If you suddenly became the leader of the country, what’s the one thing you would change?

[bluescreens]

As the child of an elderly parent, I’m frustrated by what appears to be pointless bureaucracy when dealing with local councils. When anything goes wrong with my dad’s care, I spend the equivalent of hours (sometimes days) being passed from team to team, trying to get someone to take ownership of the issue and work with me to resolve it. If I were PM, as this is so personal, I’d tackle this straight away. I’d also do a proper, comprehensive review of the NHS and ask the tough questions, with the goal of reforming it while (at the same time) keeping it free or at least very low cost at the point of use. Obviously I’d use my magic money tree to fund all of this! 🤓

This is a semi lighthearted thread - but if you were leading the country, what would you tackle first?

Dump FPTP and introduce PR.

Defence. I’d reinvest in having a top notch armed forces. We are going to need it.

There’s loads of urgent things, it’s all a mess. But we can’t rely on the US or Europe to fight the battles ahead. And they are coming, I’m sure of it sadly.

I would pass the cost to any airline which brought “medical tourists” to the UK. That would encourage them to make passengers prove they had travel insurance.

I would immediately ban those awful tuktuks in London! And all those hire bikes. Nice idea in the first place but they’ve been taken over by ne’er-do-wells.

The country's finances isn't what it was and we can't afford to fund someone who lives abroad in retirement anymore. Presumably they've got enough independent income to enable them to live abroad so they won't miss the pension.

Yes, but they've paid into a system, often by working many years. It's theirs.

We've all paid into system and not received some of the benefits as well. People who don't have children pay taxes and NI but won't have received child benefits, maternity payments or healthcare either. This won't affect all pensioners, only some including my very wealthy aunt whose retirement income is £4k. She now lives abroad and really doesn't need her UK pension, I'd rather it went to topping up poorer pensioners.

I would cap private rents at 10% above the cost of maintaining and managing them, with heavy fines for LLs who do not keep their properties in good condition.

I would ban short-term lets (Airbnb)

Overseas individuals would need to have lived in the UK for over 5 years and have proof of long-term employment to buy property.

Any property empty for longer than 3 months would pass into the management of a local HA. Owners could avoid this by putting the property on the market or proving they are overseas temporarily with the intention to return within 5 years.

In areas where locals are priced out by second-home and holiday home owners, you have to prove a connection to the local area to buy or rent a home.

Repatriation for every single migrant with a violent/sexual assault criminal conviction. Their families can go too if need be. We’ve got enough violent arseholes of our own without shipping them in.

This ⬆️. It's happening in Sweden and Denmark, they're getting more rigorous.
People would definitely support this.

Review benefits and ensure everyone who can work, does work. If they can't get a paid job, they help out at food banks, in hospitals, cleaning, etc No person who is offered more than 16 hours should be allowed to decline them to preserve Universal Credit. Pocket money only should be given. Food delivered, utility keys provided, applications for clothes, etc.

NHS dentistry compulsorily available for all children and vulnerable adults.

Introduction of social insurance health sysyem like in France/Austria. Alongside some lessons in basic courtesy for all NHS staff.

Gradually reintroduce proper council/social housing.

Lift the ban on petrol cars.

Agree with a registration system for the bikes.

Reform education and close massive comprehensives and exoectations that all children should be getting clutches of GCSEs. Reintroduce, grammar, technical, secondary and special schools. One size does not fit all. Scrap the Post 92s and bring back polys for vocational/technical subjects, and bursarys where necessary. Ensure the skilled trades are far more highly valued and better regulated.

@Frequency I agree with you about Air BnBs, they've ruined some areas.

Introduce rent caps on private rented housing at current market rents (to prevent an exodus from the market), increase housing benefit to actual market rent levels, get rid of right to buy, build more social housing and compel private landlords to offer first refusal at market rate when they sell properties to councils for social housing, and build more social housing.

Teach everyone Critical Thinking.

So they could learn how to take a step back, see the bigger picture, separate fact from viewpoint and make better decisions.

It's part of most GCSEs.

Good call. It's shocking how exploitative many of these landlords are.

Good to know.

Could we make it mandatory for older generations?

😂

1. Start with the behaviour of MPs in the House of Commons - we expect sportsman. celebrities to behave in an appropriate manner as they are rold models for children, yet MPs jeer each other and generally behave in a childish way, that's if they even turn up.
2. Encourage community pride - low level offenders should be involved in more community service - cleaning road signs, litter picking, running youth groups (obviously if DBS checked) etc.

Mass council housing build.

Propose changes to residential property laws preventing the wholesale buy up of new build estates by BTL landlords

Prevent any corporation from owning residential property, unless a social housing association or a government entity (like armed forces)

Force someone to take responsibility for a residential property - a single person's name and up to date address must be on the title deeds for every privately owned residential property and not some corporation or shell company

Prevent overseas 'investors' owning tranches of residential properties

Prevent time share scams

Shut down all static caravan park sales and recompense the victims

Leasehold laws need a revolution - there are faaaar too many reports of legal disputes, including this jaw dropper https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c17xp1dprn7o

Change the laws so that councils can build their own housing again, instead of ALMOs, housing associations and private companies

Who is the guy with curly hair who does the impressions of him ? I can imagine the whole ‘getting ideas from mumsnet’ sketch would be hilarious

Battleship in the English Channel.

It would be. Not too much of a stretch of the imagination either to be fair.

I would cap house prices/rent inline with average wages and that all drivers have to have a dash camera

Good point about NHS dentistry for kids. Poor that Labour didn’t make this a priority instead of the child benefit cap.