What do Labour mean by a "growth strategy"?

[Johnnytheboy]

Listening to Ed Balls waffling on about the urgent need for measures to promote "growth and jobs" on the radio, I realised that I really didn't appreciate what these growth measures were.

My broad understanding is that infrastructural investment would have a positive effect on economic activity. But I suspect that this isn't what Labour mean - judging by their record in power.

I have a feeling that what they mean is hiring lots of extra people to do what the current public payroll accomplishes already, and/or paying the current payroll more.

So what exactly is it that labour think the government should be doing that they aren't already?

[Puggit]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

This

Kicking the ever-growing can even further down the road...

[Willy Nilly]

Johnnytheboy said:

So what exactly is it that labour think the government should be doing that they aren't already?

They don't know.

[Happy82]

I believe Labour growth strategy is as follows

1. Increase number of public sector jobs
2. Increase taxes on private sector to pay for above jobs
3. As tax intake decreases due to loss of private sector business, increase taxes on private sector
4. Repeat above until 5.
5. Once that pesky anti-Labour private sector is gone, become the Soviet UK

[Bitzer]

Ed Balls/Minigland thinks that the Public Sector actually produces/makes growth for the country.

God help us if these muppets get another go at fking up the country's finances

[Randy Winkman]

What's the current government's growth strategy? It is their "top priority", after all.

http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/growth

[TVR1]

I don't know about Labours growth policy but my own personal growth policy is having realised that I overspent when I had the income to do so and never put anything aside for a rainy day, not complaining when my own financial crisis hit (read I lost the plot and had to give up work) is to cut out unnecessary expenditure, reduce other areas of profligate spending and live within my means.

Now that I am back to (very well rewarded work) the excess, over and above my basic spending will be saved/ spent wisely/considered outgoings.

Or. Should I just borrow more, now that I able to?

fk that.

If that is Labours 'new idea', fk them too.

Just my opinion.

[HarryW]

I wouldn't trust him to run the accounts of a student union let alone the country.
He has a good track record to take the country down the tubes, all I can recollect is him and Brown conducting reckless and wanton spending. I still maintain what they did was treasonable.


I want to shout; Oy Balls'up, since when has getting another credit card, as the others are maxed out, made sense to anyone but the brain dead, no need to answer that.

[12gauge]

He means buying votes by borrowing yet more money for yet more non-job related things.

Obviously fairness is not a longitudinal concept where Balls is concerned, as anyone who is still alive come 2020 will most certainly pay harshly for Balls, er, balls.

[12gauge]

Bitzer said:

Ed Balls/Minigland thinks that the Public Sector actually produces/makes growth for the country.

God help us if these muppets get another go at fking up the country's finances

This is the problem. Our ONLY salvation can come from export led growth. You either grow through borrowing, which is what we've been doing the last 40 years, and is ultimately unsustainable, or you grow through exporting.

Given the public sector exports nothing, it is a dead cert to fail.

[12gauge]

HarryW said:

I wouldn't trust him to run the accounts of a student union let alone the country.
He has a good track record to take the country down the tubes, all I can recollect is him and Brown conducting reckless and wanton spending. I still maintain what they did was treasonable.


I want to shout; Oy Balls'up, since when has getting another credit card, as the others are maxed out, made sense to anyone but the brain dead, no need to answer that.

Wasnt balls the only Brown economic advisor who told Brown to sell our gold, whereas dozens of other advisors warned against it?

[powerstroke]

I dont know how labour dares to even comment on economic matters!!!! the shameless shower of s and aholes... fk them all .....

[Mr GrimNasty]

Christine Lagarde(IMF):

"...you see the gain that resulted from the fiscal consolidation that was decided on 2 years ago has been that result, the credibility of the UK government and it's ability to borrow at extremely favourable rates."

"And when I think back myself to May 2010, when the UK deficit was at 11% and I try to imagine what the situation would be like today if no such fiscal consolidation programme had been decided... I shiver."

In those few words you have the confirmation of New Labour's incompetence, and the confirmation of the fact that DC and the Tories have achieved a minor miracle so far.

[12gauge]

Mr GrimNasty said:

Christine Lagarde(IMF):

"...you see the gain that resulted from the fiscal consolidation that was decided on 2 years ago has been that result, the credibility of the UK government and it's ability to borrow at extremely favourable rates."

"And when I think back myself to May 2010, when the UK deficit was at 11% and I try to imagine what the situation would be like today if no such fiscal consolidation programme had been decided... I shiver."

In those few words you have the confirmation of New Labour's incompetence, and the confirmation of the fact that DC and the Tories have achieved a minor miracle so far.

You wouldnt know it watching the BBC. Or the fact the OECD today praised the UK. Osbourne has stuck to his deficit reduction target. Obama on the other hand, who the BBC idolize, has quadrupled bushes last deficit whilst promising to halve it!
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/05/22/uk-oecd-b...

The double standard is blatant. On the face of it, Obama, by his own measures is an abject failure. Osbourne has fulfilled his promise (so far) yet the BBC have zero criticism of Obama and only criticism of Osbourne.

HOWEVER. Camerons/osbournes recent apparent success is due to accounting quirks re: pensions. The same trick Clinton used in the 90s to pretend he was more thrifty than he was. Doing this over and over will mean sales of state assets, like roads to private companies. Part of me thinks Greek outrage will prevent this happening in Greece and maybe the whole thing falling apart in chaos is no bad thing.

[Alex]

This is how to promote growth:

http://www.totalpolitics.com/opinion/320282/why-we...

[borris morris]

What Labour always do. Hire five thousand million million people to do a job that could be done quite adequately by one person. Then make it even worse by extending targets from three months to fifty million years. They'll spend most of their day doing nothing because the work is spread so thinly but at least the government can say they are (technically) not out of work.

[martin84]

Its well and good to criticise Ed Balls for not having a growth plan but the more important fact is the actual Government doesn't have one either.

The IMF have essentially told us we need a coherant growth plan which doesnt involve spending money, slowing down cuts or scaring any banks and markets, which is a bit like trying to perform eye surgery wearing one of those American sports foam fingers.

[Buffalo]

he borrowed the term from the new french PM, from teh speech he made after being elected t'other week. It basically means spending a lot of money they don't have. again.

[RichyBoy]

What I don't understand is labour's growth policy is not sustainable and therefore why we are having troubles now; the jobs will be there only until bankruptcy. I consider ed balls, ed millaband and their supporters to be either very dumb or very evil people to want to run a country this way.

[GavinPearson]

Labour mean they would........

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Whereas another perspoective would be you could get growth by lowering taxes to corporations (corporation tax, business rates, employee contributions, green cap & trade) to help lower costs so that British industry became more competitive, resulting in reduced imports, increased exports and the private sector expanding to the point where unemployment and the public sector decrease.