Who was the UKs worst PM and why.

[captain kong]

LabourGordon Brown's decision to sell half of the UK's gold reserves 'cost UK ?5billion'
Gordon Brown's decision to sell off part of the country's gold reserves 10 years ago cost the public purse nearly ?5billion, official figures show.

By Christopher Hope, Whitehall Editor
Published: 7:01PM GMT 07 Jan 2009


Gordon Brown's decision to sell off half the UK's gold reserves cost ?5 billion Photo: REUTERS The sale of more than half of the country's gold reserves between 1999 and 2002 has proved to be deeply controversial.

Critics say that signalling such a large sale of bullion to gold traders helped to drive the precious metal to a 20-year low.

In 17 auctions, Mr Brown as Chancellor of the Exchequer sanctioned the sale of 395 tonnes of gold.

Figures released by the Treasury show that the total proceeds from the sales was around $3.5billion. According to a Parliamentary answer, if the gold was sold last month, on December 15, it would have raised $10.5billion.


This is from Todays Telegraph.
Mr WW will no doubt say it is a lie and a Tory Paper.
GORMLESS GORDON has lost us 7,000,000,000 US DOLLARS

[underworld]

The main part I was agreeing with was:

'I suggest you do everyone a favour and shut the f**k up.'

Mainly, because that is the thought that often pops into my head when I'm reading your diatribes!

Did I see somewhere that Watersports had said that Blair was responsible for zero unemployment???

[RonnieW]

The Falklands War could only be mounted because so many British Merchant Marine vessels could be used for all the support needed. I read an article about 18 months after that war that claimed that the Merchant Navy had shrunk so much it would no longer have been possible to mount a Falklands-like offensive.

At the time, there was an article in one of the papers (I can't recall which one) saying that many of the Merchant Navy lads had sailed with their redundancy notices in their coat pockets.

For personal reasons, I'd say Thatcher just shades it over Blair. That's because my mum died while waiting an hour for an ambulance because of Tory cutbacks, my dad died because his cancer operation was delayed several times because of Tory cutbacks, same for my mother-in-law and her heart operation. No reflection on the staff at Broadgreen or the Royal who were brilliant.
But I suppose people will have similar tales to tell about Blair, especially when Labour closed Halton Hospital and left Runcorn, Widnes, Frodsham and Helsby with no hospital.
Labour also closed a secondary school in Runcorn and several primary schools. So much for 'Education, Education, Education'.
What a bunch of brigands these politicians are!

[Birdy]

Thanks to Labour?s investment more than 4,000 schools will have been built, rebuilt or refurbished by July 2010 since 1997 ? the biggest sustained period of school building since Victorian times. We have also brought forward almost ?1 billion of schools capital investment from 2010/11 to 2009/10 to support the economy during the recession

[RonnieW]

Thanks to Labour?s investment more than 4,000 schools will have been built, rebuilt or refurbished by July 2010 since 1997 ? the biggest sustained period of school building since Victorian times. We have also brought forward almost ?1 billion of schools capital investment from 2010/11 to 2009/10 to support the economy during the recession

Where is that quote taken from?

This one is from the 1997 Labour Manifesto.

"Labour will never force the abolition of good schools whether in the private or state sector."

By the way, they're closing another secondary school in Runcorn and one in Widnes soon. None of the schools closed by Labour in Halton since 2000 had a poor Ofsted report.
Every cloud has a silver lining and several Labour councillors who voted for school closures were voted out of office. Of course, several Labour councillors have their offspring educated outside of the Borough at Frodsham, Helsby and Warrington.

As for the closure of the hospital, Warrington couldn't cope and some wards at Halton had to be re-opened. Once again, the cloud had quite a good silver lining when the Trust Chairman (and Labour councillor) who closed the hospital lost what he thought was a safe Labour seat to a Lib-Dem who had been a patient at Halton Hospital. Also getting the boot was another Labour hack who had been the longest serving councillor on HBC. Not quite as good as Portillo, but quite satisfying.

[underworld]

Looks like Brown is on the ropes again. Seems his leadership is being called into question again. I was looking at the results of a Yougov survey yesterday and I think it was over 60% of those questioned thought Brown was doing a bad job. Ive been expecting this latest wobble and I think that if Labour stand any chance at all, they will have to go into the next election with a new leader. This one may just snowball. (Snowball. Get it, eh eh?)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8443769.stm

[pablo42]

Looks like Brown is on the ropes again. Seems his leadership is being called into question again. I was looking at the results of a Yougov survey yesterday and I think it was over 60% of those questioned thought Brown was doing a bad job. Ive been expecting this latest wobble and I think that if Labour stand any chance at all, they will have to go into the next election with a new leader. This one may just snowball. (Snowball. Get it, eh eh?)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8443769.stm

He's been there before though. I can't see how they can win an election with him in charge.

