Goodnight Darling…

23rd Apr

Ok, now I understand what all the fuss is about...

Now I understand why Britain is on the verge of bankruptcy. Now I understand the full scale of the criminal overspending by the Labour government, and now I understand why my future and that of my children is in such serious jeopardy.

The figures which emerged yesterday in the Budget left me absolutely gobsmacked to say the least.

Up until now I have tried and partially succeeded in getting my head around the American sub-prime mortgage debacle, NINJA mortgages, shady banking practices and the GDP.

But that was the point where small plumes of smoke began emanating from my ears as my brain struggled to deal with the overload of dull financial jargon and figures which were more like telephone numbers - and I don't mean just one telephone number.

Then poor old Alistair Darling stood before us all yesterday and gave us the hard truth - and in the words of Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men, I can't handle the truth.

Britain really is stuffed. That's probably not a strong enough word. What about buggered, knackered, up s**t creek? Even the F-word might struggle to convey the full extent of the mess we are in.

Alistair Darling was at pains yesterday to explain that by the end of this year and the start of next the first buds of recovery will sprout through the stinking pile of financial s**t which has been laid on the doorsteps of each and every household in this country.

But he would say that wouldn't he? After all he is desperate to give those high earners who were last night faced with handing over yet more of their earnings to the treasury a glimmer of hope that all is not lost.

The truth is that Britain is now the economic equivalent of the Titanic seconds after it struck an iceberg. We are shipping water and listing badly, faced with certain death in the sub-zero ocean of jobs losses and depression.

The question on everyone's lips this morning is how exactly did things get this bad? Undoubtedly the seeds of overspending were sown by the tories.

But even their irresponsibility was overshadowed by a government run by Tony Blair and overseen by then Chancellor of The Exchequer Gordon Brown.

I know there were rumours that at times their relationship was less than harmonious but surely there must have been a point when Mr. Brown, who remember was lauded as 'the greatest chancellor of our time' by Blair realised the outlook was bleak if spending continued at an almost unmanageable rate.

If he didn't - why didn't he? He was the one whose job it was to balance the books, to ensure the UK Plc ran efficiently and made a profit year on year wasn't he?

Don't get me wrong, I don't blame Gordon Brown entirely for the credit crunch. Although he was instrumental in giving banks license to print money - ironic that isn't it? - he did not cause the sub-prime mortgage collapse in the US.

But he is the man, both as Chancellor and then as Prime Minister, god forbid, who was charged with running the country's finances. Surely he could see what was coming?

I bet Tony Blair is glad he's well out of it.

Written by Doug.