Whatever happened to 'Broken Britain'......did Dave manage to fix it?

First topic message reminder :

Remember how before the last election, you know before there were mass demonstrations and riots, when we had 10,000 more police officers and more nurses and soldiers, when more people were in work, Dave kept shouting about 'Broken Britain' and how it need to be 'Fixed'.

Well now Two years on has he managed to 'fix' it and if so how would we know?

Why is he not shouting about his success?

I also know the old saying," a faint heart never won a fair Lady"

But as long as there are fish to point at, Cameron will never lack for occupation

Having been to Eton , he surely sees them as a 'piscatorial species'.

Only roughs like me call them 'fish'...     

bobby wrote:I also know the old saying," a faint heart never won a fair Lady"

Either yours or mine would suit the Tories fine Bobby, because women are not going to vote for Scameron at the same time (women are not keen on Salmond either ) and as we have seen Scameron & IDS have hung themselves several times over.

The Tories have broken their promises on political reform

From an article by Angela Eagle:-

At their conference the Tories plan to announce that their membership has risen. The problem is that it hasn’t. Since Cameron was elected it is estimated 118,600 members have fled the party. I’ve written to Grant Shapps to urge him to come clean; instead of falsely inflating the numbers by adding in ‘friends’ and ‘supporters’ as it is reported he will do, he should own up and reveal the true scale of Cameron's lost army of Conservative members.

The Tories have failed to reform their own party, failed to reform our politics, and are now fiddling the figures to cover it up. Cameron promised he was going to 'fix' our broken politics. He opined about the problem of a few donors buying influence. He said he was going to shine the “light of transparency on lobbying in our country”. But the second he stepped into Number Ten, he reverted to Tory type and started doing the complete opposite.

Hedge funds have given the Tories £45.7 million. Hedge funds have been given a tax cut worth £145 million. This year alone £5 million has been donated to the Tories by people who had private dinners with the PM and senior ministers. And the Lobbying Act was just a Trojan horse for an attack on charities and campaigners while lobbying was made less transparent, not more. Cameron hasn’t built a better politics, he’s done all he can to reinforce the political power of a few big money donors and well established vested interests. Now that his grassroots have taken flight, he is even more reliant on the privileged few he uses his power to support.

http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2014/08/angela-eagle-tories-have-broken-their-promises-political-reform

Going by the title of this thread call me Dave could not fix himself, because I do not think he has the know how he is one of those that was educated beyond his Intelligence. I like your list Ivan but the way Cleggy was talking in his conference speech it was like the Lib-Dems had never been in power for the last 4 years, but they have learned how to tell "Bare Faced Lies" I suppose the Tories taught them that.

The collective message from this year's Party Political conferences is that no single party is totally confident of receiving sufficient seats in Parliament to form a government.

Voters should decide for themselves whether to prop up proven failures.

This open letter to the public, written by a firefighter, is not subject to copyright and can therefore be posted in full:-

"Dear citizen of the United Kingdom,

It is with a heavy heart that I feel I have to write to you. I am a firefighter and I feel it’s my duty to explain to you why I have chosen to take industrial action. This I’m afraid is the only option I have left. I have spent my working life serving you. I have seen and done things that nobody should ever have to, but I do it and live with the scars because I am firefighter, it’s what I do. I am there when you need me the most, willing to lay my life on the line to help you and your family in your darkest hour.  

I am not a hero, in fact I resent that title. I am a human being just like you, only a human who has dedicated their life to train and train and train again for any situation. Who has fought through heat and smoke to be there when you need me the most. Who has studied for hours numerous cars to know the best way to cut you free. Who has swum in icy lakes to save you from drowning. This is to name but a few. I don’t do it for thanks, I don’t do it for praise, I don’t do it for money, I do it because I am a firefighter. It’s what I do. The only thing I ask, which I never thought I’d have to, is to be treated fairly and with respect.

The current government has decided that since the financial crisis, people like me will have to pay for it. People who are easy targets. This not only includes nurses, teachers, police, ambulance staff and other essential  services, but people who rely on benefits through no fault of their own to survive. We continue to be penalised while the real crooks get away with it. The government has decided my future and I must accept whatever decision they seem fit. No negotiation, no looking at any evidence provided, just dictating what I must concede to. This I cannot do. It is not in my nature to lie down and accept what is unfair and unjust. I am a firefighter, the clue is in my title, I will fight for what I feel is right just as much as I would fight for you or your family’s life.

