Apparently the Coalition Government is going to ask the public to prioritise those areas in need of Budgetary cuts...so where does one begin? I have blogged often about Foreign Aid which I believe has to be revisited. I also think that our contribution to the unaudited European Union has to be renegotiated. We appear to pay far too much for what we get back.
The NHS swallows billions every year and much of it appears to disappear down an administrative black hole. This I believe has to be a priority and needs to be tackled by people who have an inside knowledge. I get the impression that vast sums could be saved by a pragmatic approach to treatment and by handing back the administration to the front line staff.There is a huge army of administrators tucked away at every hospital and there has to be leeway with such numbers.
I would however reserve my main target for Local Government. Frankly some local authorities are run like lunatic asylums. There appears to be little element of common sense or economical acumen when one views the ludicrous job titles advertised in papers like 'The Grauniad'. There is also the little matter of the volume of Council Officers paid way higher than our PM. Now I don't think any local govvernment officer has more responsibility than our PM but that is not the real problem.
Under the highest earners are layers and layers of council officers earning anything from £30000 - £100000 and that is my grouse. Our Council Tax rises year in year out and so much is swallowed up by huge salaries. This is an area which could be slashed at a stroke and we would never notice the difference. I think the government should introduce a National Wage Scale for Councils and insist that they stick to it. If the rest of us are going to suffer then those that caused the pain should be the first targetted.
We must introduce a Community Service programme where those that wish to register for benefits should work for them. It is bad practice to allow people to fester in bed and then once a week pick up money for doing nothing. We have an army of claimants who could if harnessed properly save councils vast sums of money for carrying out menial tasks currently occupying council employees. I would however go a little further. I would adopt a bonus scheme for those unemployed who worked diligently and attended Community Service regularly.
Nor would I allow the vast number of single mothers to stay at home either. They could form a Community Service creche and man it in rotation which would allow others to work for the Community Service programme. The only people who would be exempt would be those people too disabled, infirm or handicapped and they would qualify for additional assistance to enhance their quality of life. We have so many people who have been forced to care for elderly or infirm relatives who receive virtually no support. It has to change.
I would also cut the luxury items in prisons. I would slash the quangos. I would make the BBC self supporting. I would attempt to place more freight on the trains and then reduce fares to reasonable levels so that the public could afford to travel by rail.
I would also wind down the war in Afghanistan and also set about reducing our massive expenditure on immigration. The crazy benefits given to foreign nationals who have not earned them should cease. No immigrant should be given more than essentials until they have demonstrated a willingness to adopt our culture and an ability to hold down a job. This has to be a priority because if even Ed Balls has to admit that their immigration policies were diastrous then the penny is at last about to drop. Our immigration policy must be watertight, strict and intransigent and more important it should be applied retrospectively.
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