PUBLIC SERVICE CUTS

[Tizer]

A lot of things beggar belief these days, Ian, and I wonder how we've got into this state. I often hear news and immediately think `How could they let that happen?' or `How could anyone think it was OK to do that?'. One example in recent news was the woman who was raped and then the rapist was given permission to visit the child resulting from the rape, regardless of the protestations of the rape victim. Other examples are fraud in business, politics, local government, the NHS etc. The women who are losing out on their pensions is another obvious one. Universal credit another. The postmasters and postmistresses wrongly accused of fraud. Poor people being forced to pay large amounts of tax to HMRC because the tax collectors didn't properly collect it decades ago. And so on....

[PanBiker]

Here's another one in the same kind of vane, shafting the little guy. Two years ago we went to Corfu for our holidays, while we were there Sally was bitten by a mossie on the eyelid and we had to go to the local health centre for treatment. She needed anti-histamine and antibiotic injections due to her compromised immune system. We had the required health cover cards (EHIC) but had to pay up front for the doctor and treatment, It came to the equivalent of £125.00 in sterling. We got a receipt and a medical report for claiming back through the NHS when we got home as that is the required procedure. Sally sent all the required paperwork off and nothing happened. She chased it after about a year and was told that the claim had gone to the Greek government for verification. We heard nothing else until today and apparently our claim has been turned down by Greece as we did not get the treatment on a prescription, there is no appeal procedure for this decision. There was no mention of a prescription at the time and we thought we had it covered with the receipt and medical report, not so, taken two years but still ended up shafted yet again.

[Stanley]

Like the MOD were when they tried the cunning wheeze of selling the married quarters and leasing them back. They talk about getting rid of unwanted houses but fail to mention they can't and they are locked into a maintenance lease contract.

[Tizer]

And there's this report this morning from Ofsted...
`Missing special needs support 'a national scandal'' Ofsted

...and this:
`Water bill 'too expensive' to flush toilet' Water
`A disabled mother from Yorkshire says she is so worried about the cost of water that she sometimes has to miss out on washing or flushing the toilet. Shirley Widdop, from Keighley, whose bill, based on a water meter, has risen by 35%, says: "It's outrageous and like something from the 1930s. We shouldn't have to ration water. A report on poverty from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that arrears for water bills are now the most common form of debt for the poorest families....'

This too:
`Taxpayers treated unfairly by HMRC, says House of Lords report' HMRC
`Greater powers given to HMRC to tackle tax avoidance and evasion are undermining the rule of law and justice, warns a House of Lords report. The Economic Affairs Committee said HMRC has been granted some broad, disproportionate powers without effective taxpayer safeguards. High penalties, designed to deter taxpayers from appealing, are a tax on justice, the committee claimed. It has demanded a review of the oversight of HMRC and its powers....'

All these are in today's news and it's the same day after day. I'm not referring simply to issues that we don't like but to to the whole range of incompetences through politics, business, public services etc.

[Stanley]

Quite Tiz and it all reinforces my point that by neglecting to maintain society, the wealthiest are making a rod for their own back because unwittingly they rely on it to maintain their comfortable worlds. That's why gated communities with private security are on the rise. Bit like ignoring the leak in the steerage end of the boat......

[Tizer]

`Interserve: Major government contractor 'seeks second rescue deal'' LINK
`One of the UK's largest providers of public services is seeking a rescue deal as it struggles with £500m of debt, according to the Financial Times. Interserve, which works in prisons, schools, hospitals and on the roads, said it might look for new investment or sell off part of the business. Workers at the Foreign Office and the NHS are among Interserve's tens of thousands of UK employees. The government said it supported the company's long-term recovery plan. The Financial Times reported that the company was looking for a deal to refinance its debt which would mean lenders taking a significant loss while public shareholders would be "virtually wiped out". Its share price dropped to a 30-year low last month....'

At this rate, it won't need Labour to nationalise private businesses, they'll all have gone belly up and the government - even a Tory one - will have to step up and provide the services itself.

