Adam Smith describes general policy as being designed to benefit its architects, the powerful few. This blog explores the psychological impact on society of what he describes as "The vile maxim of the masters of mankind - all for ourselves, nothing for anyone else". We all need a social maxim of taking care of ourselves and each other if we are to thrive on our planet, we hope to play a part in moving toward that.
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The Conservaties have over doubled the national debt borrowing more than every Labour government combined.
The Tories have refused to allow the Office for Budget Responsibility
to compare their manifesto with Labour's so that the public can be
properly advised. Ask yourself why? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7pgpVlhYig&t=3s 2:50 onwards
We know the Tories economic policy has more than doubled our
debt since 2010.We know that they have
borrowed more than every Labour government combined and that they
have always borrowed more and paid off less debt than Labour.In an attempt to defend against their
economic incompetence Teresa May correctly informs us they have reduced the
deficit.The deficit is the difference
between incomings and outgoings, we run a deficit when we are spending more than we are taking in, it is currently informing us how much we have to borrow each
year.On the surface a decreasing deficit
appears to show that tightening our belts and enduring austerity is working,
but the increasing debt tells a different story.
The issue is how the Tories have reduced the deficit.Spending cuts make sense to us because this
is what we have to do when our outgoings exceed our income in our household
budget.The flaw in this argument is
that the economy cannot be run like a household budget, it is in reality an
eco-system.We can’t simply cut spending
in one area, without affecting other elements.
The majority of
Economists agree that promoting economic growth is the best way to cut the
deficit and stabilise the debt over the long-term. The Tories have prioritised drastically
reducing the deficit through any means possible, but critics argue that the
pace of the deficit reduction has been self-defeating,causing a double-dip recession.
A healthy growing economy requires high levels of employment,
which increases tax revenue and reduces the welfare spend. Once we understand that workers are the source of prosperity in Capitalist societies, not the consequence of it, the economic model we need to have in place becomes clear.A living wage puts
more money in our pockets, this provides businesses with more customers, the more
profitable they are as a result the more employees they need, the more taxes we
collect and the more we save on welfare payments, which reduces the
deficit.This makes perfect sense, and the Tories are
claiming to have done both, increased employment and reduced welfare spending,
so what’s the problem?Again, it is the
way they have done it that betrays their utter economic incompetence.
The 'Angry Birds' approach to understanding the deficit in the modern economy
Zero hour contracts and low wages have improved employment
figures but there is no substance behind them. The Tories subsidise Corporations paying low
wages, by paying working people tax credits and housing benefits.Low wages do not result in higher tax
collection from the population or a lower welfare bill.Only a living wage can do this.
Forcing the disabled and jobless into this kind of
employment by making the welfare system almost impossible to navigate and
imposing unfair sanctions, has also provided no economic benefit.In fact the Tories have paid private
companies so much to impose sanctions that we are paying £153 million more per
year to impose them than we have saved in benefit cuts.Although, deaths have lowered the welfare
bill (that statement can’t be made without referring you here)
those still alive will undoubtedly end up costing the state even more as we
deal with the mental health crisis and likely the physical health cost of
forcing the disabled to work. The appalling Tory culture of waste on welfare spending continues here. The
profound economic and social incompetence of the Conservative government is
demonstrated in this paragraph alone.
The Tories claim that they need to do all they can to keep
businesses and corporations in the UK, by reducing their taxes and allowing
them to pay poverty wages, to ensure high employment rates.But this is a false economy as described
above.Business can only thrive in an
environment where people are earning enough to have money to spend. Billionaire
Plutocrat Nick Hanauer who is part of the 1%, describes how essential this fair economic model is
even to a Capitalist society in this video:
Beware, fellow plutocrats, the pitchforks are coming | Nick Hanauer
Tax reductions to corporations are also taking money out of
the economy as most of the profits are being funnelled out into tax
havens.A healthy economy aims to have
as much money circulating in the system as possible, any money taken out of the
system creates a drain.It is much more
economically effective to tax corporations fairly and ensure a living
wage.
Under the Tories corporation tax has been
reduced from 28%, is currently at 19% and will be reduced to 11% by 2020. When the global average
rate is 27%, surely this is economic suicide?Jeremy Corbyn meanwhile has said that he will reverse the damaging Tory cuts to 21% for small companies and 26% for larger companies.
Is there any basis to the Tory claim that they are valid in
using their economic model because businesses will leave the UK taking their
jobs with them?There is no evidence
that cutting the rate has brought jobs, growth or new corporation tax revenues
to the UK. Business itself did not lobby for low tax rates, and ours will remain around
the average global rate. Corporations do
make significant profits in the UK, they can afford to pay fair taxes and
wages, and when they do they contribute to our economy. Bearing the above in mind, the
question we should be asking is, is it really economically valid to keep
businesses here if they are creating a drain on our economy through welfare
subsidies and the removal of money from circulation?
