Time to bite the economic bullet rather than save the euro

From: David Baldwin, Shires Lane, Embsay.

TO say that I’m absolutely sick and tired of reading interviews with so-called “financial experts” about the euro and how “it must be saved” is a great understatement.

Why should it be saved? Why should we be involved?

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I’ve been saying that, in its present form, it must not be saved. Greece fiddled its way in and, since the problem first raised its ugly head, I’ve been saying that by supporting Greece or any similar country that the eurozone is simply throwing good money after bad.

My belief was supported by a friendly German from Hamburg whom we met on a train between Berlin and Düsseldorf in August 2011, who told us that he and his friends had liquidated all of their savings and investments and bought gold bullion in anticipation of the break-up of the eurozone.

He continued that if Angela Merkel continued her (then) stance she would lose the election as very few Germans had any sympathy for Greece and why should Germany be made to suffer.

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Okay, there will be problems when it happens, but the longer it takes to bite the bullet the worse it will get and more countries will be dragged-down.

From: Dr David Hill, chief executive, World Innovation Foundation, Market Street, Huddersfield.

WITH the majority of the world’s economic power transferring to the East (where 52 per cent already resides there) and where by 2075 some leading economists have estimated that the East’s share of economic power will have increased to between two thirds and 75 per cent of the world’s GDP, what future does the West have?

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With little more than 25-33 per cent of the projected economic pie, not very much it has to be said. But what is the real reason why this unparalleled decline in economic terms has happened (where the West once controlled nearly 82 per cent of the world’s turnover)? Its roots can be traced to both political and business ineptness and complacency.

For the West forgot to place constant innovation at the top of its economic policies. Its political and industrial leaders forgot that time does not stand still. Therefore if the West is to prevent a vastly unbalanced world economic order that will bring great social harm to its populous over the next six decades, it has to place invention and innovative exploitation as its major priorities and involve all its people in the task ahead.

From: D Birch, Smithy Lane, Cookridge, Leeds.

THE coalition has made “an offer that cannot be refused” for 30,000 of these young people to be self-employed, with the hope that there will be a new generation of entrepreneurs in the making.

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It would appear that the Government have given £80m to an old Conservative Lord to distribute to these young people to enable them to start up their own new businesses.

When asked just how much any individual gets, the answer was an average of £2,500. The point was made that the figure was in the same area that the Prince Charles Trust gives to the young people they help.

When asked about the follow-up to make sure that the money was used properly, the paymaster of this £80m said this hadn’t been finalised yet. This, of course, set me thinking how is it going to be distributed and followed up, and why wasn’t the Prince’s Trust, that exists, and doing so much more than private companies will be able to do, which I expect is in the good Lord’s mind. Plus, instead of the millions of pounds they would take out for administration etc, the trust have people that could do the job better and with a lot less cost.

From: Phil Hanson, Beechmount Close, Baildon, Shipley.

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I AM afraid that Eric Pickles and the proposal on granny flats is not only a joke but it is a serious example of how the Government keeps pushing a ramshackle heap of proposals together in what appears a nationwide brainstorming exercise.

The economy is in a serious situation, there are limited options and that calls for a steady hand and most importantly, an air of confidence and determination from our Government.

The last government was all spin and hot air, but they did think things through, even being devious at times, but they thought things through. Cameron and Co, take note.

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