Here's one idea. Rather than blowing millions on Microsoft licenses (Civil service, NHS and Police for example all have expensive corporate MS licenses) Why not follow the example of the French Police and go open source/ GNU? Would save the taxpayer a packet straight off!

Well we could start by reducing the number of MPs for a start ,can someone remind me why we have so many
All areas of public services need to become more efficient. There are far too many employees working in the public sector,the bureaucracy created by Labour (and the EU) is the biggest drain on OUR money.
There is of course the £45M a day we give to the EU. I would stop giving it to them

My top candidates would be
1) Limit state pensions.
2) Foreign aid budget closed until situation improves
3) No tax credits/child benefit etc for those earning 40k+, and child benefit for a max od 2children, if you can't afford them don't have them.
4) Unemployment benefits limited to a max of 1/2 minimum wage for a full time position, total to include,housing benefit, and any other such payments
5) Whitehall halved at least and farmed out to cheaper areas of the country
6) Trident replacement Bye Bye
7) All profits from bailed out banks into the treasury, we own them so why not
8) get rid of all the unnessary mangers in the NHS, and ban cosmetic operations on the NHS unless they are reconstructive after surgery or accident
9) Cease payments to the EU, why should we prop up other nations when we need to sort out our own economy
10) Cease all benefit payments to non uk citizens

Thats a start

Stop paying the labor party...

Also,

No benefits for non-UK citizens.
No foreign aid unless there's a disaster.
Leave the EU.
Increase taxes on imported products which can be bought in the UK.
No welfare for unemployed unless actively seeking a job.
Increase petrol tax (therefore pushing people onto public transport as well, I could probably say it was a green initiative or something)
Close the Climate Research Institute
Provide incentives for starting compainies that will manufacture goods needed in the UK to compensate importing them.
Refuse to pay the UN more than is required of the UK, if Zambia won't pay their fees, we won't.

Scrapping the welfare state is an option.
The two downsides i can see with scrapping it is that people who aren't just given money by the state could and probably would end up creating havoc when they get desperate for food and shelter etc. etc. I personally would like to see the gov. run the risk of dealing with that civil discord and scrap the welfare state and save taxpayers a fortune than continue with the status quo.
The other downside is that people would be left destitue and famished. What get's me is that the people who would lose their benefits and would end up starving to death seem quite content to indulge in beer and fags and tv's and mobile phones etc. etc. while Africans starve to death but would react with horror if someone suggested there's no reason why they should be spared the same fate if that's what nature dictated!

Originally Posted by TheMixer

Scrapping the welfare state is an option.
The two downsides i can see with scrapping it is that people who aren't just given money by the state could and probably would end up creating havoc when they get desperate for food and shelter etc. etc. I personally would like to see the gov. run the risk of dealing with that civil discord and scrap the welfare state and save taxpayers a fortune than continue with the status quo.

Yeah civil war would be a downside I agree!

The other downside is that people would be left destitue and famished.

Yeah that wouldn't be nice to have to pass in the street would it?

What get's me is that the people who would lose their benefits and would end up starving to death seem quite content to indulge in beer and fags and tv's and mobile phones etc. etc.

and as for their children, well they shouldn't have been stupid enough to be born should they?

while Africans starve to death but would react with horror if someone suggested there's no reason why they should be spared the same fate if that's what nature dictated!

The construction of this sentence is a bit clumsy are you suggesting that the average person in Africa dying in extreme poverty accepts it as a quite a natural and just state of being, prefering that in fact to accepting help from charity?

1: Leave the EU (trade only).
2: Cease all foreign aid until we are solvent again.
3: Child benefit to only be paid to those earning 30K or less
4: MP's numbers reduced by 10-20%
5: Efficiency savings in government depts.
6: All non UK citizens would not receive benefits until we are solvent again.
7: Set up a programme to help move those unemployed to areas where there are jobs that they are capable of carrying out, if they dont take the job their benefits are cut to a bare minimum necessary for survival, any child benefits to be paid in some manner where the money has to be used for the child.
8: Raise the tax bracket so it's worthwhile taking low paid jobs.

Originally Posted by Opinionated

The construction of this sentence is a bit clumsy are you suggesting that the average person in Africa dying in extreme poverty accepts it as a quite a natural and just state of being, prefering that in fact to accepting help from charity?

