https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/nov/25/margaret-thatcher-pushed-for-breakup-of-welfare-state-despite-nhs-pledge Thatcher pushed for breakup of welfare state despite NHS pledge The duplicitous Thatcher together with Howe, Rifkind, Hurd, Tebbit and the other accomplices of the Thatcher governments, conspired in secret to destroy our Welfare sate and our National Health Service. As I have long argued, this has been the ambition and objective of the Conservative party since 1947 and has over those years, been surreptitiously advanced with piecemeal privatisations of numerous departments and functions of the welfare system and by closures of wards and hospitals where departments and departmental responsibilities have been gifted to the private sector, under the cloak of improving the service and saving money within our NHS. Today, this malevolent aspiration of the conservative party and their business supporters, circling like vultures waiting for their oppor...
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http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/desperate-dad-spared-jail-stealing-7328464 Benefits cuts left couple just £8-per-week to live on Paul and Kerry Barker In the 1st part of the 21st Century, a couple steal food from Tesco waste bins, because their benefits have been sanctioned and reduced to £8 per week. An event not uncommon in the United Kingdom in Austerity Britain. The conservative government and the ConDem Coalition government before them, are heaping pain and misery upon millions of ordinary people throughout this country and they are getting away with it. These 21st century Robber Barron’s are getting away with this and other vicious and vindictive measures because 172 members of the Parliamentary Labour Party are more intent with advancing their own personal positions and achieving their ambitions than they are with the hardships and privations of those people who the Labour party represent and who elected them only last year. They are fixat...
http://usuncut.com/world/iceland-sentences-26-bankers-to-a-combined-74-years-in-prison/ Iceland sentences 26 bankers to a combined 74 years in prison Good and reassuring news from Iceland. At least there is one country that has the backbone to defy the vested interests of some political factions and prosecute those responsible for the financial crisis rather than persecute ordinary people with pernicious cuts, reductions in living standards and crippling austerity. We could have a similar scenario here if the politicians were not in the pockets of bankers and financiers. The British people are paying the price for the "financial crisis", while the bankers continue to enjoy the huge salaries bonuses and the lifestyles that they have become used to. The banking world in the United Kingdom, is "protected" from the consequences of its own action by politicians with their own agenda. Austerity is not an economic necessity. Austerity is a poli...
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/may/08/and-then-there-was-one-miliband-clegg-and-farage-quit-as-party-leaders#comments Nick Clegg resigns as Lib Dem leader May 8th 2015 Liberal Democrats were decimated and they got what they deserved. It was only "tactical voting" which saved Clegg from the same fate as that which befell his colleagues. They paid the price for his duplicity. As one Liberal Democrat voter said about the 2010 election, he voted Liberal democrat to keep the Tories out of 10 Downing Street, and the first thing that Clegg did was to jump into bed with Cameron and form a coalition to give the Conservatives power in this country. It seems that this view was held by hundreds of thousands of voters across the United Kingdom, who deserted the Liberal Democrats resulting in a loss of 49 of their 57 seats. Only five years ago Even up to the eve of polling day, Clegg and his other Liberal Democrat colleagues, w...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/britains-divided-decade-the-rich-are-64-richer-than-before-the-recessionwhile-the-poor-are-57-poorer-10097038.html Britain's divided decade: the rich are 64% richer than before the recession, while the poor are 57% poorer "When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist" This country desperately needs a Labour Party that actually represents ordinary people rather than the bunch of "champagne socialists" currently on offer under Ed Miliband who are in fact little different than the ConDem coalition. Today's Labour party offer more austerity, more cuts and more of the same but with minor variations in application. We had a party once, but that party was betrayed and finally destroyed by Blair, Brown, Mandellson and Campbell following Kinnock an d Smith. They called us Trotskyites, Militants, Commies, extremists, infil...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/millions-of-britons-struggling-to-feed-themselves-and-facing-malnourishment-9946627.html Millions of Britons struggling to feed themselves and facing malnourishment Foodbanks relying on donations of food. On December 20th, I blogged on the bigoted generalisations, unfortunately, all too common in today's greedy, selfish and prejudiced society, in respect of attitudes towards the poor, foodbanks, child poverty and the general demonisation of large sections of our society, by those all too ready to accept and believe the propaganda trotted out from the pages of the Daily Mail, Telegraph and other such rags, and the completely biased reporting of Wilcox and others on the BBC with Brazier and Boulton on the British version of Fox News. The “success” of divisive social policies maintained by successive governments, have now become the “flagship” of this current ConDem coalition and have been...
