Oliver Coppard to win sheffield hallam?

[smiggs 10]

Nick Clegg‘s Chief of Staff, Danny Alexander, like Clegg himself, fearful for his seat after supporting the Coalition Government’s sustained attack on the poor, has leaked Tory plans for an £8bn cut to welfare, including slashing child benefits and child tax credits.

 

The proposed cuts include:

1. Limiting support to 2 children in child benefit and child tax credit, so cutting up to £3,500 from a family with three children.

2. Removing the higher rate child benefit from the first child, an average cut of over £360 for every family with children.

3. Means testing child benefit – cutting £1,750 for a two child middle income family

4. Removing child benefit from 16 to 19 year olds – a cut of over £1,000 for parents of a single child.

 

The Conservatives have consistently refused to tell the Institute for Fiscal Studies what their welfare cuts were to be. The only one the Tories have disclosed is a two-year freeze in working age benefits.

 

Alexander says: “It’s clear from our time in government that the Tories target will be slashing support for families.

 

So why have Clegg and Alexander supported such measures as the Bedroom Tax in the past?

Why have they stood by while over a million souls are relying on food banks?

Why have thee presided over a low pay, part time, zero hours economy?

Why have they sat by while the poorest and most vulnerable have suffered targeted benefits sanctions.

Why have they allowed the disabled and terminally ill to be forced to seek work?

 

Its is no good Clegg and Alexander trying to distance themselves from the Tories now in order to keep their seats. We know what their record is.

 

coalition

ˌkəʊəˈlɪʃ(ə)n/

noun: coalition; plural noun: coalitions

 

a temporary alliance for combined action, especially of political parties forming a government

[ultracynic 10]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/election2010/results/constituency/d96.stm

 

Looking at the previous results and factoring in tactical voting by Conservatives I estimate that Labour would need to gain around 20000 more votes than 2010 and the more I think about it I just can't see that happening.

[stressconsul 10]

Given the scale of the proposed £8bn benefit cuts, Cameron and Clegg should be concerned that they will lose a significant proportion of the middle class vote. We have witnessed the Coalition Government's cynical pauperization of the poor. Are we now to see a similar pauperization of a section of the middle classes, ie. those with children?

[WiseOwl182 10]

Nick Clegg‘s Chief of Staff, Danny Alexander, like Clegg himself, fearful for his seat after supporting the Coalition Government’s sustained attack on the poor, has leaked Tory plans for an £8bn cut to welfare, including slashing child benefits and child tax credits.

 

The proposed cuts include:

1. Limiting support to 2 children in child benefit and child tax credit, so cutting up to £3,500 from a family with three children.

2. Removing the higher rate child benefit from the first child, an average cut of over £360 for every family with children.

3. Means testing child benefit – cutting £1,750 for a two child middle income family

4. Removing child benefit from 16 to 19 year olds – a cut of over £1,000 for parents of a single child.

 

The Conservatives have consistently refused to tell the Institute for Fiscal Studies what their welfare cuts were to be. The only one the Tories have disclosed is a two-year freeze in working age benefits.

 

Alexander says: “It’s clear from our time in government that the Tories target will be slashing support for families.

 

So why have Clegg and Alexander supported such measures as the Bedroom Tax in the past?

Why have they stood by while over a million souls are relying on food banks?

Why have thee presided over a low pay, part time, zero hours economy?

Why have they sat by while the poorest and most vulnerable have suffered targeted benefits sanctions.

Why have they allowed the disabled and terminally ill to be forced to seek work?

 

Its is no good Clegg and Alexander trying to distance themselves from the Tories now in order to keep their seats. We know what their record is.

 

Bedroom tax - a misnomer, it was a benefit cut to bring private rented tenants funded by housing benefits in line with social housing tenants. An attempt to free up family homes for.... families.

 

Food banks - not a million souls, a million visits. Even the left wing research body admitted over half the visits were from people who had visited before. The headline figure over states the issue.

 

Zero hours - only 2% of jobs created since 2010 are zero hours contracts, half of which are wanted by the employee for the flexibility offered. These contracts were introduced under Labour.

 

Child benefit - this got too high and needs reform. Middle income families have to plan having children on when and if they can afford to. Lower income people on benefits are essentially bribed into having more and more kids, funded by the taxpayer.

[stressconsul 10]

An independent study by the New Policy Institute published today has found that under Cameron and Clegg’s Coalition, poverty in the UK is increasing after two years of heavy welfare cuts have helped to push hundreds of thousands of people below the breadline.

 

Child poverty showed the biggest increase, with 300,000 youngsters falling into hardship - with 29% of UK children in poverty.

