BobAid - why are we sending aid to BobLand?

[gingerjedi]

if that money, which is less than 0.01% of the NHS budget, was spent on the NHS instead, I doubt there would have been any noticeable change in the service delivered.

That's about 40 average tax payers entire life contributions, it annoys me that they're so frivolous with my money.

Its not the amount, it's the principle.

[xoggoth]

Some, and not just white westerners, argue that foreign aid is not simply a waste of our money but destructive of the nations it is supposed to help. It is often used by oppressive regimes or local criminal groups to buy up favour and allows more benign governments to put off effective policies that might address the problems. It undercuts local farmers and businessmen and, like welfare here, destroys incentive.

Anyone who seriously thinks it helps us by reducing immigration or terrorism is seriously deluded about human nature. In the absence of human relationships, when the donors are remote strangers, gratitude turns to acceptance and acceptance to expectation and expectation to resentment.

Overseas aid is funding human rights abuses – Telegraph Blogs
Third World Development: Foreign Aid or Free Trade? | The Freeman | Ideas On Liberty
http://hubpages.com/hub/Is-Continued...t-Dambisa-Moyo

[shaunbhoy]

if that money, which is less than 0.01% of the NHS budget, was spent on the NHS instead, I doubt there would have been any noticeable change in the service delivered.

It would introduce quite a stark change if it was your mum's hip though!!!

[Spacecadet]

It would introduce quite a stark change if it was your mum's hip though!!!

The NHS are set to save £500M per year by improving their procurement process, there really is no way you could trace that small a budget amount to single operations, it would be simply swallowed up in the red tape machine.

[TimberWolf]

If it were aid to the poor, surely the UK would give the money to charities operating in India rather than to their government. Whatever it's used for, it's not to help the poor of India.

[original PM]

I recall a documentary ( about 3 or 4 years back now) which said that the NHS goes through about 1 billion per day.

Not sure how try this is but it does make a lot of the other figs nmentioned in thsi thread rather insignificant.

Although I agree about aid - if we cannot feed our own we really should not be trying to feed the rest of the world.

[shaunbhoy]

The NHS are set to save £500M per year by improving their procurement process, there really is no way you could trace that small a budget amount to single operations, it would be simply swallowed up in the red tape machine.

Most pensioners that are in dire need of life-changing surgery don't get too embroiled in the fiscal efficiencies of the NHS. They just want a new hip. Are you denying that quite a number of these operations could be expedited for a sum running into the millions of pounds, or do you simply not care?

[Spacecadet]

Most pensioners that are in dire need of life-changing surgery don't get too embroiled in the fiscal efficiencies of the NHS. They just want a new hip. Are you denying that quite a number of these operations could be expedited for a sum running into the millions of pounds, or do you simply not care?

I'm saying that a sum of a couple of million pounds, if added to the NHS annual budget would make zero difference.
That money would never be allocated to just doing hip operations which makes it a pointless and stupid question.

[sunnysan]

Singpore

In international terms £8.7million over 5 years is comparable to buying your mate a pint at the pub.

Who cares how many old dears it will make into high jumpers or pints you can buy... why does that UK give "aid" to a country with the fecking 4th highest GDP / capita in the world.

Why not just give it to the starving masses in Luxombourg or Lichtenstein?

[Mr Pancamo]

I mean everyone else here in the UK is feeling the cuts so why not cancel BobAid?

Critics question UK aid to India

I don't think it's as simple as that.

Essentially, that 'aid' is a sweetener so our companies can trade in India and also sell them our products (arms etc).

China does the same thing....

We can follow the Daily Mail's ranting and stop the aid, but ultimately it will harm us - not them. Some other country will just take our place.