@rcs_1000There is no magic money tree: interest paid to savers is interest extracted from borrowers.
If you are doing it right then the interest paid to savers is substantially less than the interest extracted from borrowers
@david_herdson be very careful about capital-protected bonds. Usually if the FTSE underperforms by a certain amount you can lose all of your capital. And you are taking credit risk on the investment bank that prices up the options: Lehman was a very big player in this market & that caused real issues for many retail investors (they had no idea they were taking Lehman risk because they only interacted with their local building society or whatever)
Also - a thank you to Fat Steve for organising the PB drinks last night. A nice venue and nice to chat with some PB'ers I had not met and see again others.
Nice to meet you too last night! And thanks to Steve too!
Wolverhampton SW is a very very vulnerable marginal iirc.
Oooh
I'm hoping to buy a factory there next month. I shall instruct the workforce accordingly :-)
Well a former MP for Wolverhampton South West ended up sitting as an MP for the Ulster Unionists.
Just saying.
Now you've jinxed the tread.
Isam will be posting Enoch Powell for the next 4 hours, thereby undermining my 24hr sponsored sledgeathon on Osborne.
As someone once said "Imagine my shock, that someone obsessed with race and religion moved to Northern Ireland to be happy"
You've been misinformed we don't do race. As the Vietnamese refugee was once asked are you a catholic boatperson or a protestant boatperson. You'd be in trouble as you'd fail the bacon test when offered an Ulster Fry.
The difference it seems to me is that the Left (or some of them) seem to think that the only way to respond to human suffering is by state intervention . And (a) that's simply not true; and (b) can rapidly lead to a belief in a large state as a value in itself irrespective of whether it achieves its intended purpose. It seems to me that that is the cul de sac into which the Left has got itself. It sees a large powerful state as an end in itself. The equivalent on the right is to want a small state almost regardless of what the effects might be.
Surely the better view is to have a state do those things which cannot be effectively done by people either indiviidually or collectively and do them really well, rather than do lots of things not very well or badly?
I agree with your final point but just don't recognise that characterisation as being one that applies to many people on the left. Of course there are excessively ideological individuals, but in general the attempt to address problems via government is premised on the fairly sound logic that a) the problem exists and b) that means that society isn't dealing with that problem through individual benevolence therefore c) we'd better try to deal with it collectively through government.
It's about as true as saying that the right pretend they want to achieve prosperity for all through laissez-faire economics, when really they know it will enrich them personally and fuck over the poor. I've certainly met Tory MPs who will pretty much admit that in private, but the vast majority are decent people who passionately believe that their compassionate ends will be accomplished through that ideology.
I sat next to someone at supper last night who is not a fan of politicians as a whole.
But he said George had popped over for lunch last week and was really very impressive. Absolutely on top of his brief and everyone else's as well: and really answered the questions, thoughtfully and in detail. He was very very impressed.
...He then contrasted him explicitly with a number of other (former) Cabinet rank politicians who we both knew very well... decidedly in George's favour.
The difference it seems to me is that the Left (or some of them) seem to think that the only way to respond to human suffering is by state intervention . And (a) that's simply not true; and (b) can rapidly lead to a belief in a large state as a value in itself irrespective of whether it achieves its intended purpose. It seems to me that that is the cul de sac into which the Left has got itself. It sees a large powerful state as an end in itself. The equivalent on the right is to want a small state almost regardless of what the effects might be.
Surely the better view is to have a state do those things which cannot be effectively done by people either indiviidually or collectively and do them really well, rather than do lots of things not very well or badly?
I agree with your final point but just don't recognise that characterisation as being one that applies to many people on the left. Of course there are excessively ideological individuals, but in general the attempt to address problems via government is premised on the fairly sound logic that a) the problem exists and b) that means that society isn't dealing with that problem through individual benevolence therefore c) we'd better try to deal with it collectively through government.
