What is the future of the UK

[Ari]

I don't think the choices are optimistic or pessimistic.

I think they're optimistic or realistic.

[PugwasHDJ80]

AndrewW-G said:

My 2p, is that the future could be very rosy, provided that the people in Westminster, start putting the UK first.

We can easily use the collapse of the Euro to further expand the city, allowing us to pay off our debt, lower taxes and offer incentives for businesses to invest in UK manufacturing.

Removing a huge chunk of the national overhead and increasing productivity, is easy, but would take balls:

• Drop benefits down to an absolute minimum (and only available to those who are either UK citizens, or have paid in, for a sensible minimum period) with exception of disability benefits, which should be only available to those who are genuinely in need.

• Reduce foreign aid to sending physical UK manufactured and sourced goods to disaster areas.

• No more subsidies for "green" energy production, if your windymill farm can't pay for itself on a commercial level, why should I subsidise it!

• Reduce EU membership payments

• Remove daft counterproductive EU legislation.

you've got my vote

less carrot and some stick for the undeserving poor

[bigdog3]

PugwasHDJ80 said:

AndrewW-G said:

My 2p, is that the future could be very rosy, provided that the people in Westminster, start putting the UK first.

We can easily use the collapse of the Euro to further expand the city, allowing us to pay off our debt, lower taxes and offer incentives for businesses to invest in UK manufacturing.

Removing a huge chunk of the national overhead and increasing productivity, is easy, but would take balls:

• Drop benefits down to an absolute minimum (and only available to those who are either UK citizens, or have paid in, for a sensible minimum period) with exception of disability benefits, which should be only available to those who are genuinely in need.

• Reduce foreign aid to sending physical UK manufactured and sourced goods to disaster areas.

• No more subsidies for "green" energy production, if your windymill farm can't pay for itself on a commercial level, why should I subsidise it!

• Reduce EU membership payments

• Remove daft counterproductive EU legislation.

you've got my vote

less carrot and some stick for the undeserving poor

And mine We need strong leadership and government in these difficult times

[AJS-]

It's not very scientific, but I'm going to say PH's core demographic is working males between 25 and 50 with enough spare cash to buy some petrol powered toys. The people who should be starting businesses, earning good money and paying lots of tax, starting and raising families, and a host of other useful things that a functioning society needs. If the poll results are to be believed 9% of us are overseas. That seems like a huge chunk.

I would say it's (equally unscientifically) born out by my experience here in Bangkok, where there seems to be a disproportionate number of British people living and working here, vis other western countries.

Partly I guess because the language is more transferable, and maybe a testament to Britain's adventurous and in-demand workforce, but I suspect it is also a very real and quite advanced "brain drain" that means many of the very people who should be the driving the UK's economy are not in the country.

I'm certainly in no hurry to go back, and to get anything like the quality of life I have here I would need a salary that I'm modest enough to admit my experience doesn't warrant half of at this point.