Where would you LIKE to see cuts made?

DevilWearsPrimark

Can I just turn it round and point out that everything your friend is getting - the shit house, the money to buy her food and pay her bills - comes out of someone else's wages in the form of tax. Why should the taxpayers also fund her "me time"?

I really think we need to think again about what the state (AKA the taxpayer) ought to be asked to pay for, for those who are not able to earn enough to pay for themselves.

Shelter, heat, food, clothing, yes of course. Protection from crime and abuse, yes of course. Healthcare, yes (though not necessarily a "gold plated" service). Education, yes, since in the long run this benefits everyone. Childcare for those who couldn't afford to work otherwise - possibly, if this means there is more productivity and tax revenue overall.

Childcare for non working parents, so they can have some "me time"? No way.

sorky i suppose i don't see such a huge split between relying on, say, my family and friends for things, and relying on the taxes of my fellow-countrymen. i can't do everything on my own. I certainly can't pay this deficit off on my own . I'll do what I can though. For example, i have promised dh that he will never have to go to a psychiatric hospital again, which has already saved the nation a bit. And as soon as I do get a job again, I should be able to afford to save 1/3 of my net income. It's a pledge.

Good point, tacticalfloosy, re the Civil List - surely money could be saved there? It's not like the Queen doesn't have a few bob of her own!!

I'd scrap Trident and CTF definitely.

I work in the public sector and most of our office haven't had a pay rise for 2 years so a pay freeze will hardly be a surprise!!

I cannot see your point at all swallowedafly

Yes preschool is about education...and I know few people who rely on it as childcare....

It is also an optional 'education' that is good for children whose mothers would otherwise be so exhausted they would dpo nothing with them...or have to drag them to the bank/ siupermarket

I presume you are not a single mother?

It's interesting that no-one has yet mentioned anything to do with the Royal Family. Way back in 1992 that would have been one of the first things on the list IMO. Things have changed now of course in that the minor royals are no longer on the Civil List, the Queen pays tax etc etc. I certainly don't feel much appetite to move to a republic any more. But I think I would still look at the Civil List itself again.

I won't be leaving my kids a feckin thing!
They cannot hope to rely on me for financial security, harsh perhaps but that's the way it is.

It pisses me off that people rely on the state so much, or abdicate personal responsibility to the state.

I'd like to see Nursery scrapped and further funding to services which support/encourage playing/learning with pre-school children.

Means test child benefit. Scrap CTFs. No ID.

I hear the latest cross-party plan is to have a sponsored walk and a cake sale. I got chills, they're multiplyin'...

Wow! this has exploded!
can't read them all quickly enough but:

devil that just makes me want to cry and makes absolutely no sense to me. And when people who drink/drive seemingly get away with things more easily sometimes (and they've chosen to take a risk!)

Am intrigued that people still want to save money by getting 'benefit cheats' and overhauling that system when we'd apparently gain a lot more money by going after the really high earners who take advantage of loopholes etc.

This is a really interesting read and very thought-provoking. Both I and DH work in the public sector, and I expect us both to be hit hard in a number of ways.
Pay/ conditions/ pensions etc...

Oh I agree...hence my stress on means testing...

Because why does the woman in the huge house around the corner get the same free childcare as the woman in the tiny flat over the road

Homeopathy on the NHS
Trident
Space exploration (for now)
Degrees in OutDoor Sports Management / Golf course design

Oh, we're also in major debt due to a) a tax credit cock up that was ruled their fault and we got £150 compensation b) when we moved in here we had to buy a cooker, a washing machine, beds, fungicide/damp seal, and there was not a single shelf in here.

Well, tough.

Why should hte government have to pay for all that?

Management cuts in hospitals. Cut Trident, ID cards,health in pregnancy grant, etc. I agree with all of them, but the savings aren't anywhere near enough.

If the parties ring fence spending on health and education, it has been estimated that the cuts everywhere else will need to be about 18%. If this was applied to the ministry of justice for example, it would be equivalent to closing ALL the courts. Thatcher achieved zero growth in some areas and look how much trouble that caused.

I read a good article about this recently but I can't remember where - does this ring any bells with anyone?

'how do you means test childrens rights exactly? do some have more than others? '

How is a nursery place a right?

Education is, and so it's available at primary and secondary level to all.

'Expat ? It?s not for after you're dead though is it, it?s for your children. Or whoever you choose to give it to.'

Then give it away before you die a la Bill Gates and Warren Buffet.

'Living in a shit house with a shit housing association that means she has to pay for new carpets/ damp damage etc...'

We have no carpets in this flat. There's damp all over the place.

The police were here again for the guy downstairs.

I mean, shit. Life can really suck.

But we're going to have to get away from the notion that the state has to pay for it all for however long we want or even need.

'So my friend who left her degree part way through because her and her long time partner slipped up so they had a second baby...

should now...

As a single mother since he left them and pays no maintenance...

In debt to SLC and cannot afford to go back to uni even for now...

Living in a shit house with a shit housing association that means she has to pay for new carpets/ damp damage etc...

What a bitch she is for loving those 2 1/2 hours 3 days a week she gets to herself. '

First of all, people being able to abandon the support of their children to the state needs to stop.

Secondly, many of us are in debt and living in shite housing. There's thread after thread on here about that. There's one of them in active convos just now.

Thirdly, then means-test the nursery place.

Don't her kids go to bed? Is that not 'me' time?

minthumbung

So my friend who left her degree part way through because her and her long time partner slipped up so they had a second baby...

should now...

As a single mother since he left them and pays no maintenance...

In debt to SLC and cannot afford to go back to uni even for now...

Living in a shit house with a shit housing association that means she has to pay for new carpets/ damp damage etc...

What a bitch she is for loving those 2 1/2 hours 3 days a week she gets to herself.