Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

The true FACTS about Thatchers reign not the right wing myths peddled here over the last 2 days.


Tuesday 09 Apr 2013

FactCheck: the Thatcher myths



As the nation looks back at the legacy of the Thatcher era, FactCheck separates fact from fiction.

Thatcher the milk snatcher

The nickname was coined by Labour in opposition and the press after the government abolished free school milk for over-sevens in 1970 when Margaret Thatcher was education secretary.



But according to her memoirs and archives, Lady Thatcher herself had argued in cabinet against getting rid of free milk altogether. It was a policy driven by the Treasury, first under Iain Macleod, then Anthony Barber.

So in Barber’s first budget of October 1970, the policy was limited to children above the age of seven, and special schools and children with medical needs were excluded.

She was an arch-eurosceptic

It certainly wasn’t always that way.

During the 1975 referendum on whether the UK should remain in the EEC, this was her opening gambit as she launched the Conservative campaign: “I welcome this opportunity to launch the Conservative campaign to keep Britain in Europe.”

In 1978, while still in opposition, she called for consideration of a common European approach to defence, and criticised the Labour government for failing to sign up to the exchange rate mechanism.

In 1986, she signed the single European act, which set a deadline of 1992 for the full completion of the single market to allow the free movement of goods, capital and people within Europe.



She had, however, fought for Britain’s position in Europe. In 1984, Thatcher threatened to stop payments to Europe unless the UK won its rebate – the “We want our money back” moment often misquoted as “I want my money back” .

Her position became more entrenched,culminating in the Bruges speech of 1988 in which she criticised an apparent “European super-state exercising a new dominance from Brussels”.

She took a hard line with the IRA

Thatcher was known for her uncompromising position on the IRA and the Maze prison hunger strikers in 1981. Ten men – seven IRA and three Irish National Liberation Army members - died during a campaign to secure political status for republican prisoners. Thatcher refused to budge as the men starved themselves to death, one by one.

But files of cabinet discussions released under the 30-year rule reveal that she negotiated directly with the republican leadership in an apparent attempt to resolve the crisis, and she considered whether compulsory “intravenous feeding” could be used to keep prisoners alive.

Messages were sent between MI6 and the IRA, with details concessions on clothing, parcels and visits the government would offer if the strike was called off.

One note appeared to carry Thatcher’s distinctive handwritten alterations. The following day, the Northern Ireland secretary, Humphrey Atkins, confirmed that she had approved the messages.

The economy boomed

Only for a while. In the late 1980s GDP growth was topping 5 per cent. But the Thatcher era was book-ended by two recessions, from 1980 to 1981 and from 1990 to 1991.

Annual GDP growth averages out at about 2.3 per cent over the whole of Baroness Thatcher’s time in office compared to 2.5 per cent under Tony Blair.



She destroyed the welfare state

Wrong again.

Persistent high unemployment was part of the reason why total spending on benefits rose from £53bn in today’s prices in 1979/80 to £77bn in 1990/91.

Public spending overall went up in cash terms every year under Lady Thatcher, generally keeping up with inflation. In 1982/83 the government was spending 48 per cent of GDP, more than in any year under Blair or Brown.

Spending had fallen dramatically as a share of GDP by the late 80s, but that was mainly because the economy grew quickly, not because spending was cut.

She cut taxes

No. She did lower taxes for the rich – lowering the top rate from 83 per cent to 60 then 40 per cent. But that was offset by a rise in VAT from 8 to 15 per cent.

Total tax and national insurance receipts as a percentage of GDP were actually slightly higher in 1989/90 than in 1979/80: 35 per cent rather than 33.7.

She destroyed manufacturing

The Thatcher era certainly saw de-industrialisation, but that process began before she became prime minister and accelerated under Blair and Brown.

Manufacturing output fell from 25 per cent of the economy in 1980 to 23 per cent in 1990.



The decline was much faster under Labour – manufacturing fell from 17 per cent of the economy to just 11 per cent between 2000 and 2010.

Most advanced economies have experienced a similar decline in manufacturing as a share of GDP.

The poor got poorer

It depends what you mean by “poor”.

The gap between rich and poor certainly got wider. Relative poverty and earnings inequality went up under Lady Thatcher.



That doesn’t mean the poor actually lost money, it’s just that the top earners did considerably better - a point Lady Thatcher made forcefully in her last appearance at the Commons dispatch box.

Median earnings went up faster than under John Major or in Labour’s second and third terms, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.



And while wages among the very lowest earners didn’t increase as fast as the top earners, they did go up too, according to Treasury data.

