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back to article LibCons bin £2bn of late Labour projects

The coalition government has scrapped 12 projects worth £2bn pounds that were agreed during the final months of Labour's rule. Twelve further projects, worth £8.5bn, have been suspended. Stonehenge Visitor Centre got the axe, as did a number of projects with a likely IT component including Sheffield steelmaker Forgemasters ( …

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  1. Richard Fletcher

    Sheffield hit hard

    I live in Sheffield, and my first response was "We've been hit hard". But on the other hand, loans should be commercially available, and the retail quarter doesn't need building while no one has any money. It's not like we have no shops. There's plenty of choice...

    I would argue though that we should do more than reduce the deficit, we should build a surplus. I don't know if it could be agreed politically, (i.e. party A saves and party B spends so party A always look like tight wads and party B look caring and generous).

    But if we had a surplus we could be earning interest rather than paying it. And when the shit hits the fan it's much easier to cope with.

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    1. Mike007 Bronze badge
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      potentially

      The only way I see this working is with long term coalitions, so we don't keep getting complete changes of government who can do as they like before getting replaced by someone else who can sort the mess out.

      That plus you get a more neutral government who aren't there working in the interests of a specific party, so they can't buy seats with tax payers money quite as easily...

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    2. Anonymous Coward
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      Anonymous Coward

      Zero defecit or a surplus can be a problem.

      Pension funds are required by law to hold a percentage of their assets in Gilts. Gilts are the government borrowing money at a guaranteed rate of return for the investor. They are seen as fireproof investment, safe and risk free but not the best ROI in a pension portfolio. Hence the need for laws to require their ownership, without the law pension funds might be inclined to put all their money in better return items like mortgages. We all know what happens when these turn out to be sub-prime.

      At the end of the Major years when government borrowing was at an all time low the value of Gilts was being artificially inflated because there simply was not enough available. Pensions were having to pay more than face value for them simply because they were required to hold a certain number by law. They had to be bought even if the price was poor. Major, Lamont and Clarke went slightly too far in deficit reduction.

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  2. Anonymous Coward
    Paris Hilton

    @ mountain man (or isit man mountain)?

    Yep, me too.

    However it ain't just government or politicians that need to uphold the voice of the people.

    Once it has spoke it has spoke and yea verily , I too am unsettled with thought of new regime and twice Yea Verily warming to it's approach and thrice Yea Verily respect and uphold wish of said public 'cos that does seem our individual responsibilities under the way things operate UK style.

    Otherwise: why vote?

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  3. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Flame

    Sheffield Forgemasters. More of the Dark Lords work

    It seems it was a promise of Lord Mandelscums opening of the empty chequebook.

    Looked up the PR about the 15Kt press. It seems there are 5 companies *globally* who can forge this kind of stuff at this kind of size.

    While in *theory* banks should consider this as a reasonable business proposition I'd love to find out how well the UK domestic banking (Barclays, LloydsTSBNAtwest, HSBC) actually handle these sorts of requests. Badly I suspect. Nowhere near the 3% they were *offered*

    BTW Forged components have the highest mechanical properties and can be near net shape (little or no final machining) giving a complex part made in nearly 1 step.

    Flame because giving people such hope *knowing* there is not a cat in hells chance of funding it is just about the lowest kind of political opportunist.

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