This weekend sees 96 hours of industrial action been taken all over England. In Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, industrial action will be avoided as negotiations have taken place and the relevant authorities have seen sense in sitting round a table and compromising to find a solution. I am bitterly disappointed that the current Conservative government, particularly Eric Pickles along with the current fire minister Penny Mordaunt and former fire minister Brandon Lewis, think so little of us that this has not been an option.

It has become apparent that members of the public think that I am asking for more pension and more pay. This is certainly not the case, even if the government lets you believe this. I am not asking for a single penny more. Just what I signed up to and what I was told I was guaranteed. The government has started to lay new pension regulations which will be unattainable for many firefighters. The Fire Brigades Union has plenty of evidence to back this up: http://www.fbu.org.uk/

In my 50s, I will be asked to take a fitness test which hasn’t been laid out in writing, so I have no idea what it will involve. If I fail the unknown test I will face the choice of dismissal or a heavily reduced pension. A decision I feel is immoral for just getting older. The government is also taking more pension contributions for longer and then paying out less. This is unacceptable without any negotiation. The last time I checked we were in a democracy, not a dictatorship. My message to the government is simple. Negotiate with us, don’t put us in a situation where we have no choice but to strike. It’s not fair on firefighters or the public. You have a responsibility to all of us. Take it seriously. This is not a game.

Please do not think that the decision to take industrial action has been taken lightly. It pains me that this has been our only option and even now the government refuses to negotiate. I wish for no lives to be endangered, but this is only the beginning of our fight. More cuts are to come. You will have fewer and fewer firefighters, fewer and fewer fire stations. Fire engines are becoming a thing of the past as 4×4’s and even Minis are being used. I hope that you can support me in this time of need and put pressure on your MP to challenge the way that I have been treated and the way the future looks for your Fire and Rescue Service.

The government will try to tell you fires are a thing of the past. This is not true. We still face overwhelmingly difficult fires on a daily basis across the UK. The government fails to tell you that flooding has significantly increased. It fails to tell you how the Fire and Rescue Service have had to face new threats with terrorism, as 7/7 showed. We face new challenges with more and more chemicals that are used in the modern world. The government doesn’t tell you that much of what I do isn’t in my ‘role map’ but I do it voluntary so I can deal with anything thrown at me. We may be called firefighters, but fires are only the start of it.

I implore you to speak to your MP and tell them your feelings. You can find them here: http://findyourmp.parliament.uk. Go out and show your support on the picket lines. Speak to a firefighter, they will be happy to answer any questions you have. We need you! Help us to stand up for the future of not only ourselves, but the future of the Fire and Rescue Service in England.

Thank you for reading.

Yours sincerely

A Firefighter of England."

http://firefighterengland.wordpress.com/

"The government will try to tell you fires are a thing of the past. This is not true."

1 November 2014 Stafford fireworks blaze: Men who died named.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-stoke-staffordshire-29852123

‘The Guardian’ view on Britain’s broken council tax

"By factoring out inflation, the government claims that local councils resources are 'only' being reduced by 1.8%. After next year’s slicing, the National Audit Office tots up Whitehall’s hit to town halls since 2010 at 37%. Business cannot go on as usual, and every shuttered library and unrepaired pot-hole confirms that it isn’t.

After the fiscal anarchy of the poll tax, the council tax made the vexed question of town hall finance go away. However, where once it pulled off three things – taxing property, protecting the poor and a measure of local control – it now fails on all three fronts.

The first council tax bills were calculated using 1991 house prices. Since then their value is up by an average 240%. Discrepancies have grown more marked. Westminster has repeatedly ducked the need to revalue, so the under-taxation of the priciest homes, which was baked into the council tax formula from the beginning, gets ever more pronounced.

With remarkable pig-headedness, the coalition scrapped council tax benefit. The coalition has matched its council tax freezes for middle England with sharp increases in bills for the poorest, many of whom are now having to pay for the first time. Up to 40% of what’s due from poor families is not being collected because many are too poor to pay.

National politicians should stop wringing their hands at dismal council election turnout, and reflect that citizens have less reason to cast them. Centralised, indulgent of the rich and contemptuous of the poor, the way that council tax has been run reveals a wide rot in the governance of Britain."

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/dec/19/guardian-view-britain-broken-council-tax

Ivan wrote:‘The Guardian’ view on Britain’s broken council tax

Centralised, indulgent of the rich and contemptuous of the poor, the way that council tax has been run reveals a wide rot in the governance of Britain."

