"events, Dear Boy. Events", Was A Former Tory Pms Answer When Asked What Could Put A Government On Course For A U Turn.

[sandyRoe]

Will the events across the channel scupper plans to slash policing budgets?

http://home.bt.com/news/uk-news/mets-former-chief-lord-blair-warns-against-scotland-yard-budget-cuts-11364016854947

[Jackdaw33]

Harold MacMillan

[New Judge]

Not a chance, Sandy.

The UK is short of money (in part because it lavishes vast sums of it on foreigners). An unimportant little trifle like keeping law and order cannot trump the need to give £11bn pa away in Foreign Aid.

You may have noticed on Friday evening that as soon as the excrement hit the air conditioning, M. Hollande was "whisked away to safety" by his minders. The same thing will happen to the Prime Minister (and anybody else in government who happens to come within a mile of any trouble). So they are scarcely likely to spend our hard earned on the unimportant matter of keeping us safe whilst there are Brownie Points to be earned "saving Africa" (aka buying a new Mercedes or ten for its corrupt leaders).

[Gromit]

I doubt it.

They Government know that reducing police numbers will reduce the police's ability to deter and solve crimes. So they have already made a decision that that is acceptable. They are probably hoping that it won't be as bad as the police warn. But it is a gamble.

[Peter Pedant]

Yes I think they will pump money into armed forced police ( o god think of the overtime ) and cheltenham

bombing syria is still unpopulat amongst the MPs
altho the hawks are saying " just do it !" - presumably because they think it is an executive act and not a matter of legislation

and RIPA - or son of RIPA will still not be given an easy passage in parliament because the use of anti terrorist legislation to find out and fine whose dog was poo-ing in the street is still fresh in MPs minds

[Gromit]

France yesterday announced it was beefing up its homeland security with 5000 new police jobs.

[lady-janine]

have a feeling that NJ and gromit will be proved right. us 'mere mortals' don't count.

[sandyRoe]

I think the first priority of politicians is the security of the state. The welfare and safety of the people comes second. Though they wouldn't want to say that openly.

[New Judge]

The two should go hand in hand, Sandy. The State is its people.

I would take a small issue with your phrase "the welfare and safety". Safety is obviously paramount but welfare has become to mean so many things, including not having to live with two children sharing a room and having enough money to pay for Sky TV.

[Hypognosis]

@NewJudge

//and having enough money to pay for Sky TV.//

What? You've actually been hob-nobbing with dolités? That is to say *inside* their actual house?

I apologise for, hitherto, thinking you were a bit posh and stuck up.

Or is it that, with their rent all paid - the equivalent of being mortgage-free - they actually have disposable income? £240 a month, or so? £40 to Sky still leaves plenty for burgers, booze and bingo.

[sandyRoe]

But £60 a week wouldn't even run to 20 cigarettes a day.

[Hypognosis]

@SandyRoe

Aha!

So they must be getting additional money by other means?

I wonder which would be more financially efficient: -
i) Carrying out months of undercover surveillance
ii) Having a member of staff spend 7 or more days following them around, including with right to hang around with them inside their home.

A week or so without ability to acquire surruptitious income would knock them back and force some belt tightening.

I mean, if they actually get cracking on travelling around, looking for work, they're going to burn up that £60 in no time and they'll have naff all left to buy food.

How far from London can you live and still keep the £60 day-return within reach?

[Ellipsis]

Interesting on R4 this morning ... John Reid pointed out that we currently have 126,000 police, likely to be reduced to 115,000 (or even less), which happens to be the number that France put on the streets of Paris last weekend. France as a whole has 250,000 police, with roughly the same population as the UK although admittedly a much bigger area to cover ...

[Hypognosis]

@Ellipsis

I don't buy the papers so that's the first time I've seen those staggering numbers, for the Paris incidents.

As for the Tory cutbacks, there has been an undercurrent of baying mob in the UK all the while that austerity has dragged on. Do they want their mansions protecting or not? Excreta/fan interface is on standby.

£30 million public spending cuts and £30 million in tax breaks. Oh, what a coincidence.