The phrase “hard working families” is meaningless, not offensive

We all know the phrase; “I stand by hard working families”, “I promise to help hard working families” and so forth. President Bill Clinton, according to politico mythology, coined it in the early 90s. My fellow blogger, Caron, has authored a post criticising the phrase as insulting and quite patronising. Others have gone on to comment about its alienating nature against those who don’t have traditional families.

The phrase “hard working families” is a utter and meaningless fallacy; a complete political void that has no substance to it. A political gimmick. No politician is going to argue against hard working families, so there is really no need to offer public support to something which should come natural.

If a party leader did not mention hard working families in his or hers speech, would we automatically assume they’re against them? of course not. It is a term to best describe individuals in dire financial difficulties; “alarm clock Britain”, “middle America”, “hard working families”, “the battlers” or “the squeezed middle” – all share the same definition.

I don’t feel, however, “hard working families” is insulting – with all due respect, we should not read too much into political sound bites. Political parties aim to make front page and the 6 o’clock headline; that’s it. Sound bites are the most tactical method of achieving it.

Sadly, in 21st century politics, political phrases and sound bites are more important than actual detailed policies.

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Paddy is right; we must back Clegg

We will be judged at the next election by one fact and one fact only. Whether we have had the mettle to stay the course in delivering effective government for our country at a time of crisis. That is the only thing that matters. All the rest is the froth.

…..

As it is for our country, so also for our party. When we all overwhelmingly supported Nick Clegg’s decision to lead us into government, we knew it would be difficult. We also knew that we were embarked on a course that would change our party as well as our country. Nick challenged us to leave our comfort zone and make the change from a party of perpetual opposition to one capable of carrying the burdens of government.

…..

It is the job of our leader to take us into government. I failed; Nick has succeeded.

Paddy Ashdown: Comment is Free

Either we jump on bandwagons, oppose for the sake of opposing or become a governing party. We have a choice to make: a party of government or a populist vanguard.

For the record, this Vince Cable is probably BS. He knows the Lib Dems face political oblivion IF the party throws its toys out of the pram and leaves the Tories to deal with the deficit alone. We’d be literally writing Cameron’s attack lines for him. When the going got tough, we quit government and ran – the public would never forgive us.

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Will Strauss be the new Hon. Member for Corby?

Has the England cricket captain quit Lord’s for Westminster? Andrew Strauss rumoured to stand for Tories in Corby by-election as replacement for Louise Mensch.

Strauss is believed to desire a career in politics; would be an interesting move. According to Guido Fawkes, Strauss raised £25,000 for the Conservative Party.

I feel he might wait for a safe seat – Corby will be a sticky wicket for the ex-England captain.

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Will Clegg’s French-style taxes work?

Clegg is to propose the two following wealth taxes at the Liberal Democrats party conference:

• A 0.5% tax on the assets of the rich.
• Replace inheritance tax with an “accessions tax”.

The tax on assets, at 0.5%, is unlikely to be ever introduced into the United Kingdom; similar to the 50p rate, it will prove to be costly and ineffective. According to Tory MP, Bernard Jenkin, only 20,000 out of 20 million pay their wealth tax in France – which results in a pathetic method of raising revenue.

Unknown to many, some US states have wealth taxes – mainly on estates, land and property. A 0.5% tax on assets seems rather weak compared to the mansion tax idea or other taxation on land. State governments in the United States, who have a wealth taxes on estates, tend to have no income tax and small capital gains rates. This potential policy can only work if Nick Clegg is prepared to lower capital gains or return the top rate of income tax to 40% – or lower. Otherwise Britain could face capital flights. If the rich cannot grow their wealth in the UK, after tax, then they will move to a country where they can.

Coincidently, some US states are considering replacing taxes on estates with accessions tax. Including Republican controlled states.

The second proposal, however, might appear in the budget. Tories hate inheritance tax with a passion; it is a ‘death tax’ in their eyes. An accessions tax would simplify the transfer of estates and classify the inheritance as income or investment. Currently, inheritance tax threshold is £325,000; under accessions tax, it would be much higher and the majority of the society would never require paying it. Transferring inheritance into additional income or investment is viewed, especially by conservatives in America, as a more humane way – we are no longer taxing the dead.

So, expect to see accessions tax in the budget, but a 0.5% levy on assets will never, ever see the light of day – without including a reduction in capital gains and income tax.

And I don’t anticipate Clegg to advocate cutting the 45p rate to 40p, or even lower.

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RNC 2012: Still a challenge to beat Obama

Here are the findings of a recent Gallup Poll comparing Obama and Romney on key issues:

The GOP have considerable leads on the economy and budget deficit; voters trust a Republican more than a Democrat to tackle the nations finances. However, Obama dominates every other issues. Key to winning the White House, for Mitt Romney, is ensuring the election is mainly about the economy and budget deficit – nothing else; he has to ensure those on the right do not resort to hard line positions on social issues – such as gay marriage and abortions.

On the issue of likability, Obama leads +23 against the GOP candidate and +5 lead on leadership abilities. Still a huge challenge for the President not to achieve a second term, but more negative economic news could ensure a Republican victory – if the GOP sticks to the economy and deficit.

The key will be the conventions; and, as I stressed above, it is vital the GOP do not encounter another Todd Akin whose views on abortion and rape paint Republicans as the nasty party.

Last night, Ann Romney’s speech focused on her Welsh grandfather who escaped the mines to emigrate to America. The granddaughter from Nantyffyllon wants to show herself, and her family, as the living embodiment of the American dream; the success story of going from rags to riches. Republicans aim to go after the working class voter in swing states, who have experienced no economic improvement since the election of President Obama. They aim to turn anger into votes; difficult to do, but not impossible.