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/dec/19/guardian-view-britain-broken-council-tax

It all started with "Red Ken" (Livingstone) who threatened Thatcher's government from just across the Thames in the London County Council offices.  Her response was to destroy any independence on the part of local government by withdrawing all control of funding back to Central Government.

Funny how many of Britain's current problems can be traced directly back to that woman.

IVAN Thank you for putting on CE the letter from the firefighter I do not think any less of them for going on strike this Tory gov't has ledt them no other choice, along with NHS workers teachers and other public sector workers.

Everything he said in the letter is TRUE, the Tories have always been against our public sevices and wish to get rid of every one so there mates & donors do not have to pay tax for there upkeep Tory SCUMBAGS.

Funny how many of Britain's current problems can be traced directly back to that woman.

You're not wrong OW - in many ways - none of them good - a great woman

All bar the Tories want constitutional reform. Another reason to keep them out

From an article by Polly Toynbee:-

"The spectacle of seven party leaders in a row at television debates will look as if there is a broad choice on offer. But for most voters it’ll be like going into a restaurant with a long menu outside only to sit down and find just the same old two dishes on offer. They are as different as can be – but there are just two. Pick one of the others and the waiter will still bring you one of the only two on offer, but you won’t have chosen which. Millions throw away their menu choice without affecting one iota who enters Number 10, or worse, affecting it by bringing about their least favoured result.

Cameron and Sturgeon are at war over English votes for English laws, Sturgeon stirring the pot by threatening to vote to save the English NHS if need be, with the firepower of her expected big increase in seats. Tories are outraged. Sturgeon pretends that Scots can vote SNP and still get a Labour government, though every seat lost by Labour makes Cameron’s victory more likely.

The Tories want boundary change to equalise constituencies, but only because it favours them. They wrecked Lords reform because they always dominate the second chamber. Besides, the lever of Lords patronage is even more politically useful than the shed-loads of party funds solicited in the hope of a peerage: there are now 850 peers, and the last intake contributed £7m between a few of them. The five-year fixed terms cobbled together in the coalition-making panic has proved deadly – far too long before a chance to throw the scoundrels out."

For the whole article:-
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jan/23/tories-constitutional-reform-first-past-the-post-voter

Sturgeon stirring the pot by threatening to vote to save the English NHS if need be, with the firepower of her expected big increase in seats

Ah, yes, the co-architect of Scotland's bid for Independence based upon a notional budget drawing upon North Sea Oil.

Only need just one more good idea to achieve everything their hearts desire.

There hearts desire is Independence in Scotland so they can rule the roost here in Scotland OW, it is so bad I am hoping to move back down to England if we can get rid of the Tories. All the SNP are is Tories wrapped up in the Saltire flag I feel sorry for the people of Scotland because it has allowed the SNP to pull the wool over there eyes just like the Tories did in the UK at the 2010 general election.

Just vote Labour - You know it makes sense.

Ivan wrote:http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/video/2015/jan/28/polly-toynbee-david-cameron-dont-underestimate-ruthless-man-cuts

The Tories will not like that Ivan but Hell Mend Them  Polly Toynbee is telling the truth (something the Tories hate) and talking a load of sense  to boot "VOTE LABOUR VOTE LABOUR ON THE 7TH MAY" thank you Ivan for putting this on cutting edge why don't you put it on twitter I am sure they would like it very much

When Cameron became leader of the Tories in December 2005, he made a speech which can be read here:-

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/dec/06/toryleadership2005.conservatives3

Here are a few of the points he made:-

“I want us to give this country a modern compassionate Conservatism that is right for our times and right for our country.”

“David Davis will be a vital part of the team in the future.”

“I'm fed up with the Punch and Judy politics of Westminster, the name calling, backbiting, point scoring, finger pointing.”

“I will lead a Conservative Party that when the government does the right thing, we will work with them.”

“We won't play politics with the long-term future of this country, we will work to get it right.”

“I want my children, your children, to grow up in a country where the streets are safe, the public space isn't filthy, where it isn't a hassle to get around, you can own your own home and where climate change and the environment aren't an afterthought.”

“We can mend our broken society.”

So, ten years on, how has Cameron done?  

2/10 - he gets points for knowing his own name and for good spelling

"Mr Cameron said: "The £20bn bail-out of Lloyds bank by the last Labour government became a symbol of the crisis that engulfed the British economy under Labour. After the public bailed it out, people feared they wouldn't see their money returned. Today they are."

http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/generalelection2015/tories-pledge-thatcher-style-lloyds-sell-off/ar-AAbh6Ja

So that nice Mr Cameron wants to "return our money", and in order to do so will sell us shares in Lloyds Bank for which he agrees we have already paid under the last Labour government.