The Tories have reduced their investment in infrastructure
and industry and sold off assets to private firms.Whilst this provides an injection of money in
the short-term, it impacts the economy negatively in the long-term.One way to reduce the debt in a stable way is
to increase our income by bringing profitable industry back into state
ownership.Currently we pay massive
subsidies to private firms who own our rail and energy, and the profits they
make are going abroad! This obviously has to change if we want a stronger economy.
Labour is also correct to invest in infrastructure and
industry in the UK, this not only makes the state more profitable in the
long-term but immediately creates an increase in the availability of effective
employment that will boost economic growth.
Despite manipulated public opinion The Tories are the party
creating economic and social chaos and this will only increase over time.The best way to create a growing economy and
reduce the deficit and debt in an effective way is to create effective
employment.A £10 living wage, fair Corporation tax, and investment that creates jobs will be transformational for
all. Labour are introducing economic policies backed up by majority economic consensus
that will create a social and economic stability
we are all desperately crying out for.
Is it any wonder that at Labour's request the Tories have refused to provide the Office for Budget Responsiblity a copy of their manifesto, so that it can be compared to the Labour manifesto and the public can be properly advised?
CAN THE DEBT THE TORIES INHERITED AFTER THE FINANCIAL CRISIS BE BLAMED?
Can the Tories blame Labour for the debt they inherited 10 years ago? Government spending did not cause the financial crisis despite the Tory perpetuated myth, the banks did. And, if we are looking to blame Labour for not preventing it from happening, we need to consider that the Tories argued for LESS financial regulation at the time. Labour did not overspend and bankrupt the economy and here is the superbly presented data. The Tories need to take responsibility for their mistakes and continued failure at running our economy.
QUESTION
My question to the Tories is this; you have imposed austerity for years and yet the debt keeps rising, where exactly has all the money gone?
This BBC article provides a great explanation of debt and deficit and also:
"A neat, if rather simplistic, illustration of the different philosophies of the right and left in UK politics, some might say."
"If the government is running a deficit, it may make investments on top of this, and will therefore need to borrow to cover both. For example, in the calendar year 2007, the Labour government borrowed £37.7bn, of which £28.3bn was invested in big projects (the balance of £9.4bn represents the current budget deficit). Conversely, in 2013, the Conservative-led coalition borrowed £91.5bn, with just £23.7bn invested." How have the Tories got away with it for so long?
You have the power to change what you are about to read, in
just a few short weeks.
"we should be piling up the bodybags and tiny infant coffins outside number 10 Downing Street, and making our Prime Minister and Chancellor walk that gamut every day"
The information
is disturbing, it will shake you to the core.Even if you have heard it before you may not have processed it
fully.As human beings we react to
horror, to unnecessary deaths, with cognitive dissonance, because it is uncomfortable
to hold two contradictory beliefs simultaneously.Beliefs that the people in government are
working in your best interests, and that the people in government are
neglecting your fellow citizens to death are two such beliefs.Because of this we try to explain evidence
away, we try to reason where there is none, we try to find some explanation
that will keep us feeling safe and stable.It is too late for this, we are at too crucial a time to allow this
natural defence to keep us from doing the right thing for our fellow citizens.
When the argument “we have to do this for the economy, we
have to save money” goes through your mind, think about what we are saying, is
money worth more than life?Then
consider the fact that Austerity is a choice not a necessity.Not only is Austerity leading to the deaths below but it is also destabilising our economy even more.Defunding
and privatising our NHS is completely unnecessary and can only cause
chaos for the population and increase the profits of the wealthy. The
next piece of information will leave you
flabbergasted - the sanctions imposed that are leading to some of these
unnecessary
deaths and suicides cost us the tax payer 153 million more than we are saving per year. Every single year, it costs more to
harm these people than we will save. Did you agree to this? I know I didn't? The
Tories know this, they have been advised against it, they went against majority
economic academic opinion to impose austerity in the first place.
When you hear yourself saying “people who claim benefits are
fraudsters, we need to be harder on them”, read the facts on benefit fraud and consider the official figures in this graph (Tax fraud here does not include Tax Evasion which is much higher):
Then consider this:
And ask yourself what the hell is going on?
All of these figures and statements are factual, they can all be
supported with independent research. Tax avoided, evaded and
uncollected is a drastically far greater drain on our resources, and yet
the Tory government promotes this, they continue to cut taxes for
corporations and refuse
to take action on Tax Havens.
So why are we asking the most vulnerable to pay the price? Benefits
going unclaimed far exceed any fraud, so why is this the focus?
