I kind of like statistics despite the comment that ‘there are lies, damned lies, and statistics’. Politiciansd only like the ones which they favour. Hence the repeated mantra that unemployment is the lowest since whenever (Black Death?). This is despite employment figures being 0.5% down since 2019. Long term sickness figures are 400000 up since the end of 2019 to 2.49million. A third of these are thought to be due to. long covid (where are those who objected to the lockdowns to argue their case against these figures?). Underfunding the NHS has led to 7 million waiting for treatment.
LUNACY
WHO?
It looks like Sunak/Mordant – if they need 100 MP’s to stand. Hopefully Johnson and Braverman will stand to ensure that neither get the 100 votes needed. Chris Bryant reckons he will not stand. He can earn £150000 a pop by lecturing Americans, and have a semi-permanent holiday too. His ego is large, but protecting it is also essential. Remember it was MP’s who forced the lying shit out in the first place, and he is still under investigation, and the enquiry into the Covid episode has not started.
WHAT NEXT?
So the Tories have to find a new leader in 7 days. Hunt has ruled himself out. The right wing are angry as they thought they had it all sorted with Truss and Kwarteng. The left do not have the financial backing from the ERG or Bruges associates, nor the organisation. However those MP’s looking at losing their seats will not be backing what has been identified as a losing gambit. My money would be on a Sunak/Mordant coalition. They would have to clean up the cabinet rapidly to achieve any semblance of respectability.
FRACK! FRACKING FRACAS
TAX
I just do not get it! The rich have increased their income massively over the past few years. Truss and the ERG and other rightwing think tanks say we need to cut the taxes of the rich to increase investment and create growth. It seems they meant the growth of the wealth of the already wealthy.
MINIMUM WAGE
An idea. Impose a higher level minimum wage for all workers in companies paying out money as dividends. % would need to be worked out. But it would both be an incentive for all workers and reward them for their toils.
TRUSS MUST GO
and take the rest of her Cabinet with her. It was not just her best mate Kwarteng (who she unceremoniously sacked) but the whole cabal of them that the country has no faith in. I mean what is Coffrey even doing in Parliament, let alone understudy to the PM. Sleeze-Dogg must be an embarrassment to all who know him. So we have a Trade Minister who ripped up agreements with the biggest trading bloc on the planet, a Health Secretary who not only smokes, but takes funds from the tobacco industry, a homicidal Home Secretary, a Justice Minister who does not believe in democracy, etc.
TRICKLE DOWN ECONOMICS
Hopefully this is being rejected by the majority of people now. Hoping that the rich will allow a few crumbs to end up with the poor is not only patronising, but wrong. The rich get steadily richer and the crumbs diminish. It is not good at encouraging growth either. Growth is not necessary for a thriving and developing economy, it just shelters the underperforming elements.
TAX CUTS
Two taxes that seem hard to avoid are Income Tax and VAT. So cut Corporation Tax and increase VAT. Food and children’s clothing is VAT free. Increase the threshold for Income Tax to £20000. Amazon, Google and Apple, etc. should not be allowed to avoid VAT. It would not matter if the company was based in Luxembourg, Dublin or Bermuda – if sold in the UK the tax will be paid. Simple really? Investment grants and other tweaks could be made.