If the Conservatives win the election how high will unemployment rise?

[Tricky]

I never mentioned a benefits system??

 

But since you mention it, as Milton Friedman observed of the Wall street crash Govt expenditure is required to cushion people from the impact of the market and to assist with the recovery.

 

Afterall compared with paying people benefits for doing nothing it makes much more sense to employ them for a few thousand more to do something of use for the economy, like education, health or helping employers find good staff.

 

No I did. It wasn't supposed to derogatory. If the very rich want protection against crime, they pay for private protection. if they want health treatment, they pay for their own. They pay for their offsprings' education too.

 

For the rest of us, we make do with public servants. If there weren't any public servants, the Govt would just issue a check and we'd have to buy in our own provision instead, which was why I likened it to a quasi-benefits system.

 

I'd be interested to see the Friedman quote if you've got a link. My view is that if you want to kick start an economy, wealth producing jobs are what a Govt should invest in, not public servants; I'd be interested to read his.

 

On a slight aside, Japan has been trying to galvanize their economy through vast sums being thrown at big construction and technological projects. The result - nothing. The reason - if your finance system is poisoned, there's nothing you can do to promote economic growth until you have a clean fully functioning financial system. Ours is in a far worse shape than Japan's ever was.

[Grandad.Malky]

 

A 300% increase in productivity in 10 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

10 years is a long time and having worked in the industry for 30 years I can tell you the equipment we used in the 70`s bared little resemblance to what we were using in the 80`s, if you can find a cut and paste job for technological improvements during the boom of the introduction of computerised equipment it might balance you previous cut and past job.

Edited September 29, 2009 by Grandad.Malky

[Grandad.Malky]

Getting a mortgage in the early 70s wasn't easy, nor was buying anything on credit - especially for a woman! We almost lost our (scrimped for) home due to the interest rates/lack of work in the 1980s. My OH was self employed, and couldn't get much work due to the reduction in jobs in mining, steel etc. No redundancy when you're a one man operation, and no eligibility for the dole based on NI contributions.

 

 

But talk to some younger ones and we were lucky

[anarchist]

10 years is a long time and having worked in the industry for 30 years I can tell you the equipment we used in the 70`s bared little resemblance to what we were using in the 80`s, if you can find a cut and paste job for technological improvements during the boom of the introduction of computerised equipment it might balance you previous cut and past job.

 

The cut and paste was to highlight why so many jobs were lost in the nationalised industries. The point was the EU had outlawed subsidies in steel and from 1975 (long before Thatcher) plans were made to modernize the industry.

 

The second point is. If man power is reduced by 50% but productivity increases by 300%, then output is 50% higher but with half the man power.

 

In the circumstances a 50% increase in steel output is rather different from the claims that the steel industry was decimated by Thatcher.

[Grandad.Malky]

The second point is. If man power is reduced by 50% but productivity increases by 300%, then output is 50% higher but with half the man power.

 

 

 

Productivity increases by 300% but output only increases 50%.

 

I can see the reduction in men and change in working practices as this coincided with technological improvements mainly due to computerised automation as in the car industry.

[anarchist]

Productivity increases by 300% but output only increases 50%.

 

I can see the reduction in men and change in working practices as this coincided with technological improvements mainly due to computerised automation as in the car industry.

 

You should be good enough to do that simple bit of maths even with our comprehensive education system.

 

Thatcher was the one with the balls to carry through the reforms, or would you still hanker for the days when diesel locomotives still carried a fireman?

[wednesday1]

You should be good enough to do that simple bit of maths even with our comprehensive education system.

 

Thatcher was the one with the balls to carry through the reforms, or would you still hanker for the days when diesel locomotives still carried a fireman?

 

You probably still hanker after the days when blokes toiled in foundries and melting shops with no safety equipment resulting in horrendous burns, Tory boy.

[anarchist]

You probably still hanker after the days when blokes toiled in foundries and melting shops with no safety equipment resulting in horrendous burns, Tory boy.

 

Well that is by far the most stupid thing I have read on Sheffield Forum, but as it comes from by far the most stupid member it is to be expected.:loopy:

 

As I was the one saying that modern production practices were beneficial I wonder how you get to me wanting to return the old foundry practices. But as you are the one be-moaning the lob losses I presume that you are.:D

[wednesday1]

Well that is by far the most stupid thing I have read on Sheffield Forum, but as it comes from by far the most stupid member it is to be expected.:loopy:

 

aaaawwww thanks TB!

[HeadingNorth]

With the Tories consistently above Labour in the opinion polls, given what has happened previously to employment levels when the economy was in recession, and there was a change of government and with the Tories promising huge public spending cuts.Just how high will unemployment rise?

 

There aren't many state industries haemorrhaging money nowadays; Thatcher got rid of them all. Consequently there is not much need to shut them all down and throw a couple of million on the dole; the couple-of-million aren't even there in the first place.