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As of today (19th November 2007), The
Northern Rock Bank has borrowed £25 billion (yes...BILLION!) from the Bank of England. Unofficial estimates are that
the cost to the taxpayer of propping up this private company may be as much as £50 billion. See the entry below to compare
this with the UK's Defence Budget, and then ask yourself (or your MP) how many aircraft carriers is Northern Rock
worth?
MP's have just awarded themselves another 12
working days holiday, on the basis that they have so little to do at the House of Commons, that they spend a lot of time twiddling
their thumbs. This means that they will now (officially!) be on holiday for one third of the working year. These are
the guys who recently campaigned for a big fat inflation-busting salary (and pension) increase, because they were so
underpaid and over worked. A week is, indeed, a long time in politics - it's called the memory span of the Electorate.
In the past year, the Government
has paid out over £1 billion in fraudulent Tax Credits claims. The long running (and expensive) advertising campaign
designed to stop this, served only to increase the number of fraudulent claims, as people realised how easy is was to fool
the system ! You just have to laugh, don't you?
Every week, 60 people die as a result of MRSA
contracted in NHS Hospitals. (just MRSA; not C. Difficile or cancer or high risk medical procedures or medical error.)
This is not so much a number as a National Disgrace.
The
total UK Quango budget is around £120 billion pounds a year. (Quangos - "quasi autonomous Governmental organisation" are those non elected bodies which
may or may not perform any function, useful or otherwise, and have very well paid (and pensioned) Chairmen and Boards of Directors
who are appointed by the Government in power. )
The total UK Defence
Budget is around £25 billion pounds a year. (and that includes the two new aircraft carriers at £4 billion each)
As at October 2007,
the NHS liability for compensation for injury, botched treatments, incorrect treatments, medical incompetence etc, is increasing
by £2.4 million EVERY DAY.
The
2.35 pence a liter increase in tax on petrol as of October 2007, will generate an additional £1.6 million in revenue
EVERY DAY for the Government.
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