Mitt’s convention speech is his moment to speak to the United States and give them a vision of a future America; it is no good to talk about prosperity without defining how to achieve it. Not only must he point to a new path, but he must build it, too.

Over to you, Mitt.

 

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Here’s an idea, Nick: let’s cut taxes

Oh Nick; why, why pander to the politics of envy? increasing taxes does not cure a recession – it prolongs it. Nor is it relevant to growing the economy. It’s cheap headline to gain attention. That’s it. Surely Nick should be learning from Hollande in France, who is currently experiencing capital flights due to high taxes. Sending the wealth creators to America, the Middle East and the Far East will not help the poor – it will make matters much worse.

If we want to help the low and middle income earners, then there is a much easier way without taxing wealth: cut their taxes, instead. Some possible ideas:

• Cut the basic rate of tax to 18p
• Scrap N.I contributions for minimum wage workers (make it cheaper to create jobs)
• Increase the Income Tax threshold to £13,000
• Assist the ‘squeezed middle’ by lowering the 40p rate

But if you opt for the easiest route, taxing the rich, then we will continue to perpetuate the hideous politics of envy and create a culture of despising those who are successful. In other words, a party that is anti-aspiration.

In conclusion, though, this tax would not work. Similar to Labour’s Bankers’ Bonuses tax, the revenue will be little and would prove to be expensive. Britain’s problem is government spending; cutting it will bring down the deficit much quicker – not introduce a temporary tax.

It’s an interesting start to kick off conference season, but don’t expect it to be in the budget. And even Clegg knows that.

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So much for Hollande’s “alternative to austerity”…

London-based recruitment firm Astbury Marsden, which specialises in the banking sector, has seen a 51 per cent rise in French-language applicants in recent months, compared with the same period of 2011.

“There is a definite spike in French-speaking candidates,” said managing director Jonathan Nicholson.

“We have not seen similar increases in candidates from other countries, so it may well be connected to May’s change in government in France.”

Surveys from TotalJobs.com have found 42 per cent of French workers are willing to move to the UK.

After praising Hollande as the great alternative in Europe and his plan to oppose austerity, Miliband’s socialist opposite is experiencing difficult economic problems. On the weekend, Hollande vowed to maintain Sarkozy’s cuts (abandoning his promise to reverse them), but a greater humiliation occurred: the predicted exodus of French wealth creators has occurred.

It is likely declining tax revenues will have to be filled with greater budget cuts. Ed Balls predicted that and was reluctant to give overt public support for Hollande’s economic stragety; Ed Miliband, on the other, didn’t. He not only publicly backed him, but flew to France for a summit on youth unemployment – which outcomes have been abandoned after a declining fiscal situation. French socialists have realised that money does not grow on trees….

But it gets even worse: As I wrote a few weeks ago, his ratings have collapsed after the first 100 days in office….

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The coalition might just be winning the economic argument

The recent YouGov poll highlights some interest findings on Britain’s views on the deficit and how to deal with it:

• 62% oppose increasing taxes to bring in greater tax revenues for the government
• 56% support cutting business regulation and employee rights to create jobs (interestingly, only 29% oppose)
• 44% are against borrowing more to reduce the scale of the cuts (35% support)
• And as little as 13% think its not important to reduce the deficit (75% think it is)
• The country is split 44-39% on whether or not to invest on infrastructure projects.

In July, 45% believed the government should change its strategy and slow down the pace of the cuts, to try and stimulate some growth. It is now 40%; the trend is starting to move towards the government position – the British public are slowly coming to terms with the government’s deficit strategy.

This might prove problematic with Labour, who still insist on “too fast, too soon”; their failure to provide any credible alternative, or even basic policies, probably has helped shift the tide of public opinion towards accepting the economic reality painted by the government.

60% say they think the government is doing badly with the deficit but, on specific points of the plan, the poll shows the public are not that sceptical in reality. A prime example of why polls should be studied in great detail and not taking the headline rates at face value. The devil is always in the detail…

It shall be worth paying attention to the YouGov poll in October to see if the trend continues. If it does, the Labour party needs to stop protesting and come up with an alternative. Fast.

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Obama v Romney: The false choice

The choice is simple: a supporter of big government and corrupt corporations or a supporter of big government and corrupt corporations. Of course, both Republicans and Democrats are almost identical and the Office of President is effectively continuity; the policies never change.

After promising a liberal foreign policy, the Obama administration has continued the war effort of Bush and the neoconservatives; we’re still in Afghanistan, just left Iraq, paid a brief visit to Libya, preparing to combat Syria and possibly joining a joint strike against Iran.

As I stressed last May, there is nothing liberal about the Presidency of Obama. And with the economy struggling, the promises are drying up extremely quickly as the stimulus and endless bailouts are pushing the United States to crisis point.

Now, as for Romney; where do I even begin? After criticising the President and labeling ObamaCare as “socialism”, the Governor fails to mention the similarities between his health care reforms in Massachusetts and Obama’s Federal plan. During the primaries, Romney refused to sign a conservative campaign to promise not to raise taxes – even though the GOP Presidential nominee accuses Obama of supporting high taxes.

In reality, Obama and Romney (throughout their careers) have near enough supported the same policies; whether it was on gun control or global warming, their has been historical agreement between the two. Regardless of whoever wins, a few things are almost certain:

• Taxes are going up.
• No repeal of ObamaCare.
• Maintaining of military spending.
• More Federal debt.
• Political and corporate corruption remains widespread.
• Political deadlock.

I still hope, in vein, a third party raises in the United States. The Republican and Democrats monopoly has to end, and end soon.

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Join ‘Refuse to Use’ – Keep Big Brother out of schools

‘Refuse to Use’ is campaigning against Blacon High School (and indeed all British Schools) taking scans of our childrens’ fingerprints, just to buy school dinners.

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