It's about as true as saying that the right pretend they want to achieve prosperity for all through laissez-faire economics, when really they know it will enrich them personally and fuck over the poor. I've certainly met Tory MPs who will pretty much admit that in private, but the vast majority are decent people who passionately believe that their compassionate ends will be accomplished through that ideology.
Stats from GO
The section on 'fairness' now - beginning with a claim that it's the rich who are making the biggest contribution to cutting the deficit. "I said we would all be in this together and here is the proof. Compared to five years ago:
Inequality is lower. Child poverty is down. Youth unemployment is down. Pensioner poverty is at its lowest level ever. The gender pay gap has never been smaller. Payday loans are capped. And zero hours contracts regulated."
The difference it seems to me is that the Left (or some of them) seem to think that the only way to respond to human suffering is by state intervention . And (a) that's simply not true; and (b) can rapidly lead to a belief in a large state as a value in itself irrespective of whether it achieves its intended purpose. It seems to me that that is the cul de sac into which the Left has got itself. It sees a large powerful state as an end in itself. The equivalent on the right is to want a small state almost regardless of what the effects might be.
Surely the better view is to have a state do those things which cannot be effectively done by people either indiviidually or collectively and do them really well, rather than do lots of things not very well or badly?
I agree with your final point but just don't recognise that characterisation as being one that applies to many people on the left. Of course there are excessively ideological individuals, but in general the attempt to address problems via government is premised on the fairly sound logic that a) the problem exists and b) that means that society isn't dealing with that problem through individual benevolence therefore c) we'd better try to deal with it collectively through government.
It's about as true as saying that the right pretend they want to achieve prosperity for all through laissez-faire economics, when really they know it will enrich them personally and fuck over the poor. I've certainly met Tory MPs who will pretty much admit that in private, but the vast majority are decent people who passionately believe that their compassionate ends will be accomplished through that ideology.
Stats from GO
The section on 'fairness' now - beginning with a claim that it's the rich who are making the biggest contribution to cutting the deficit. "I said we would all be in this together and here is the proof. Compared to five years ago:
Inequality is lower. Child poverty is down. Youth unemployment is down. Pensioner poverty is at its lowest level ever. The gender pay gap has never been smaller. Payday loans are capped. And zero hours contracts regulated."
Sort of blows your assertions out of the water.
I'm sorry, which assertions? I contrasted the process and motivations of the left and right, attributing largely good motives to both. This is an example (assuming you trust the stats and the assessment of cause and effect) of compassionate ends being achieved through right wing ideology.
I sat next to someone at supper last night who is not a fan of politicians as a whole.
But he said George had popped over for lunch last week and was really very impressive. Absolutely on top of his brief and everyone else's as well: and really answered the questions, thoughtfully and in detail. He was very very impressed.
...He then contrasted him explicitly with a number of other (former) Cabinet rank politicians who we both knew very well... decidedly in George's favour.
/trollalanbrooke
Bankers think George is great, no surprise, they don't actually work for a living.
But when Richard Nabavi says Osborne is a failure, then you know the Tories are struggling
"And cuts to tolls on the Severn Bridge will be introduced from 2018."
Brown had this annoying habit of announcing the same thing in several budgets. Osborne has left it open to announce the cut to tolls on the Severn Bridge a further five times if he is still Chancellor after the election. Dear god.
Onto the important stuff: the new SW rail franchise. Disappointed that there isn't a promise to fund a railway line that doesn't, y'know, fall into the sea.
I've changed my mind, George Osborne will be the next Tory leader
He's doing well at that - substantially more Prime Ministerial than Cameron of late, measured and only occasionally drifts off into over-smug. Grand Coalition with Osborne PM and Alan Johnson as Chancellor..?
Neat little jab on deeds of variation on IHT, although it's really hard to imagine that consultation actually leading to any choice.
Are you implying that Osborne will waste the time of civil servants on a consultation purely so that he could insert a personal criticism of the Leader of the Opposition into his Budget speech? Surely not, that would be the sort of absurdity thrown out in the scripting of a political comedy.