[underworld]

Hoon and Hewitt are behind this one. They are Political Heavies and I have a feeling that this one is going to be different. Any move to out Brown has to be done now as its the only chance Labour have. This is the only way in my opinion, that they can possibly win the next election. Axe Brown, have an election straight away.

[pablo42]

Hoon and Hewitt are behind this one. They are Political Heavies and I have a feeling that this one is going to be different. Any move to out Brown has to be done now as its the only chance Labour have. This is the only way in my opinion, that they can possibly win the next election. Axe Brown, have an election straight away.

I'd have to agree with you. Brown is unelectable. Don't think he's been a bad Prime Minister. He's just committed the ultimate sin. He was unlucky.

[Waterways]

Thanks to Labour?s investment more than 4,000 schools will have been built, rebuilt or refurbished by July 2010 since 1997 ? the biggest sustained period of school building since Victorian times. We have also brought forward almost ?1 billion of schools capital investment from 2010/11 to 2009/10 to support the economy during the recession

Good post Birdy.

• Just stating the raw facts pre the CC, is all the current government have to do.
• The facts are indisputable.
• The gvmt are a great success from 1997 until the CC.
• They also faired brilliantly in the CC preventing soup lines.
• They are the people, who have proven brilliant at economic management, to take us fully out of the CC

[Waterways]

Looks like Brown is on the ropes again.

Oh my God! he is going by polls, which change like the wind. All the gvmt have to do is state their record from 1997 to the CC and the way they put together the strategy to pull the world put of it.

Selective amnesia sets in.

[Waterways]

He's been there before though. I can't see how they can win an election with him in charge.

People hopefully will see past the media character assassination and see the competence and experience of the man. We Need this admin in charge to take us out of the CC. They have the experience and competence to do it.

God help us if that bunch of Hurray Henry old schoolboy clique get in power.

Campbell is yet to to surface. Wait!

[RonnieW]

Hoon and Hewitt are behind this one. They are Political Heavies and I have a feeling that this one is going to be different. Any move to out Brown has to be done now as its the only chance Labour have. This is the only way in my opinion, that they can possibly win the next election. Axe Brown, have an election straight away.

I'd say the biggest problem political parties have is trying to convince people to vote at all. People seemed browned (get it!) off with politicians, especially since most of them were caught with their hands in the till.
All those years under the Tories and people thought their lives would improve under Labour, and look at what we've got? So, many people reach the conclusion that no political party will represent them, and they're quite right.
In 1994, Labour MP Roy Hattersley suggested that ?the working class would continue to vote for Labour whatever the party does?. When many members of the working class stayed at home for the 2001 General Election, Jack Straw described the low turnout as ?the politics of contentment?.
Such is the arrogance of these people.

[Max]

Voting in Cameron will anger his spirit, you must not anger the dead.

Lib Dems don't look different to Labor judging off little of what i've read either.

Clegg made a good point in this article though, low income earners pay horribly high taxes like my mum does.

http://www.libdems.org.uk/our_campai...8-206c615b33bb

Not been sure about them either since the Liverpool Lib Dems are thieves still though.

I agree with Waterways about the selective amnesia, i don't remember so much complaining about Labor until Blair agreed to Iraq and then the newspapers exaggerated alot of crap too. Before 2003, there was no relevant complaints.

Stuff like benefits for people who need them outside of JSA have improved since Labor got in too. I remember all the scaffoldings in Calderstones in 97 fixing all the leaking buildings and they have had more new buildings built since so there has been some good out of Labor.

Maybe i miss a few things because i get bored reading newspapers.

[RonnieW]

don't remember so much complaining about Labor until Blair agreed to Iraq and then the newspapers exaggerated alot of crap too. Before 2003, there was no relevant complaints.

There was that business with Bernie Ecclestone and the donation. There was Billy Straw selling drugs to a Daily Mirror reporter and Euan Blair collapsed drunk in the street and underage too. Robinson's dodgy loan to Mandelsson. Roger Liddle and the 'cash for access' scandal. Cronyism. Keith Vaz promising one of his lawyer friends some kind of 'honour'.
There was The Dome, Blair's appointment of Heseltine and Patten to government commitees (although how two more Tories in the Labour Party along with the rest of them came as a surprise is anyones guess). Derry Irvine's flat. Small stuff compared to immoral sanctions and wars, but they were going to "clean up politics" back in 1997.

All in all, they're no better than the Tories. Who have had Cecil Parkinson, Stephen Norris, Alan Clarke, all serial adulterers. Insider dealing, Piers Merchant, Aitken, Major doing the dirty on Norma with Edwina Currie (Back to Basics?), RAB Butler having a fling with one of the Kray twins as well as Harold McMillian's wife.

At least no dogs were shot!