Government U-Turns round up...

[Gromit]

The Government aren't soft on crime after all...

// Plans by Kenneth Clarke, the Justice Secretary, to halve the prison sentences of thousands of criminals will be abandoned after a political backlash and the personal intervention of David Cameron. //
http://www.telegraph....-justice-reforms.html

Seeing as it was to save lots of money, they haven't explained how they will pay for this change of mind.

NHS reform...

// The sound of screeching brakes could be heard in University College Hospital as David Cameron engaged reverse gear on NHS reforms. //
http://www.independen...question-2294344.html

Are these changes welcome? Coalition politics at its worse? Or just a complete shambles?

[Gromit]

The Crazy Gang

[jno]

I think of Cameron and Clegg as Abbott and Costello myself, only better educated of course.

[R1Geezer]

well hopefully they'll save it by outsourcing Gromit, the only real solution to penal system costs. Anyway I'd rather spend it on keeping scum locked up than on fags and white lightning for work shy scum, perhaps we can cut the WSC budget eh?

[Davethedog]

If you take away personalities, as much as I agree with Jno, there had to be cuts. These were two ways they thought it could be done.

It was the strength of opposition that changed these policies, not any internal thinking on behalf of the coalition, which is a shame.

I work for a large company that had a large turn over of MD's all of which were tasked with savings when they first came to the job. There is a story, possibly apocryphal, that said that a new MD asked for staff lists by department and then went through, cutting staff i.e. 2 from here 3 from there 1 from this place etc, whithout knowing who did what or how important they were.

If you a rich man, and have been all your life, how can you understand the needs of the poor, who cares if you have to go another 5 miles to a hospital or theres not a mid-wife on duty. If you have been in private medicine all your life?

[Davethedog]

R1 - Honest question, because I genuinely don't understand, how does out sourcing save money?

My take on it and why I don't understand, you employ 4 men for £80,000 a year,you out source the jobs so you now have 4 men plus an employer to pay for, remembering that the hierachy of the prison system remains in situ, The government still has to pay for this.

[R1Geezer]

No no no dave! ok refinement needed but the general idea is this

It costs approximately £40k pa to keep a prisoner. In countries like Turkey for example, it costs a fraction of that and they also know how to run a jail, that's an added bonus. So we pay Turkey say £15k per prisoner per year. Any prisoner on say 6 months or more get's outsourced. We save a fortune, Turkey gets some income and criminal scum get put in a hell hole that hopefully they will not want to return to. In the medium term crime will dratically reduce. Everyone's a wnner!

[jno]

"well hopefully they'll save it by outsourcing Gromit,"

I'm interested at Geezer's plan to outsource Gromit, but where would they find sufficiently skilled labour to take on the job? High-class blogging isn't that easy.

[Gromit]

Except you are guessing that it is cheaper to keep a prisoner in Turkey, and that they would want our 'Criminal scum' for such a low renumeration. And that the private firms and the transport costs would not be more than the savings.

Yours from Iztuzu Beach,
Gromit

[youngmafbog]

r1 for livers we should hand them a fixed sum with instructions not to worry if they don't come back. Life means life.

[R1Geezer]

belive me Gromit that's much more per prisoner than they spend and I'd have thought their own criminal scum are at least of the same "quality". Anyway I see you are not disagreeing with the principle, progress indeed.

[whiskeryron]

Lunatics running the Asylum

[R1Geezer]

the real savings sould come later, when criminal scum realise they are going to a proper nick in most cases they won;t want to go back.

[Davethedog]

Oh yes I see R1 hard to dis agree, win, win :-)

[Gromit]

R1Geezer. I hope your knowledge of the Turkish Prison System isn't based on a 30 year old Alan Parker movie?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisons_in_Turkey

They have more people in Prison in Turkey than in the UK, and they are planning to build 86 new prisons (Not letting all the prisoners out and closing them like our lot). A lot of capacity there (86 new prisons) maybe they are entering into the criminal tourist trade.

[R1Geezer]

Alan Parker? didn't he do Ghostbusters?

Turkey is just plucked out of the air as an example. The real point is that any hell hole will do, Thailand perhaps, the place is un important. So broadly you agree Gromit ,clearly as you only see a problem with the final destination, so all we need to do is find a place.

[Manwithnoname]

"a mans got to know his limitations & as sure as hell, these dont"

[Zeuhl]

Well at least this mob do 'Consultation' and are then prepared to stop and rethink - I think it is dangerous and foolish to criticise a government for that.

Labour earned a reputation for doing 'Consultation' and carrying on regardless, totally ignoring any critique that didn't suit them

[Gromit]

Don't sure reacting to a backlash is 'Consulting' zeuhl?

Clarke's out of touch with Tory voters. He'll be gone at the next re-shuffle.

[Zeuhl]

Take your point Gromit

I still think any government should be encouraged to have the courage to stop-think-reconsider policy.

Predecessors (especially Thatcher and Blair) were too focused on immediate action and pushing on regardless which resulted in major cases of not-thought-through policy.