:26 am
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dogbert10 wrote:
The public sector currently employs over six million people - 28% of the workforce. You can't tell me that every one of those jobs is vital to the running of this country.


And yet there are areas of the public sector which are woefully understaffed.
Take the coast guard for instance. The people who guard our borders.
Officially, there are about 650 of them.
Does that sound sufficient to patrol our coastline?
Which, including the larger islands, is about 19,000 miles of it. Between 650 people.
Pretty poor, right?






What if I tell you that there about 450 people currently employed in the Coast Guard?

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:37 am
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Exactly - the jobs aren't being created where they are needed, and those that need the most financial support aren't getting it (witness the massive increase in HNS managers who get a nice 7% pay rise while those who work in the front line get a measly 2%). Until we can redress the balance between public and private sectors the problem is always going to be there.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:55 am
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A large part of the problem is this idea that's become popular, where the term 'service' is confused with 'business'.
Some things shouldn't be run with profitability in mind.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 12:01 pm
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I've just come across this on the BBC. The bit that got me was this:

"Borrowing in March is typically high as civil servants seek to spend the remainder of their annual budgets."

What on earth is going on? We've got the biggest budget deficit ever and these civil servants are spending for the sake of spending? What kind of civil service do we have? I despair.....

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 12:06 pm
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rustybucket wrote:
Okay bloat:

Can someone please tell me why East Lancashire Hospital Trust require a PR officer at 45k p.a.?

Why the hell does a hospital trust need PR? Are they losing customers?

:x

They do not need one. This is just so that they can show the Trust in a good light when they screw up. It is a waste of money, as are many other such jobs through out the public sector. Cull these posts and you could leave the rest of the NHS budget intact.

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 12:13 pm
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Maybe we should start our own party - the X404 party?

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 12:14 pm
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dogbert10 wrote:
I've just come across this on the BBC. The bit that got me was this:

"Borrowing in March is typically high as civil servants seek to spend the remainder of their annual budgets."

What on earth is going on? We've got the biggest budget deficit ever and these civil servants are spending for the sake of spending? What kind of civil service do we have? I despair.....

Its called protecting them selves. Budgets are generally based on current years spend plus x. So if they don't spend all their budget this year they loose it from next years as well.

Good in it............. :roll:

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Thu Apr 22, 2010 12:32 pm
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