As the coalition Government wrangles with a massive budget deficit by undertaking a public expenditure review, Fleet Street fury has whipped up an effective campaign: The Daily Mail fumes against victimising the "new poor" middle class; The Times uncovers massive public waste; and the Daily Mirror engages in battle over defence cuts.

But this is not 2010; rather it is 1921 as the expenditure review committee led by businessman Sir Eric Geddes sought more than double the departmental cuts previously earmarked by the Treasury. Known colloquially as the "Geddes Axe", it was Britain's last sustained attempt to rein in significant state spending.

Collectively, the austerity drive led to total Government spending reductions of about 25% between 1920-25, with further cuts sustained until at least 1928. The Geddes review had proposed £87m in cuts above the £75m already chosen by the Treasury. In today's figures that would be a saving of roughly £100bn, according to the research paper, Public Spending in Hard Times.

In comparison, planned cuts inherited by the current Government and those of its emergency budget mean spending will be £83bn lower in four to five years’ time, according to the Institute of Fiscal Studies


news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Expenditure-Re...e%3A_Sir_Eric_Geddes

more shonky economics and this time via a Murdoch site.

FDR bought the USA out of the worst financial calamity the world has ever seen by spending , spending and spending and creating a welfare system the USA had never had and continued to enjoy until Reagonomics/ Thatcherism kicked in with the hoary old "welfare to work' .scroungers and skivers' and every other bit of garbage that has never ever worked anywhere at anytime.(wait and see..all those plans will be abandoned within 12 months because they actually cost more to implement)

FDR's policies made the USA the most powerful country that has ever existed. They created a gigantic middle-class now being thrust backwards just as they are in GB under hopeless policies under Nu Labour (old style Thatcherism) that is now in hyoperdrive under the Tories and the soon to vanish Lib Dems ( If we are all still here in 5 years you will all need to aknowledge that there was once a Lib Dem party-now vanished and I was right).

There is a simple solution (well complicated perhaps)..collect the true tax owed by corporations..it adds up to tens of billions of pounds. That's tax avoided and owed that no working man in a waged job could ever avoid.

And of course the Daily Mial will support the 'middle class'..that is their market. It's Murdoch's publications you should worry about..he is in heat and after blood..Obama's now, the Aust Labor Party and he has the Tories under his thumb.

You have bigger problems than a deficit-you have a newspaper baron laying the groundwork for Fascism...and his son looks like beign a chip of the block.

Worry.

veritas wrote:
If we are all still here in 5 years you will all need to aknowledge that there was once a Lib Dem party-now vanished and I was right

You are not listening, are you, veritas ?

83% of the British public SUPPORT the cuts.

When we have sorted out the chaff, the country will grow again (and we won;t be held down by mountains of debt repayments) - just in time for the next election !

83% ?. Rubbish. That's a poll and we would have to know how many people were polled and what questions were asked.

The figure defies reality as least 60% of Brits will be directly affected by the cuts. Plus every small business which traditionally the Tories batttled for will be so badly affected you will see more mass unemployment.

probably a Sky News poll.

You are proving my point time and time again. Politics led by the media who are led by corporations. Politicians on either side who no longer have ideals...just masters.