In the absence of Parliamentary Privilege, a similar proposal from any other source might attract the attention of the Serious Fraud Office.

They also want to steal more houses to buy votes - or has someone said that already?

The Tories can try to bribe people with houses that aren't theirs to sell, and discounted shares in a bank we already own, but when a UKIP man gave away sausage rolls at one of his meetings, the police were called!  

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/apr/14/ukip-candidate-in-clear-over-alleged-voter-wooing-with-sausage-rolls

Or stop living in £2,000,000 bloody houses in the first place eh sickchip?

By the way, Dave could not mend a broken fuse?

Tory Britain 2015 - is this the 'one nation' scenario that Cameron has in mind for all of us?  


http://i.guim.co.uk/static/w-620/h--/q-95/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2015/5/29/1432927013670/87f9825e-d152-455c-be9a-09ae622cef1a-620x372.jpeg

Its either this or even worse for us plebs of the UK I would suggest it will be back to the Dickensian UK is where we will end up by 2020 Ivan.

You do have to hand it to them - they are just a cut above the rest of us mere mortals...

PH a very low cut below us Plebs,because I do not think the Tories have very much further to go until they reach the PITS.

This is a shanty town that has developed in Manchester. Around 50 homeless people have been trying to shelter from the cold here this week:-


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CY7i8vEW8AAQhFA.jpg

Ivan if you or anybody else is expecting the Tories to do something about this shameless situation PLEASE do not hold your breath, because this is the situation Davy boy wants for all us plebs.   No home address means we can not vote which in turn means the Tories will be in power for ever because there will not be anybody around to vote him out of office.

A War Within: How Tory Policy Threatens Our Peace, Safety And Freedom

From an article by Charlotte Hughes:-

We are now into our second term of Tory government. I, among many, cried again when they won the last general election, just like I did the time before. My immediate thoughts were that they were going to ruin this country and to destroy the poor. I really wasn’t wrong, was I?

I remember living under Thatcher’s rule - or "that woman" as we had to call her. Her name couldn’t be uttered in our house. My father lost his job as a steelworker. I remember having no decent shoes to wear, all had holes underneath that I used to fill with cardboard. But that wasn’t unusual then, most of my friends did the same thing.

As I got older I remember the massive marches against the Iraq war: a war that should never have happened, but it did and thousands of innocent lives were lost. But today we have a different war going on. We have a war against the poor, the disabled, the sick, the vulnerable, the nurses, the doctors, the NHS, the students, women nearing retirement age, the elderly and the planet. This war is happening around us every day and their command office is Parliament. Indeed a war is being waged against Parliament itself by the Tories. No-one, and I mean no-one, is safe.

One thing’s certain — our country is being destroyed right before our eyes and there are not enough of us fighting against it. They will not stop until they destroy everything that they dislike. Which will most likely be everyone apart from themselves.

For the whole article:-
http://morningstaronline.co.uk/a-da06-A-war-within-How-Tory-policy-threatens-our-peace,-safety-and-freedom

I have previously compared the Tory administration with an invading conquering Army. Is a guerrilla resistance likely from a British populace before long?

I agree OW, the Tory gov't want to sell the UK off to the USA, just take a look at the TTIP treaty between the EU & USA, John McDonnell has came out today on the program Going Underground on the RT channel that he will call for the Labour party to come out of the EU IF the EU signs the TTIP treaty with the USA.

Actually, Red, I don't believe the government want to sell the UK to America, but to their friends in big business, who actually seem to employ most politicians on both sides of the pond

"....friends in big business, who actually seem to employ most politicians on both sides of the pond"

There was a worrying programme on BBC2 Friday night about the Cayman Islands, which are a British Protectorate. London decided years ago to make it a tax-free zone, there is a British Governor, and the local President has no power to levy tax on the 60,000 foreign companies registered in Cayman. There is however import duty which makes everything expensive for everybody, including the poor. There is no welfare benefit, and medicine is only free from charities.

It's a future which could lie in wait for the UK if wealth continues increasingly to be retained within big global business.

boatlady wrote:Actually, Red, I don't believe the government want to sell the UK to America, but to their friends in big business, who actually seem to employ most politicians on both sides of the pond

I know I am expecting too much from those on this forum to watch the adverts on TV, you will see so many for private health including private clinics and private health Insurance trace them back and just see how many of them are owned by American big Corporations. Also take a look at the NHS the Tories have handed most of the NHS contracts to American private health Corporations.