 

“The clear conclusion is that poverty in the UK is rising among all age groups,” says the NPI’s research director. “The trajectory over the second half of the coalition’s term has been a bad one".

 

NPI undertook the study to enable the coalition’s record to be properly scrutinised before the election. The upward trend in relative poverty over the past two years has affected all groups, the study finds, including working families and pensioners.

 

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/apr/29/poverty-child-rising-welfare-cuts-tory-claims

[altus 533]

Nick Clegg‘s Chief of Staff, Danny Alexander, like Clegg himself, fearful for his seat after supporting the Coalition Government’s sustained attack on the poor, has leaked Tory plans for an £8bn cut to welfare, including slashing child benefits and child tax credits.

...

<snip>

...

Its is no good Clegg and Alexander trying to distance themselves from the Tories now in order to keep their seats. We know what their record is.

 

I don't know where you're getting your news from but Alexander also said that the Tories wanted to implement those cuts during the last parliament and were only prevented from doing so because they were in coalition with the LibDems.

 

From The Independent:

Citing a secret document drawn up by Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, in 2012, Mr Alexander told The Guardian that the Tories would introduce means-testing of child benefit, stop 16- to 19-year-olds getting it, limit support to two children and remove the higher rate paid for the first child.

 

The cuts were dropped by the Coalition in 2012 but Mr Alexander said the document showed what the Conservatives were planning.

 

You've highlighted a very good reason why the LibDems going into coalition with the Tories was a good idea. These proposals would have been implemented in 2012 if they hadn't.

[stressconsul 10]

I don't know where you're getting your news from but Alexander also said that the Tories wanted to implement those cuts during the last parliament and were only prevented from doing so because they were in coalition with the LibDems.

 

From The Independent:

 

You've highlighted a very good reason why the LibDems going into coalition with the Tories was a good idea. These proposals would have been implemented in 2012 if they hadn't.

 

Clegg and Alexander are scuttling as fast as they can away from the Tories because they are afraid of losing their seats by their close association with the worst of Austerity politics. At the risk of being a bore I will repeat my questions about their record in coalition:

 

"Why have Clegg and Alexander supported such measures as the Bedroom Tax in the past?

Why have they stood by while over a million souls are relying on food banks?

Why have they presided over a low pay, part time, zero hours economy?

Why have they sat by while the poorest and most vulnerable have suffered targeted benefits sanctions.

Why have they allowed the disabled and terminally ill to be forced to seek work"?

 

All these are on record as having happened on the Clegg and Alexander's watch. They can say what they like - this is what they have done.

[Alan Ladd 10]

You forgot it could be a BluKip coalition - how proud would you be of brining that in?

 

Ignore the party lines - just defeat the man, if the LD had fielded another candidate I would have voted for them - its Clegg I want out!

 

Don't vote for the man who has no morals, ethics or integrity.

 

---------- Post added 29-04-2015 at 19:34 ----------

 

 

Rate of change is no reflection on relative success/failure, it all depends on where you start measuring from. You seem to be trying to muddy the facts.

 

What a disgraceful set of insults, the bravery he has shown in setting aside party imperatives to reach an accomodation in the countries interests shows absolute statesmanship.

 

History will be very kind to Nick Clegg, an honorable man prepared to make sacrifices in the countries interests.

[hsb98c 18]

Bedroom tax - a misnomer, it was a benefit cut to bring private rented tenants funded by housing benefits in line with social housing tenants. An attempt to free up family homes for.... families.

 

Yep - all those families...

 

‘Big lie’ behind the bedroom tax: Families trapped with nowhere to move face penalty for having spare room

 

Bedroom Tax: Some Home Truths

 

Oh, and can you confirm why all the text talks about people with Housing Benefit in Social Housing, when you say that this was already the policy? I can't find anything when looking for facts on this.

 

Food banks - not a million souls, a million visits. Even the left wing research body admitted over half the visits were from people who had visited before. The headline figure over states the issue.

 

That's okay then - it's the same people so we can ignore the problem. that'll make it go away...

 

Zero hours - only 2% of jobs created since 2010 are zero hours contracts, half of which are wanted by the employee for the flexibility offered. These contracts were introduced under Labour.

 

Yeah, those pesky Labour socialists making zero-hours contracts and then wanting to scrap them... Oh wait

 

"Prior to the introduction of the Working Time Regulations 1998 and the National Minimum Wage Regulations 1999 zero-hour contracts were sometimes used to "clock-off" staff during quiet periods while retaining them on site so they could be returned to paid work should the need arise."

 

So how did Labour introduce such contracts? From the facts I can find, they made them better for those on them?

