£6 Billion - where would you direct it?

[Protheroe]

There are calls from across the political spectrum to make the £20 / week pandemic-bonus to Universal Credit permanent.

Much as I agree that this measure is necessary until restrictions are ended, do we really want to commit ourselves to an unfunded £6 billion per annum?

Good liberals like me have given up the pretence that government might return to something resembling a balanced budget or the concept of sound money (probably for the rest of my lifetime), however if we are going to spunk our childrens and grandchildrens future earnings on something wouldn't it be better if we directed it towards the defining crisis of our time?

Social care for the elderly.

[Logic1]

There are calls from across the political spectrum to make the £20 / week pandemic-bonus to Universal Credit permanent.

Much as I agree that this measure is necessary until restrictions are ended, do we really want to commit ourselves to an unfunded £6 billion per annum?

Good liberals like me have given up the pretence that government might return to something resembling a balanced budget or the concept of sound money (probably for the rest of my lifetime), however if we are going to spunk our childrens and grandchildrens future earnings on something wouldn't it be better if we directed it towards the defining crisis of our time?

Social care for the elderly.

Give it to me. I will purchase WBA Holdings Ltd and we will be in the Champions League within 3 seasons. To be honest, that's probably a better investment than sending it (indirectly) to one of Rees-Moggs Hedge-funds, which is the likely outcome.

[Ossian]

How about we get the £12 billion back off Serco for not delivering test and trace and split that 50:50 to fund a year of both.

[Loanee]

£22bn on the failed track & trace wasn’t it?

[Protheroe]

£22bn on the failed track & trace wasn’t it?

https://fullfact.org/health/local-nation...t-tracing/

Still far too much bit nowhere near £10 let alone £22 bn

[baggy1]

£22bn on the failed track & trace wasn’t it?

https://fullfact.org/health/local-nation...t-tracing/

Still far too much bit nowhere near £10 let alone £22 bn

Probably a bit early to say what the final cost is but the contract was for 22Bn and by that report only 4Bn had been invoiced in October (so about 6 months). As with most companies the acid test will be the end of the contract when everyone makes sure they spend their budget so that it doesn't get cut for the following year.

[Protheroe]

£22bn on the failed track & trace wasn’t it?

https://fullfact.org/health/local-nation...t-tracing/

Still far too much bit nowhere near £10 let alone £22 bn

Probably a bit early to say what the final cost is but the contract was for 22Bn and by that report only 4Bn had been invoiced in October (so about 6 months). As with most companies the acid test will be the end of the contract when everyone makes sure they spend their budget so that it doesn't get cut for the following year.

Not really, the vast majority of the resource is now focused on the reasonably succesful "test" rather than the abortive "track & trace" element.

[BeijingBaggie]

A striker probably...

[FenlandBoing]

There are calls from across the political spectrum to make the £20 / week pandemic-bonus to Universal Credit permanent.

Much as I agree that this measure is necessary until restrictions are ended, do we really want to commit ourselves to an unfunded £6 billion per annum?

Good liberals like me have given up the pretence that government might return to something resembling a balanced budget or the concept of sound money (probably for the rest of my lifetime), however if we are going to spunk our childrens and grandchildrens future earnings on something wouldn't it be better if we directed it towards the defining crisis of our time?

Social care for the elderly.

Social care for elderly or split with promotion of industries where we currently rely on imports from EU to create permanent semi-skilled jobs.