Ed Balls again

[The Spartan]

Let's be fair the majority of the public aren't very sharp, so if they see a policy that directly benefits them they'll vote for that party. Taxing the rich always seems to be a popular option, funny thing is if you are wealthy you just then structure your financial affairs accordingly

[fullyautomatix]

Yes, except it's the middle classes who will bear the brunt of it.

Do the middle class vote for Labour ?

[DirtyDog]

As a proportion of government expenditure, 9% of Gordon Brown's first budget was spent on servicing the Major debt.

As a proportion of government expenditure, 7% of George Osborne's first budget was spent on servicing the Brown debt.

Government expenditure prior to the banking crisis was being reduced, and if you look at the data in the BoE Financial Stability Report from July 2012, it shows that the Labour governments ran surpluses in the early years, deficits in 2002/03 and that in the final years before the banking crisis, the deficit was reasonably small - particularly compared to 1992-94





(Larger picture for the last one)

[DirtyDog]

Does Labour know anything else other than borrow billions, spend billions on projects that favour their vote bank, increase taxes to the maximum possible.

Prior to bailing out the banks, how did the Labour expenditure compare to the Conservative government under John Major?

[fullyautomatix]

Prior to bailing out the banks, how did the Labour expenditure compare to the Conservative government under John Major?

Prior to bailing out banks, the economy boomed and Labour went on a borrow and spend spree instead of paying down debts.

You Labour supporters are idiots!

HTH
BIDVMDI

[The Spartan]

At the end of the day UK plc is more and more like RBS of late

[Gittins Gal]

Do the middle class vote for Labour ?

Well a lot of middle class people who get paid from the public purse do, yes, but that's very much in their interests when they want to hold on to gold plated pension schemes etc.

It's the private sector that pays and the middle class people working in that sector will feel it the most.

[Platypus]

I worry more about this man becoming an MP:

Owen Jones' 9 Point Manifesto

His characterisation of "Mary" and her crappy life and the fact that the government is subsidising her low wages and high rent is accurate.

His assertion that it's wrong to blame "unemployed people, immigrants, public sector workers, or disabled" but blame bankers instead is of course wrong: a large number of benefits claimants means lower benefits for all.

As for his 9 points, some have merit, such as the living wage and building more social housing. But after that it does start to read like a teenager's socialist manifesto!

[DirtyDog]

Prior to bailing out banks, the economy boomed and Labour went on a borrow and spend spree instead of paying down debts.

You Labour supporters are idiots!

HTH
BIDVMDI

I'm not a Labour supporter. However, I can look at a graph and see that the Labour borrowing was significantly less than Sir John's government.

The first thing that Brown did as chancellor was to pay off the debt from the Major government.

[Gittins Gal]

The first thing that Brown did as chancellor was to pay off the debt from the Major government.

By selling all our gold at bargain basement prices