[Stanley]

A lot of truth in that Tiz, like the Cunning Wheeze of PFI outsourcing has its problems. I heard that report as well and there have been rumours about them for a while. Capita is another one under pressure. All these firms have one thing in common, the business model they have of high accession rate and activity works well as long as they are functioning in a rising economy. Think of what will happen when the bull market inevitably collapses.....
I think of that when reading about outsourced social care services. In terms of government funding the salad days ended in 2010 and that's why education and health in particular are suffering now. Despite all the aspirations and promises this will not end as long as we have projects like HS2 suffering from a doubling of estimates which is another facet of the same syndrome.
Later.... News that Interserve's bond holders have taken up all the shares in the company leaving the shareholders with virtually nothing.

[Tripps]

Here's a controversial thought.

Why should you stop paying national Insurance contributions when you retire?

Subject to protection for people with a low income - which already exists under the income tax system - surely we oldies put a great load on public expense with increased medical and social care needs - so why should we not continue to contribute from what are often generous (often publicly funded) pensions, which in contrast to workers' incomes have, been 'triple lock' increased for years.

No other insurance scheme lets you stop paying the premium when you retire does it? Try it with your car insurance and see what they say.

Don't say "I've paid all my working life so I'm entitled to the benefit" -I don't think it works like that. What you paid thirty or so years ago is trivial in today's terms, and there isn't some giant pot which funds everything - it's all done from current income - or added to the National Debt.


Discuss.

Next week -why should pensioners travel for free?

[PanBiker]

Why should you stop paying national Insurance contributions when you retire?

Quick answer is you don't have to.

Longer answer is that at 16 years of age I started contributing, not much granted, (about £150 a year) but that was in 1970. As my wages went up so did my contributions. Personally I paid 41 years of full contributions plus about another 8 or 9 years of full stamp for Sally while she was a stay at home mum for the kids.

If I had not been made redundant at 57 and had stayed in my last job I would have another 7 years on my record totalling 49 years of full contributions. The latter years I was paying around £1700 pounds per year. Lots of other folk on better wages would be paying a whole lot more. Now being a simple minded bloke I always took it that all my accrued contributions were being invested, and if handled correctly would or should have made a lot more money over rocking on a 50 year investment period.

I know this because we are currently investing a reasonable sized pot for our Ruby. This has all been done for the last five years throughout the lowest interest rates ever known and we have still managed to increase the pot substantially without undue risk to the capital. I also know that the bigger the initial capital is the more money you will make, money makes money.

So, take the accrued pension pots of millions of workers like me and invest them as we have done with Ruby's legacy from her dad. I wish I had the funds of that magnitude to play with and the 8% of years gone by. Of course this does not take account of robbing bankers and the like but that is not my problem. I have given successive governments a portion of my earnings and I expect them to take care of it, invest it as even a numpty like me can and make profit then give it back to me a bit at a time, it's not rocket science.

You can already continue to make voluntary contributions for as long as you want, you can defer taking your pension as well if you can afford to do it and that's the crux of the matter, if you can afford to. Not helped in our case that Sally has been robbed of £48,000 of her pension without notice.

So, I will have mine now and as much as I can each week, notice I did not say please, it's my money, entitled if you like.

As for the free travel, please tell me how and I will apply. I could do with a break in Greece.

[Tripps]

As for the free travel, please tell me how and I will apply. I could do with a break in Greece.

Thanks for your contribution to this deliberately provocative post. Good to get a strong reply.

Apologies for the omission - I meant to say of course. 'free bus travel'

[Stanley]

And why shouldn't the government give a level of pension comparable to other Northern European countries. Oh, and while they're at it, fund end of life care adequately as well. Come to think, give MPs the same pension as the PBI and see how they like it....