http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11683374.People_turn_to_foodbanks_to_feed_their_families_over_Christmas/ People turn to foodbanks to feed their families over Christmas Foodbank volunteers "Hundreds of people (in Dorset,) will be turning to foodbanks to feed their families this Christmas. Instead of turkey with all the trimmings, hard-pressed families will be serving up tinned and dried foods this festive season." Dorset Echo: 23rd December 2014. Just one small part of scandal which has grown vastly over the past 5 years. In this country today, there are over 1 million people who are reliant on Food banks or other food charities, to feed their families this Christmas. The figure has grown significantly since last Christmas and shows no sign of reducing anytime soon. It is a scandal and a disgrace, which should shame us all for allowing such a situation to come about. The Foodbank charities and the volunteers working in them are doing a magnificent ...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/two-nations-13m-brits-will-spend-12bn-on-panic-saturday-but-13m-others-across-the-country-will-spend-this-christmas-in-poverty-9937088.html 13m will spend £1.2bn on 'Panic Saturday', but 13m others across the country will spend this Christmas in poverty In the first quarter of the 21st Century, it is a scandal and a disgrace that 13 million people are, no matter what measurement you choose to employ in establishing that figure, living in poverty in this country today. Over 1 million families reliant on Food-banks and other charities, 1 million in child poverty, hundreds of thousands of people homeless, or in inadequate accommodation, many people actually in work who earn less than the minimum wage or are on zero hour contracts, having to claim benefits, which are being further reduced by government cuts, are indicative of a fractured nation....
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/dec/08/tories-avert-rift-church-food-bank-report?commentpage=5 Tories seek to avert rift with Church of England over food bank report A foodbank in the United Kingdom in the year 2014. A church funded all-party report is published today,(8th December 2014), on the increased use of food banks in this country and warning that Britain is stalked by low pay, growing inequality, a harsh benefits section scheme and social breakdown. It is perhaps fitting that the report is published just two weeks before Christmas, highlighting the growing phenomena of food bank usage in the United Kingdom. The Tories have of course attempted to distance themselves from any blame associated with this scandal, with one minister claiming that the increased use of food banks is due to the greater publicity about their existence. The Department of Work and Pensions, remain adamant that the administration of the benefit system has littl...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-29957695 Foodbank use for south west children 'quadruples since 2011' The Trussell Trust runs a charity which runs 28 Foodbanks across the South West Lying deep amongst the news stories the last 12 months, is the ongoing story which refuses to go away. Largely ignored by the press and television media, possibly by accident but more likely to be on the directions of some mysterious government department, the continuing scandal of the increasing number of people reliant on food bank charities is the subject which the Department of Work and Pensions and various other government departments and of course the ConDem Coalition government, would really like to go away and by adopting a policy of “if we ignore the situation for long enough the problem will cease to exist, in any case the usual charities can provide a short-term solution to the short-term problem”, they can pretend that the scandal of people in t...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lib-dems-want-to-have-their-own-ministries-in-any-new-coalition-9845455.html Lib Dems want to have their own ministries in any new Coalition Nick Clegg with Danny Alexander The Liberal Democrats seem to be very optimistic about actually having enough Westminster parliamentary seats to influence any discussions connected with coalitions after the next general election. Clearly a case of Danny Alexander and the other nonentities of the current LibDem part of this wretched coalition, preparing their positions for another sell out in a squalid bid to retain their ministerial cars, seats at the cabinet table (no matter who's cabinet it may be) and the other perks they have enjoyed over the last 5 years.
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/oct/08/nick-clegg-lib-dem-conference-speech Nick Clegg makes case for power sharing role in future coalitions Nick Clegg Clegg and the LibDems making their grubby little bid for another coalition. It seems that these political opportunists will go to any lengths and make any promise necessary to hang on to their seats around the cabinet table, their ministerial cars (and other perks of the job) and of course their over inflated ministerial salaries.When it comes to hypocrisy and self interest, the LibDems have few equals. Herbert Asquith My grandfather, a life long Liberal since before World War 1, must be spinning in his grave. Thankfully he did not witness the duplicitous behaviour of the LibDems over the past five years and even before, since the "marriage" of Liberals and SDP.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/coalition-rocked-by-bedroom-tax-revolt-9715640.html Coalition is rocked by Lib Dem-Labour alliance 'Bedroom Tax' One Step Closer To Abolition After Tories Are Defeated The closer the country gets to a general election,the more the LibDems desert the sinking ship to argue and vote against the Conservatives. Perhaps Clegg and his lemmings believe that the public have forgotten the last four and a half years, where the LibDems supported and encouraged the Tories in this ragbag coalition, to enact some of the most divisive legislation ever seen in this country since the days of Thatcher. The increases of tuition fees, cuts to benefits across the board, Iain Duncan-Smith's "Welfare" reforms, including the so called "Bedroom tax", the privatisation of huge parts of the NHS and other industries such as Royal Mail, have been enthusiastically championed by the Liberal Democrats during their period in po...