There were 30,000 excess
deaths in 2015 (the largest increase since WWII) linked to Tory cuts in
health and social care. These were largely in the older population
most dependent on health and social care, but more and more we are
hearing about urgent and essential operations being cut for all sections
of the population by an NHS at breaking point. We are hearing of
people being turned away and the Red Cross declared "a humanitarian crisis" in our NHS earlier this year. Hospitals themselves are issuing black alert
status, this means they are unable to guarantee life-saving emergency
care. None of us is safe from this breakdown of care, even personal
fortune may not save you.
A major study State of Child Health 2017 has warned that child health in the UK is in jeopardy due to an alarming gap between the rich and poor. Our children's health is falling behind many European countries and the report confirms a strong link between rising poverty and inequality in the UK and increasing poor health and mortality. Despite these findings child poverty is at its highest level since 2010 and is predicted to increase by 50% by 2020 under the Tory government.
The
Tory overhaul of disability benefits has been on a level of callous and
cruel, I have not witnessed before. People are being declared fit for
work despite severe disability and even terminal illness. We can't
reason that this is in anyway justified, we can't say that the
Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) are targeting people who are not
"disabled enough", or people who are abusing the system, because
thousands of people, 80 people per month, are dying after this
declaration, many within weeks of the decision. How fit and healthy can
they have been do you think? Ordinary people are being denied basic
care, really, denied basic humanity, despite many having paid into the
system all their working lives. Ken Loach's recent film 'I Daniel
Blake' recently highlighted many of these issues and is highly
recommended.
"The figures revealed that between December 2011 and February 2014,
50,580 recipients of ESA had died. Of this number, 2,380 – or 4.7% – had
received a decision that they were fit for work. Many of these would
have appealed the decision, a process that can take many months. Another
7,200 claimants had died after being awarded ESA and being placed in
the separate work-related activity group – a category which identifies
claimants who are unfit to work but may be able to return to work in the
future."
Unsurprisingly, some of these deaths may have been suicides
linked to welfare assessments. The intense stress people are put under
leave many to believe they have no other option. Calum's list
details some of the most harrowing and heartbreaking accounts of people
who's suicides have been linked to the Conservative Government's
welfare reforms. Despite this the private companies earning millions from the Government to run the disability assessments, have been regularly asking claimants "why haven't you killed yourself yet" type questions, that are clearly potentially harmful in this often dehumanising atmosphere. The United Nations
have severely criticised the Government for 'systematic violations" of
the rights of the disabled. In an unusual move The British Psychological
Society together with leading Counselling
organisations, recently issued a statement opposing all welfare sanctions, not only because there is no evidence they work, but also to warn that their will be a mental health crisis if this continues.
We
are used to blanket denials from the Conservative Government, the Party
line is to deny, deny, deny and avoid taking responsibility.
Thankfully the Professionals speaking out are the people we trust,
including Doctors, Surgeons, Nurses, Psychologists, Counsellors,
Psychotherapists. The denials increasingly look as ludicrous as they
are in the face of the evidence and these expert assessments. Even one
of the Tories arguably most biased reporters admits“This is the fourth Number 10 team that I’ve covered,
and their (Conservative Government) attitude to all of this is very, very different - where they
basically try not to respond to anything".
We are being lied to, we are being pushed to blame our
fellow vulnerable citizens of which any of us could become, for the
drain on our economy. Who is actually responsible:
"It was the f*****g banks" - Frankie Boyle
The Tories are
telling us that we must pay with our health care as they defund the NHS,
we must pay with our social
security as they take essential money away from the disabled and stop
the money of people who have no other means of survival. We cannot
expect benefits when we are ill or disabled even though we
pay for this in national insurance contributions?
You will undoubtedly be shocked to hear that this National Insurance
Fund, that we all pay into to secure our health care, welfare net if we
can't work and pension, has a surplus, 2016 figures showed this to be £30 Billion. Yes Billion. We
must pay with our job security as 0 hours contracts become the norm.
We must pay with our security of a roof over our heads, as rents far
exceed our wages. It doesn't end because the Tory Party seem
unconcerned as our Country and our revered Health and Social Care
crumbles.
Next
time you hear Teresa May or any of her fellow Conservative Politicians
repeating the Strong and Stable hypnotic mantra, remember what kind of
society they consider Strong and Stable. It includes neglecting
Citizens to death and presiding over a failing economic model that sucks
the
vulnerable dry and open handedly provides welfare for the richest. If
they are this cruel or deluded (it can only be one or ther other) now,
what the hell can we expect if they secure a win again?
#Vote
Labour - because Jeremy Corbyn is currently the only Politician who
understands how broken our society is. He is also the only Leader who
has the economic strategy and policies in place to fix it. He's been
fighting this kind of injustice all his life, we couldn't be in better
hands.