No. I'm saying that people on the dole can live with themselves while people are starving to death in Africa but if it was them they'd be angry that they were left to die and that selfishness means we don't have to care about them.

Originally Posted by Opinionated

Yeah that wouldn't be nice to have to pass in the street would it?

Well hopefully someone would be charitable and set up refuge centres, say large tents, where they can be provided basic needs until they got a job but the fact that that's left to chance isn't sufficent reason to continue providing for them through the dole.

Originally Posted by Opinionated

Yeah civil war would be a downside I agree!

O.K so someone's gong to get violent if they don't get what they want. Let's just give in and hey! Why not increase benefit so they can have a few days at the seaside every now and again!

Originally Posted by ryoden

benefits are cut to a bare minimum necessary for survival,

Isn't that what's happening now? If not then it should be!

Originally Posted by TheMixer

Isn't that what's happening now? If not then it should be!

Hardly, Both Cons and Lab said they were going to take a tougher stance with benefits but I dont believe it was clear what they were intending, ergo I believe currently we still have some people happy to take benefits and not work.

Well actually I suppose that scrupulously honest people are hardly living it up on benefits just the ones who are happy to take advantage of the system, for example my parents were blissfully unaware that you can get a home help type benefit if you need help at home (my mother is badly arthritic and has a few other conditions so she is registered disabled since she cant walk far without assistance) but she was refused, which normally I wouldnt have contested until I heard that another man in the same street who we had found out about this benefit from had got it no problem and he only had a bad leg (he can still get about easily enough from what we have seen). The difference was however he had his form filled in by a friend who works in the dept where they deal with them and it seems if you say certain things or put things in a certain way you tick the right boxes and get the benefit.

So currently the system seems to support those who make a career out of working around the benefits system while those it's supposed to help flail in the dark.

I would cut spending in the following ways:

• Reduce military spending and reduce the size of our operation in Afghanistan.
• Raise tuition fees by £1000 to £4229 or reduce the number of worthless "f*** off" degrees in universities.
• Half the number of NHS bureaucrats.
• Increase income tax for earners of £500,000+ to 70% for one term.
• Reform the unemployment benefit to a 3 week limit before offering candidates a job (with tax credits) or withdrawing benefits.

This list just gives a flavour of what I would suggest...

Economy certainly isn't my political strong point, but I'll give it a shot.

1) Get rid of Methadone altogether
2) Cut all benefits for illegal immigrants
3) Cut the number of MP's to about 500 and slash the number of members of the house of Lords to about 200which in future will be elected
4) Give MP's a slight pay rise but remove expenses.
5) Be more selective over who gets JSA and other benefits
6) Downsize our nuclear arsenal however still keep a nuclear deterrent
7) Stop all foreign aid until the Budget deficit is halved, with the exception of natural disasters such as the Haitian earthquake or the Tsunami in South East Asia

Give Scotland it's independence.

Originally Posted by Tete123

Give Scotland it's independence.

Scotland doesn't want independence.

Originally Posted by SaveTheUK

Scotland doesn't want independence.

Doesn't it?

Oh well it would cut state spending though wouldn't it. Can also set the Welsh free too.

Unlikely but I'd like to see the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish parliaments closed and all power sent back to Westminster.

Originally Posted by SaveTheUK

Unlikely but I'd like to see the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish parliaments closed and all power sent back to Westminster.

That would precipitate a split in the union would it not. Although I agree that the devolved parliaments should either be closed or England should be given their own to legislate and vote on English only issues.

Originally Posted by SaveTheUK

Unlikely but I'd like to see the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish parliaments closed and all power sent back to Westminster.

This would be alligned with your EU beliefs...you are not looking for Westminster controlling Scotland but a full on entry to the EU including the Euro?

Well I don't believe we should enter the Euro just now as the conditions just aren't right. I do believe we should join the Euro when the time is right but that may never happen. I agree with David Cameron that we should be in the EU but not ruled by the EU, and I'd like to see the whole EU reformed so that it's an economic alliance but not a European super state and certain powers should IMO be devolved back to Westminster and the 26 othe national governments.

I can see your point...very in line with Lib Dems.

to return to the title of the thread I would like to raise something different.

All parties are advocating transparency. What interests me is one simple fact.

If a government is transparent then it would have to release details of current contracts to at least the opposition...if it had done so every excuse for not giving details on the cuts proposed would have disappeared....why were they not made available...what is waiting?