Charles Clarke has a good idea?

They all lie. At least Clegg is penitent, unlike the shamless socialists.

Craig

Funny how they forgot to tell us that before the election.

Ahem, Clegg and fees, "Dave" and child benefit, at least labour didn't lie through their teeth only by omission :)

I think Labour have had this plan for years. As Clarke says, that is what congestion charging is all about. They often camouflage these things under a holier than thou green umbrella, but it's really about forcing people to pay more tax whenever they access services which they have already paid for with their taxes.

It's interesting that they have come up with this policy now. This is the result of their spinners thinking hard. But of course, they had really thought about it before the election, but didn't have the courage to put it to the public, because they knew the public would have seen through "co-payment". So they have brought it up now that they are in opposition. It is part of their long progressive propaganda march back to power. They think they will be able to fool us over the coming years. They told us before the election that they would have to make huge cuts the like of which we had never seen. But now they have found a magic formula, co-payment. Osborne is bad they say, because he is making huge cuts the like of which we have never seen. They wouldn't have done that, they tell us, they would have used a progressive policy, clever co-payment. Funny how they forgot to tell us that before the election.

Good point, they question the legitimacy of strikes, but they often make wholesale changes on the basis of a minority of the electorate. How do laws get passed in parliament? Do they need a 50% yes vote? Half the time the chamber is nearly empty, so it looks like they have different rules.

Boris today said strikes should need 50% plus yes votes (abstensions to be no to a strike) to have a strike even though he only got 20% of the electorate first preference votes.

Double standards or what

good idea, they always say unions should have secret ballots. Why can't they?

maybe stop the lobby/vote system in Parliment and make all votes a secret ballot

agree newwave, proportional representation is a must to fumigate the rotting edifice that they fool us with. Never thought about outlawing the whip system, but that sounds good if possible, as it would allow them to vote with their consciences and represent the public and not prop up their party.

claig, you have answered your own question, Blair/Brown licked Murdochs arse and now Dave is keeping it fresh and clean.

Far to many top civil servants leave and end up in industries they used to regulate, same with poiliticians of both sides.

The only thing which may help is proportional representation and the outlawing of the parlimentary whip system.

agree newwave, go after the really wealthy, not the middle classes and those who need to use medical services because they have fallen ill.

What's wrong with the socialists, so many of them ex-Trotskyists, why are they so keen to tax the hard-working middle classes, their hated Daily Mail readers? Why haven't they got the courage of their convictions, why don't they tax the rich? Is it because they are all rich themselves, with their private schools, their hedge fund investments, their legal careers and speaking engagements?

claig, you may be right, far far better to tax bank bonuses at 60+%, scrap Trident and tax non doms. Maybe also get stuck into the hedge funds and privatised utilities as well.

It is just typical Labour taxation, increasing taxation on the middle classes and those who are unfortunate enough to be ill and have to use the services. It looks like the progressives have dreamed up a new spin doctor name for taxation - co-payment. They make it sound like we're all in it together. It will be just another excuse for them to employ more bureaucrats and incompetent fatcats and tell us that we are co-paying for them, on top of the high taxes that they were so fond of levying on us. That way they can inflate the state like an ever expanding balloon and tell us how progressive co-payment is.

The Tories believe in reducing the burden of taxation on the public, and of eliminating the inefficiency and waste that accompanies the ever expanding state.

It looks like the socialist spin doctors have been hard at work rebranding taxation as co-payment, just as they rebranded themselves as progressives. It looks like they are desperat, but fortunately the Tories can smell their rat.

He has a point however it needs to be shown sgainst the rest of those countries overall tax and benifits.