 

Child benefit - this got too high and needs reform. Middle income families have to plan having children on when and if they can afford to. Lower income people on benefits are essentially bribed into having more and more kids, funded by the taxpayer.

 

Child Benefit was, and until recently, never has been a means tested benefit. It was paid to all and any, regardless of income.

 

 

I bet you read the Sun, soak up all the lies as facts and then you decide to come on here without any proof other than what you think you read somewhere. Please come back when you can proof that:

 

• The bedroom tax was 'only bringing it into line' rather than dealing with the actual impact
  
• Food bank usage hasn't risen by a huge amount on the last 5 years
  
• Labour created zero-hour contracts
  

Edited April 30, 2015 by hsb98c

[Alan Ladd 10]

Clegg and Alexander are scuttling as fast as they can away from the Tories because they are afraid of losing their seats by their close association with the worst of Austerity politics. At the risk of being a bore I will repeat my questions about their record in coalition:

 

"Why have Clegg and Alexander supported such measures as the Bedroom Tax in the past?

Why have they stood by while over a million souls are relying on food banks?

Why have they presided over a low pay, part time, zero hours economy?

Why have they sat by while the poorest and most vulnerable have suffered targeted benefits sanctions.

Why have they allowed the disabled and terminally ill to be forced to seek work"?

 

All these are on record as having happened on the Clegg and Alexander's watch. They can say what they like - this is what they have done.

 

They have created an economy second only to the US in growth.

They have created 2 million jobs and growing.

They built more council houses in 5 years than Labour did in 13

One million souls do not rely on foodbanks, they exploit the naivety of those who fund them.

Of £30million working only 200,000 on zero hours contracts that dont want to be, a complete red herring. (Daily Politics).

The terminally ill have not been told to get a job.

Thousands released from the bondage of welfare.

 

Frankly if your assertions are the best you can do, I would stop wearing out your keyboard.

[ubermaus 10]

What a disgraceful set of insults, the bravery he has shown in setting aside party imperatives to reach an accomodation in the countries interests shows absolute statesmanship.

 

History will be very kind to Nick Clegg, an honorable man prepared to make sacrifices in the countries interests.

 

bend over you mean..

[stressconsul 10]

Cameron’s and Clegg’s Coalition has hoped it would win on the economy. But it’s falling apart. Quarterly growth has halved to 0.3% in the first three months of the year. Production is down, construction is down. On Monday, the Confederation of British Industry reported slowing manufacturing output and mothballed investment. Without the dramatic fall in oil prices, Britain might even be heading back into recession.

 

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats like to present themselves as economically competent but by any objective measure, they have been an outright failure, including in their own terms. Britain’s national income per capita is still below its pre-crash peak. They inherited a growing economy in 2010 and killed the recovery with savage cuts and tax increases. When it finally resumed, the coalition delivered the slowest recovery on record, with barely 1.5% average growth over its five years in office.

 

The economically illiterate cult of Austerity has meant that every one of Osborne’s key economic targets was missed including clearing the deficit and cutting debt. The Tory-Liberal Democrat Coalition have presided over falling living standards for the majority, a ballooning trade deficit, job insecurity at work, a shocking productivity record, escalating private debt and stagnating business investment.

 

“Even when it comes to the Tories’ proudest boast of 1.8m new jobs, they are the flip side of falling productivity, still below pre-crisis levels. As cosseted corporations have opted for a cheap, often migrant workforce instead of investing their cash mountains, the result has been mass underemployment, agency working, short and zero-hours contracts, bogus self-employment and rampant low pay. As to “rebalancing” the economy, there has been none“.

 

There are some people, of course, for whom the plan hasn’t failed at all: the 1,000 richest people whose wealth has doubled, or the corporations and executives whose taxes have been slashed as the state has shrunk – while the low-paid, unemployed, disabled and food bank users have taken the brunt of the Tory “consolidation”.

 

And now they’re planning to do it all over again: - with £12bn of cuts in welfare. £8bn of which have been leaked by Danny Alexander, Clegg’s Chief of Staff, in the hopes of distancing himself from his Tory Coalition colleagues in time for the election. "It wasn't us Gov". - is the Lib-Dem cry.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/29/big-lie-economic-success-may-not-save-tories

 

---------- Post added 30-04-2015 at 12:49 ----------

 

Great for anyone who got 4-1 and still backable at 7/4. I smell blood and think Clegg could be in for a shock.

 

Given that he had a 15,000 majority, this swing against him really demonstrates the depth of feeling in the Constituency. Even if he hangs on by his fingernails he has lost the respect of his Constituents. He appears entirely unprincipled, with his U turn on his tuition fee pledge and his support for the discredited Conservative austerity programme - which he is now trying to back peddle from.