Figures don’t add up for deficit claims

SCARBOROUGH Labour councillor Colin Challen (Yorkshire Post, October 3) asserts that the coalition Government “hasn’t the faintest clue what it is doing”. This accusation is based on the fact that the National Debt was 74.9 per cent of GDP in 2010 when Labour were ousted and has escalated, under the Tories, to 90.7 per cent. Sounds a fair statement if Mr Challen’s figures are true.

But no, his scathing comment is without any foundation and demonstrates the flawed thinking that is rife in the Labour Party, an observation that partially explains the almost irreversible mess left by the Blair and Brown governments.

Labour left a deficit, an excess of annual government expenditure over annual revenues, many times larger than in the boom years when Brown, instead of reducing total debt, spent, with the abandon of a lottery jackpot winner with only a few months to live, in the belief that he’d solved the perennial problem of boom and bust. This assertion, in fact, embroidered one of his speeches in Parliament!

When the recession arrived income and revenues fell drastically and fiscal expenditure soared in the wake of the vast expansion in the public sector, set up by Blair and Brown in the fat years, thus causing the horrendous deficit that the Tories inherited.

Through the programme of so called austerity measures, the coalition has managed to reduce the deficit by a third but the National Debt has ballooned and is still growing at an alarming rate. Until the Government can eliminate the other two- thirds of the deficit, the National Debt, quite logically will continue to grow!

I hope Coun Challen realises he is directing his ridicule at the wrong government. By the way, when the ogre of Labour, Margaret Thatcher, left office in 1990 the National Debt was 29.6 per cent of GDP.

Let MPs slay
EU monster

From: David W Wright, Uppleby, Easingwold, North Yorkshire.

THE Comment column (Yorkshire Post, 7 October) spells out clearly the challenge over Europe and the UK’s membership of the EU monster, particularly now that MP Adam Afriyie has called for the promised referendum by PM David Cameron to be held next year.

This issue cannot be pushed under the carpet just to placate the Conservative’s fragile alliance with the Lib Dems and to avoid rocking the boat by risking a split in the coalition Government.

We all know that Cameron has deliberately put the referendum to 2017 simply to remain in office, but the vital issue of confronting the pro-EU supporters with a promise to face the facts of the majority of the electorate who want to exit the EU monolith, and the real threat of Ukip and enlightened dissident Conservative and Labour MPs to vote against Cameron’s false promise, must be allowed to progress.

MPs of all parties must acknowledge that the majority of the electorate want an early referendum as they can see through Cameron’s false tactics which are jeopardising the future independence and economic future of the UK.

Skills time bomb ticking

From: Steve Housden, sector strategy manager for the Construction Industry Training Board in Yorkshire & Humberside.

REPORTS from the CIPS/Markit that the construction industry has grown again for the fifth consecutive month is positive news. However, as the industry continues to develop, employers in Yorkshire will need the skills, talent and enthusiasm of young people in order to succeed.

With 18 per cent of construction workers in Yorkshire and Humberside aged 55 and over, the industry faces a serious risk of a skills “time bomb”. As the demand for fresh talent in the industry increases, there has never been a better time for young people in Yorkshire to consider a career in construction.

With an aim to get Britain building, CITB last year provided more than £78m in grants to employers for training, and supported over 17,000 construction apprentices.

These provide a clear route for youngsters into a world class industry, with outstanding career prospects, and will, in turn, will act as a catalyst for economic growth.

Sterilise the
bad mothers

From: BJ Cussons, Curly Hill, Ilkley, West Yorkshire.

THE Press and media have wallowed in repetitive reports of the unbelievable cruelty to Hamzah Khan by his mother. To what purpose? A derisory sentence. At the very least the woman should be sterilised to ensure she can never kill another of her children.

When are we going to get the message across that no one 
has the right to bring children into the world and expect 
others to look after them and where is the religious guidance nowadays? Perhaps Welfare State changes may help but how many more children will suffer if change is not accelerated?

By chance a Yorkshire Post 
news cutting from December 27, 1994 emerged as I was sorting papers last night.

The headline read: Home alone tally of shame – nine in care. So what has changed?

Why should parents who pay taxes while struggling to bring their own children up properly have to support a society structure which is going downhill so rapidly?

Care shake-up only answer

From: RC Dales, Church View, Brompton, Northallerton.

I SELDOM favour the writing of your columnist Jayne Dowle but her article on care for the aged (Yorkshire Post, October 10) is one of the most important ever to appear in any newspaper. At last, there is a graphic description of what has now become a major national problem.

But her plea for relatives of the aged to look after them is, alas, unlikely to have much result. Social life has changed too 
much.

Families are scattered about the country, if not the world. Husbands and wives or “partners” are both likely to be working, and there are other complications for those with children of school age or
below.

What needs to be done is to clean up the mess of the previous care service.

This is possible only if it is transferred from 152 councils 
to one national body and, 
as it is stupid to divorce “care” from “health”, this must be the NHS.