Labour is right - IMF says we should abandon austerity measures

[Gromit]

Seemingly agreeing with Labour that the austerity cuts introduced by the Coalition Government are harming the Economy and dragging us back into recession, the IMF is calling for them to be scrapped and for more stimulus money to be spent.

// The International Monetary Fund has called on the US and Europe to abandon fiscal austerity and switch to stimulus measures, warning that the global economy faces a "threatening downward spiral". //

http://www.telegraph....-downward-spiral.html

Labour have said we are trying to pay back our debts too quickly and that is causing too much unnecessary pain. The IMF agree. Can and should the Government change course, or would that be a U-turn too far?

[New Judge]

Enormous amounts of money can be saved from government expenditure without adversely affecting services at all. You don’t even have to consider jobs to make considerable savings. There is huge scope in procurement, especially in defence and IT, to save vast sums where goods and services are paid for at well over the going rate.

When jobs are considered, as I have said before, the number of “non-jobs” being financed by the taxpayer mushroomed beyond belief under the previous administration and these continue to be advertised. They are unnecessary, produce or provide little or nothing of any value, nobody suffers if they are not done and nobody would notice if they were stopped tomorrow (or better still, today). Once again, a few examples:

London Borough of Lewisham – Political Assistant (£30,840 - £34,986). “A full time political assistant is needed to provide the Council’s 12 strong Liberal Democrat Group of Councillors with invaluable administrative, policy and political support....”

Olympic Park Legacy Company – Planning and Sustainability Manager ((£49,425 + Benefits). “Reporting to the Director of Planning and Sustainability, you will work in partnership with a diverse range of key stakeholders and other interested parties, to help ensure that the Planning & Sustainability programmes and projects are effectively managed and contribute to delivering a strong legacy for the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.“

District Transition Advisor – Stabilisation Unit [whoever they might be] (£70,000). “As the forward outreach of the Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team you will be responsible for advising District officials, ensuring that district level activity is coordinated across all actors and supports the aims of Transition... [continued for another 94 pages]

Director of Change – House of Commons (from £58,200 + excellent benefits), “The Director of Change is a new post and will support the Management Board in achieving the significant changes required to deliver its Savings Programme and associated business improvements.”

These are just a sprinkling. And so it goes on. You can find dozens and dozens of jobs like this advertised every day. As soon as the word “cuts” is mentioned people think of nurses, police offices, firefighters and the like. But the nebulous “non-jobs” scarcely gety a mention. Who, other than the 12 Liberal Democrat members of the London Borough of Lewisham, will miss their “political assistant”, and in any case why should the taxpayer be expected to provide “political support” to a group of local councillors? It’s a scandal of epic proportions that is left unaddressed.

And in answer to the original question, the IMF should mind its own business.

[factor-fiction]

Hi new judge- so using one of your examples are you saying the House of Commons Management Board shouldn't have a savings programme or it should have one without anyone to lead it?

[New Judge]

No it should not.

Making savings for one's employer should be a continual ongoing process which managers in the private sector have to undertake all the time.

But in the unreal world that is the public sector costs spiral out of control so long as nobody notices or says anything about it. Then, when the excrement finally and belatedly hits the air conditioning, the H of C has to bring in a "Director of Change" at a total cost probably approaching £100k per annum to help them save money! Has the "Management Board" not been doing its managing up to now with the undoubtably large number of staff already at its disposal?

Remember, the jobs I have highlighted are only the vacancies. For every one of them there are probably a hundred people already carrying out similar useless tasks.

I have worked extensively in both sectors and, believe me, I know the difference in approach taken by each of them.

[anotheoldgit]

/// The debt suits the Conservative's ideology because they have an excuse to cut the public sector. When we haven't had debts to payback in the past, Conservative Governments have cut the public sector. The idea is that private companies will do the work.///

Thanks for stating your thoughts, needless to say I was not surprised with your answer, just as I had already guessed, yet another Gromit '*** off' of the Tories.

Judging by the way certain labour councils over-indulged, some of the Public Sector needed thinning out.

/// When we haven't had debts to payback in the past, ///

When would that have been then?

Your excuses for Labours wasteful spending, just do not hold water.

Incidentally before the election Labour admitted that cuts were needed, but even up to date they have never divulged where those cuts would be taken.

[ABerrant]

"...Stabilisation Unit [whoever they might be]..."

That's the bit of the Foreign Office which tries to pick up the pieces after the British Armed Forces destabilises a foreign country, such as in the case of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

[Gromit]

The Great Myth is that we are bust

As a proportion of GDP, Britain’s national debt has been higher than it is now for 200 of the past 250 years.

[New Judge]

Quite, AB. And who ordered the destabilising forces into that Godforsaken place? And who paid for it (no prizes)?

So the taxpayer pays to destabilise a country by means of its Armed Forces, then pays to restabilise it by means of a new government department. Sounds like a good deal to me!

[rov1100]

If only the rich could dig their hands in their pockets and buy British goods we could get the country out of its slump. The recovery cannot come from ordinary middle class people having to pay extra to keep themselves afloat.