Tuesday 14 December 2010

The rape of our nation

My attention was caught by this news item published on the BBC wesbite. Personally I have no objection to payment of money, sourced from the taxpayer, when it is used to care for those disabled, elderly and vulnerable members of our society. Digressing slightly, I do question the necessity of paying the wages of these people to 'administer' the payment of the Independent Living Fund (ILF) - scroll through the entire 5 pages.

What I do object to even more is having public money wasted on schemes to implement the by-products of an unproven science. Witness:

1. £18billion a year - and every year until 2050 - as a result of the Climate Change Act.

2. Use of taxpayer's money to fund the buying choice of people who, it would appear, either have no brains or simply wish to be different. If they wish to become noticeable through their idiocy then that is their choice - and they can fund their choice in its entirety!

3. A government minister, sitting in his diesel powered Jaguar, prattling on about the benefits of cars with limited distance use, long recharging and therefore of limited use.


4. The scrapping of a scheme (ILF) which equates to just 8 days payments to the European Union, the membership of which we are denied a voice, leaving our own people denied the basic necessities which they need in order to have even the resemblance of a normal life.

I am likewise incandescent about the rape of our constitution and the blatant lying of our political masters. I have posted previously about the fact that, at the May 2010 election, the electorate were informed that a recall system of MPs would be available to constituents only to find that the House of Commons will decide whether that can take place. Now we find that whilst we were also promised the ability to hold local referendums, it is stated, under clause 52 (8) of the Localism Bill, that the result of any referendum does not have to be honoured:
"If the partner authority decides to take no steps to give effect to the result of the referendum, it must publish that decision in such manner as it thinks appropriate together with the reasons for that decision."
The important clauses of this bill, covering local referendums, are clauses 39-52 and it also transpires that if you live within a District Council, then that District Council cannot hold the referendum and that it must be passed to the County Council to action. In deciding that local authorities can disregard the wishes of the people in a referendum, they have obviously taken a leaf out of their master's book, who disregarded referendum results in France, Holland and Ireland!

I am also a tad annoyed that after having visited the surgery of my local Member of Parliament (who presently bestrides the nation pretending to be Kim Jong-Il III) two months later I am still waiting a satisfactory response to my queries.

The present political elite appear extremely concerned about the student riots - as well they should be. It is often said that adults can teach children a lesson - and by God, when we adults do eventually take to the streets the students children will indeed be able to sit back and watch in shock and awe!

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

As you have now noticed, referenda are not what they are cracked up to be.

Try going for more frequent (even annual) elections.

Best regards

TomTom said...

The Stuart kings were not the most astute and it appears this Elizabeth Age is heralding the dawn of a new Stuart Era as the Princelings in Downing Street make clear.....

We are witnessing the final performance of a decadent elite before the fire consumes it

Anonymous said...

The vast political vacuum their lack of accountability leading to unpopularity has created .
That will be their undoing

James Higham said...

What I do object to even more is having public money wasted on schemes to implement the by-products of an unproven science.

Yep, it's the bloody wastage that sticks in the craw. Our money.

Witterings from Witney said...

NS: annual would not work to be fair. It is the entire political system that needs overhaul.

TomTom: so lets get that bloody fire lit!

Anonymous: agreed.

JH: It is the fact that the political elite are drawing breadth that sticks in my craw!

Anonymous said...

WfW responds to me with:"annual would not work to be fair. It is the entire political system that needs overhaul."

Well, I'd not like to be thought suggesting things unfair, and I do have a 'fairly' substantial overhaul in mind, eg: http://www.adamsmith.org/blog/politics-and-government/the-big-society-void/#comment-108205126

I think it would help to have a little more of why annual national elections would not work; also discussion of the possibility of more elections than one every 5 years, even if not annually. [Perhaps the issue of entire political overhaul justifies a post or two of its own.]

Best regards

Anonymous said...

Also: http://www.adamsmith.org/blog/politics-and-government/democracy%27s-challenge/#comment-53128117

Best regards

Unknown said...

The heating grant for low income families, the elderly etc has also been suspended. The £345m has already been allocated due to the recent cold spell. The average bill for this winter is reckoned to be £638 compared to £450 last winter as it may be over a longer period of time.

Oh and the loony in the ministerial car is one of those insisting that all taxi drivers in London will have to drive an electric car or they will lose their licences. If these cars can only manage 100 miles on one charge then how many taxis will be off the streets at any one time re-charging?

And the range is even less in the recent weather conditions as the 100 miles doesn't take into account the power needed to run the heaters in these vehicles.

Witterings from Witney said...

Nigel S: Actually it would appear our views and solutions are not that much apart. I too believe in true localism: tax raising powers, local control of education, health and law&order. But first we have to leave EU.

Would contend that referenda do work (witness the Swiss)- they won't work over here whilst the politicos 'tweak' the rules under which they are held.

Read your comments with great interest on the ASI website!

I take on board your suggestion about possible posts on why annual elections would not work and will develop an argument. Likewise I have touched on, in earlier posts, about the required overhaul of our democratic system.

Rossa: quite agree with your comments.