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/aug/30/child-poverty-link-malnutrition-rickets Rickets returns as poor families find healthy diets unaffordable. Helping to prevent Rickets at a primary school in the 1950's With their heads buried firmly in the sand (or some other location), the ConDem coalition government continue their drive for even greater austerity, and resolutely refuse to accept that their policies are forcing more and more families in this country to the point of poverty or even below the accepted definitions of poverty. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, the ever increasing reliance on food banks, now totaling in excess of 1 million people, the rise in poverty related illnesses, the increasing numbers of homeless creating different but never the less significant problems for our society, and all the published evidence from recognised charities and institutions, yet the government repeat that we are on the right cour...
http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/aug/19/labour-transport-campaign-fight-rail-fare-price-rises?commentpage=1 Campaigners step up rail fares fight as prices rise again Fare to rise by another 6% Average ticket price has gone up 25% under coalition government. So has the subsidy that the taxpayer gives to these privatised parasites. Bring Back British Rail. If we are going to give subsidies, then at least we should be giving them to an industry that we own rather than pouring our money into the pockets of private businesses and their share holders.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/04/hms-elizabeth-naming-ceremony-hailed-pro-union-occasion Britain's largest ever warship, a vast aircraft carrier, has been welcomed into the Royal Navy. HMS Queen Elizabeth, a four-acre, 65,000-tonne warship The euphoria in the shipyard and the ceremony of christening this ship, has filled our media and television screens. Even before the bottle of Islay malt whiskey had smashed into the hull, (it used to be champagne but the symbolism of "scotch" has not been lost), the hyperbole's had been coming fast and furious. The new flagship is Britain's largest ever warship, "a source of inspiration and hope for us all", "a national instrument of power", a national icon to all, and will help to keep the great in Great Britain,". The 280-metre-long and 56-metre-tall HMS Queen Elizabeth cost a mere £3 billion and will be the flagship of the British fleet. Another super carrier, the ...
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/07/02/labour-nhs-sumemr-campaign_n_5550849.html?utm_hp_ref=uk Ed Miliband To Make NHS Centerpiece Of Labour's Summer Campaign Ed Miliband Cheap promises in respect of "saving", "improving","giving more importance to" or any of the other cliches concerning the NHS trotted out by politicians on both sides of the political spectrum, have been around for decades. The reality when the new government has come to office is always the same. More management, more "targets", another reorganisation, more red tape, longer waiting times, more privatisation (to a greater or lesser extent depending on the party in government), more money, albeit that in real terms the funding has been reduced and a general decline in standards of service provided for patients. Trotting out vague promises for the NHS in the expectation of attracting votes, is a well worn and exhausted policy option.
http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/11298070.ECHO_INVESTIGATES__Food_bank_users_soar/#commentsList The numbers of people reliant on foodbanks, continues to grow. More than i million people now rely on foodbanks. The "forgotten" scandal of the effect of the cuts and other austerity measures of this wretched ConDem coalition government. As other news has filled our headlines for some months, the plight of those who now rely on the distribution of food to feed themselves and their families has been pushed to the back pages or even ignored by the press and media. It is now reported that the number pf people reliant on foodbanks in Weymouth has increased fourfold in the last 12 months. In the South west generally, there has been a 78% increase in the number of foodbank users and nationally, the figure is even higher with now more than 1 million people regularly receiving food assistance from the Trussel Trust and the other foodbank providers. In this the 21st...
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/jun/19/poverty-hits-twice-as-many-british-households Poverty hits twice as many British households as 30 years ago 33% of households endure below-par living standards – defined as going without three or more "basic necessities of life", such as being able to adequately feed and clothe themselves and their children, and to heat and insure their homes. In the early 1980s, the comparable figure was 14%. Poverty has doubled in the past 30 years. Since 1984 in fact. A date which holds sinister connotations in the minds of many. Since 1984, a succession of Prime Ministers, have presided over a visible decline in living standards for people in this country, whilst at the same time the fortunes, profits and power of a number of corporations and a few individuals have increased beyond levels only imaginable 30 years ago. This transformation of society in the United kingdom has been brought about and propagated by t...