Nice bit of banter between Dave and Danny when George made his "Ten pounds off a tank with the Tories" comment. I think Dave said to Danny "and the Lib Dems!", and they had a laugh about it like good mates.
Steve Fisher retweeted Fraser Nelson @FraserNelson 2m2 minutes ago Growth was good last year, will be okay in years to come. But overall? The slowest recovery in history #Budget2015
Prof Fisher says slowest recovery in history
Try again. A large chunk of the economy was destroyed by the recession. A large chunk Brown thought was permanent and could be milked was destroyed by his incompetence.
Comments
I'll believe that when I see it.
@rcs_1000 There is no magic money tree: interest paid to savers is interest extracted from borrowers.
If you are doing it right then the interest paid to savers is substantially less than the interest extracted from borrowers
@david_herdson be very careful about capital-protected bonds. Usually if the FTSE underperforms by a certain amount you can lose all of your capital. And you are taking credit risk on the investment bank that prices up the options: Lehman was a very big player in this market & that caused real issues for many retail investors (they had no idea they were taking Lehman risk because they only interacted with their local building society or whatever)
Ben Chu @BenChu_
There goes the £23bn 2019-20 surplus! Slashed to just £7bn: #budget2015 pic.twitter.com/4UJh5jD724
Deficit this year ~£90bn.
Osborne has set a high bar for future Chancellors.
It's about as true as saying that the right pretend they want to achieve prosperity for all through laissez-faire economics, when really they know it will enrich them personally and fuck over the poor. I've certainly met Tory MPs who will pretty much admit that in private, but the vast majority are decent people who passionately believe that their compassionate ends will be accomplished through that ideology.
[edit] - well, that was a bit of a non-event.
I sat next to someone at supper last night who is not a fan of politicians as a whole.
But he said George had popped over for lunch last week and was really very impressive. Absolutely on top of his brief and everyone else's as well: and really answered the questions, thoughtfully and in detail. He was very very impressed.
...He then contrasted him explicitly with a number of other (former) Cabinet rank politicians who we both knew very well... decidedly in George's favour.
/trollalanbrooke
Neat little jab on deeds of variation on IHT, although it's really hard to imagine that consultation actually leading to any choice.
The section on 'fairness' now - beginning with a claim that it's the rich who are making the biggest contribution to cutting the deficit. "I said we would all be in this together and here is the proof. Compared to five years ago:
Inequality is lower.
Child poverty is down.
Youth unemployment is down.
Pensioner poverty is at its lowest level ever.
The gender pay gap has never been smaller.
Payday loans are capped.
And zero hours contracts regulated."
Sort of blows your assertions out of the water.
Cameron...NHS...using his kids....Couslon....Osborne...Natalie Rowe....Coke...
And I honestly haven't looked.
George is hitting all my faves today
b) he's good at it
c) he's confident enough for no freebies...can it really be? That would be b*lls the size of cannonballs.
But when Richard Nabavi says Osborne is a failure, then you know the Tories are struggling
Conservatives North @ToryPressNorth
A further £75 million for charities from LIBOR fines announced – with support for veterans and air ambulances
Yummy.
Robert Peston @Peston
Petroleum Revenue tax to be cut from 50% to 35% #budget2015
Brown had this annoying habit of announcing the same thing in several budgets. Osborne has left it open to announce the cut to tolls on the Severn Bridge a further five times if he is still Chancellor after the election. Dear god.
Kerrching!!
LOL....
Taking another penny off the pint, spirits and ciders cut by 2% and wine duty will be frozen #Budget15
Apologies if this post has given you apoplexy.
Everything comes to him who waits :-)
(I'll get me anorak!)
A large chunk of the economy was destroyed by the recession. A large chunk Brown thought was permanent and could be milked was destroyed by his incompetence.
Higher Rate threshold rises above inflation