[Stanley]

Thinking about NHS cuts.... On the evidence of the standards and services that I am experiencing the system is coping well, quite magnificent service but I realise that this is mainly because of the political imperative to concentrate on cancer. Just before I was diagnosed a diktat was issued from No. 10 that all cancer patients had to be seen in 14 days and once in the system, pursued quickly. Good timing as far as I am concerned but where were the resources drained from elsewhere in the service? I admit to being grateful but guilty! This may have been a factor in Ian's experience also. Mugs for luck?

[Stanley]

The Cunning Wheeze of outsourcing recruitment for the armed forces to Capita has produced an entirely predictable result. See THIS BBC report for the full story.
Same story if you search for probation news, Grayling's 'reform' has resulted in a disaster.

[PanBiker]

This may have been a factor in Ian's experience also.

In my case Stanley it was purely down to bed management and the availability of an acute care slot. As I took up a late cancellation the wherewithal was already in place, they only had to change the name. I was diagnosed at the end of August but pressure of work and bed availability could have made it December or January for my treatment.

[Stanley]

Whatever, I'm so glad it worked for you Ian. Your fairy godmother was in there somewhere..... (As was mine!)
Have you noticed the stencilled appeals for the homeless on pavements near cash machines? Very well done and I totally approve.

[Tripps]

Local - but could be anywhere.

"Put out for 'consultation' ".

The draft Integrated Risk Management Plan includes proposals that could replace traditional fire engines with ‘rapid’ or ‘intermediate’ response vehicles, reduce crew sizes, and consider the relocation of fire stations.

[Stanley]

See the response of the fire crews where they have already been introduced as an experiment. Verdict.... totally useless.
Read THIS and weep. The government calls for reviews and consultations but does nothing as rough sleepers die on the streets. Welcome to Britain in 2018.

[Stanley]

Revealed this morning that the murder squad in London has lost 25% of its staff in the last ten years due to cuts. Think about that in relation to the crime figures and ask yourself if spending priorities are right. (LINK)

[Stanley]

The changes announced yesterday in court procedures in domestic violence cases are broadly welcomed by people working in the field but they all voiced doubts about funding and implementation while Parliament is embroiled in Brexit. They also pointed out that many women's refuges have had to close because of funding cuts.
It's all very well making announcements like this but if the intention is to divert attention without actually putting them into effect it is deeply cynical. (LINK)

[Stanley]

See THIS account of the NAO report on the provision of Children's Social Care in the UK. It is a shocking indictment of the deterioration in essential services due to under-funding of Local Councils.
It is high time that government priorities were addressed instead of the pantomime we are being subjected to by the Tory Party.

[Stanley]

Another example of the consequences of underfunding, this time in the Probation Services and released sex offenders. (THIS BBC account. This means that proper rehabilitation is not happening and these people are seen as a danger to the public.

[Stanley]

THIS BBC report on violent crime is instructive. It's a complicated picture but there can be little doubt that part of the reason is reduced police numbers due to under-funding. The government won't admit this of course but the police are fairly blunt about it. Add in the deterioration of response to 'minor' crime and the longer waits for response to 999 calls.
What saddens me is that as you know I watch these trends and I could give to examples every day of the effects of Austerity on services and society. When we have incidents like the yobs outside parliament shouting racist abuse at MPs hand are wrung and policing increased locally. This is happening all over the country and public behaviour is coarsening. I heard a priest giving an account of being mobbed on the street and derided last Sunday. Society is being damaged and it will take more than one generation to heal it if funding was increased immediately. So much for the party of law and order.....

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report of the news that the NAO has released this morning. Knife crime is at the highest level since records began in 1946. I haven't heard any government reaction to this but we all know what it will be...... High time the police were funded properly!

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC account of the latest survey done by the Police Federation which demonstrates that the force is severely under-staffed (even when many roles are being discarded) and officers are suffering the consequences.
The government will reply with a litany of statistics proving that funding is OK. Make up your own mind where the truth lies.

[Stanley]

Two more Knife Deaths.... No connection with reduced police numbers?