As we have seen time and time again, this
government`s arrogance knows no bounds, and it`s evident once more with its
ridiculous plan to privatise Royal Mail.
Their excuse, when lowering the top tax band for
themselves and their millionaire mates, was that when the rate was 50%, the rich
didn`t pay it, so it made economic sense to lower it by 5% so that they would.
Really? We were meant to believe this?
Their contempt for the ordinary people seems to
grow by the day, for what else can explain their willingness to destroy the
welfare state, treat poor and unemployed as criminals, and cut benefits even for
those with disabilities? We are expected to believe they know best, that the
last Labour government was to blame for the economic crash, and that bankers had
nothing to do with it. That`s why Osborne spoke out in Brussels against capping
bankers` bonuses, and why the British government recently challenged the
legality of the financial transaction tax, successfully it seems, even though
Germany, France and the rest had adopted it as a fair way to get something back
from those who had caused this economic mess. But the people of this country are
still expected to believe that the Tories, and of course, Clegg and his cronies,
complicit in all things Cameron, are determined to stamp out tax avoidance! Pull
the other one!
Now, in the continuance of ideological policies to
privatise at all costs, and further enrich the already rich, we have the case of
Royal Mail, which they have to sell off, they say, because it`s taking too much
government money, and preventing spending on hospitals and schools! You could
not make this up! So the government had to scrap the £55bn Building Schools for
the Future scheme in July 2010 because of the need to plough more money into the
postal service? What the Royal College of Nursing calls a "slash and burn"
approach, cutting the number of nurses by over 5000, is caused by the
post being so demanding of extra funds from the Treasury? Who knew? Most of us
were under the impression that the average pay for a postman was around £19,000
a year, well below the national average.
What do they take us for, but perhaps,more
importantly, how much disdain do they have for the Opposition? Tory propaganda
has got away with political murder, with the "skiver" nonsense, and education
needing to go back to the 50s, with barely a Labour murmur of protest, so they
know excuses for their privatisation of Royal Mail can be as ludicrous as
possible, and they, with of course, support from Murdoch`s media, can get away
with them.
The truth is rather different; Royal Mail has
profit margins of 5%, and made £403m profit last financial year, but in the
future, at least half of these profits will go as dividends to
shareholders.Everyone knows so-called "increased efficiency" will lead to job
cuts and a less regular service, especially in rural areas. A little further
down the line, there will, no doubt, be zero-hours contracts and increased
part-time work. The general public are against it; a YouGov poll showed 67%
opposition, and even amonst Telegraph readers, 72% are against the sale.
However, I shouldn`t imagine there`s much opposition from the government`s City
friends; a mere £15m at least will be paid to investment banks for their
"advice" over the flotation, providing the fees are set at 1% of the value, and
the banks getting yet more taxpayers` money include Goldman Sachs, UBS,
Barclays, Bank of America and Royal Bank of Canada.
If Labour actually, not only opposed the sale of
Royal Mail, but pledged to re-nationalise it when in power, it would not only
scare off many City investors, it would show support to the beleagured
workforce, and be popular with the majority of the electorate. At least, let`s
have a debate in Parliament, or even a series of questions at PMQs, so the
public can hear the government`s nonsense. If I am completely fed up of being
lied to, and treated as an idiot by "posh Tory-boys", why isn`t
Miliband?
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