No surprise that Government is diverting cash to Scotland

THE revelation that the Government is happy to divert Brussels money that could be partly used to regenerate Yorkshire to Scotland shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Let’s be honest, the whole scheme is a bribe to ‘influence’ the Scots to vote in the referendum against independence (Yorkshire Post, May 14).

Quite frankly this cobbled coalition couldn’t give a damn about Yorkshire or its troubles, totally overlooking the huge potential that Yorkshire has to offer the rest of the country: in fact I strongly suspect that those in that “comfy world of Westminster” only see Yorkshire – and especially East Yorkshire – as a place more suitable for wind-farms and the odd holiday.

However, what really makes 
me angry is the way David Cameron and his entourage come out with promises to help the deficit yet fail to action them – take raising the cost of alcohol that would have raised money via tax as well as help stop alcoholism abuse.

However that has been shelved, and I wonder if, in truth, it was because “big business”, in the way of the breweries and drinks companies, put pressure on him to drop the idea?

Similarly the good idea of packaging cigarettes in plain packets was dropped – was that also dropped because the tobacco industries applied heavy pressure because they didn’t want to lose sales? Or was it in both cases because the Chancellor realised that he/the Government would loose a fair amount of tax if sales dropped?

Equally, our Government seem quite able to shrug off and ignore their own horrendous mistakes that cost us billions such as the MoD changing their minds over airplane designs halfway through manufacture.

Frankly, I’ve got to the stage that I wouldn’t trust any of them to run a three-legged race, let alone a country. All I can say is God help us!

Money stays
at the top

From: George Appleby, Leighton Croft, Clifton, York.

“WHERE’S the money coming from? We are in a depression!” they keep shouting, as they tighten the screws even more on what we are working and have worked for; the hard-working, tax-paying, honest, patriotic, proud, all in it together, lower and middle classes!

Those who want it all changed and see what’s going on in our name know where it definitely is not coming from. The cheating, all-in-it-for-ourselves bankers, MPs, big business, top income, tax dodgers who hang on to power and salt their selfish, ill-gotten gains around the world in tax havens. They will not change it!

Debt was worse under Clarke

From: Allan Davies, Heathfield Court, Grimsby, NE Lincs.

THE letters from Mr Alan Carcas and Mr Alan Chapman (Yorkshire Post, May 6) are not the first nor will they be the last to perpetuate the myth that Gordon Brown was responsible for the present level of government indebtedness. Certainly he had been in office when the worldwide financial crisis occurred and, equally, debt rose sharply after he ceased to be the Chancellor, but post hoc, ergo propter hoc is a fallacious form of reasoning.

The relevant data is readily available and abundantly clear for those prepared to look it up.

Net public sector debt in the years 1995-7 was higher than in any year of Tony Blair’s government until the banking collapse. The ratio was 41.9 per cent in 1995-6 and 42.5 per cent in 1996-7. It fell to 40.6 per cent in 1997-8 and to 29.7 per cent in 2001-2. In the last full year before the crisis it stood at 35.9 per cent, which is lower than at any time in Mr Kenneth Clarke’s stewardship.