Of course we have to remember your wages could only go up if you had a job. Unemployment reached 3.2 million in 1984, a rate of 11.8 per cent – both record highs

http://blogs.channel4.com/factcheck/factcheck-the-thatcher-myths/13236

Now this is a CORKER OF A FACT and eye opener............

Public spending overall went up in cash terms every year under Lady Thatcher, generally keeping up with inflation. In 1982/83 the government was spending 48 per cent of GDP, more than in any year under Blair or Brown.

YES INCLUDING BROWN.

Right off to feed the trout, I hate them pellets and then watching 2nd half of Madrid match.

When I was growing up in this country we didn't need to have all these statistics and surveys about why young people behaved badly. I was given a good smack on my backside if I put a toe out of line. Too many parents today pass the responsibility of bringing up their children on to teachers or child minders. One of my friends recently went on a holiday cruise with her husband and said their holiday was completely ruined because children were running up and down the corridors outside their bedroom door late at night while their parents were getting pissed at the bar. No "class barriers amongst the young" gf and you have a huge class barrier chip on your shoulder for whatever reason.

Quicky DB yes you are so right above, its the birth of Thatchers latch door key kid that has created the present no respect society.

ps, so sorry to hear of all the noice outside your house last night. I hope you get a good nights sleep tonight. Try some boveril, always works for me.

Laters after footy.

The term "latch key kid" originated in the 1940's during World War II.

I did try to reason with the mindless muppets who were celebrating last night gf, but most of them were totally pissed - courtesy of our benefit system. You just cannot reason with drunks, especially left-wing anarchist drunks. I probably need to move to a more civilised part of the country, one of the few parts of this country which is left, where upper class toffs know how to behave and respect their neighbours. Does that place exist anywhere now in Britain?

You are right skinny the term "latch key kid" originated long before Margaret Thatcher became PM.

goldfinger - 09 Apr 2013 17:39 - 23176 of 23210

Greekman ....what job did you used to do?. You havent answered my question yet.

Not managed to catch up with all today's posts, been busy bossing the lowly paid, riff raff into shape.

But anyways, I see the mighty goldfinger is applying his double standards with both barrels today. You could answer a few questions yourself goldfinger, like, how you managed to expose Maxwell when you were five years old or perhaps Cynic's question as to how you were going to expose him?

Then we have you repeatedly posting MoneyAm's T&Cs as if they were your own, whining about posts you considered insulting and then quite happily throwing insults at other posters. I mean come on, there's twats and hypocritical twats, which two are you?

Hays,

Would like to be more explicit about where you think my daughter escorted me to?

-------------

Skinny,

I hope you owned up when you saw your photograph.

---
3 m.

I will explain to you later.

But her favourite course was Eggs Florentine, we both still enjoy this dish.

--------

Just had a text message from Australia.

Ding Dong,

The witch is dead.

We have started the day with Champagne.

----------

"She" seems to have been loved everywhere.

Fred
I meant my son and friends. It was not a restaurant.

goldplunger seems to be getting quite pompous about MoneyAM's rules. I am sure we all know the rules and they rarely appear to be broken and certainly NOT by any of the people that goldwhinger points his finger at.

Yes you guys are right about the lacth key kid, but Thatchers was remamed the latch DOOR key kid. Gentleman please lets have it accurate.

Fantastic 2nd half of football from the Turks.

Chuckles no problem old cock ....just wait on a second.Illbe back.

What on earth is a

latch DOOR key kid.

as opposed to a

latch key kid?

I looked for that exact phrase on Google and there are only a handful of matches. Almost every one is a use mentioned over the last 2 days. That suggests that the phrase was NEVER used in or after Thatcher's time. Yet another invention of the left.

There will be more than a few bottles of champagne drunk when you shuttle of this mortal coil Fred, you sad, bitter, left wing, commi old fart. (thats being polite).

Here we are chuckles Ill flog it you for the knock down price of £17.99 youl get to know evertyhing you ask in your post above.

And for good measure Ill sign it for you.

Now I cant be any more generous than that........

ohhh and by the way second point terms and conditions of site, yes thats still with Ian and more importantly your re-posted squelched post, which is covered by the terms.

I do hope to see an out come tomorrow.

Haystack, I was probably a latch door key kid, but that was long before Thatcher's time. During all of my primary school years, I toddled off to school on my own and returned home in the afternoon. No parental supervision, one parent family and he was out working. So I looked after myself, as did many of my school mates. The point I make is that Thatcher was not responsible for somehow inventing generations of kids who became latch door key kids, they were already well established.

Getting to be a nice little coumfy thread this, shame its politics and Maggies death that has brought us so close together. Never mind not long now before local elections and total tory annihilation.