What is Lenihan hoping to achieve by warning us of hairshirt budget??

changes

What exactly is the government hoping to achieve by warning us this early of the drastic budget that lies ahead. Brian Lenihan was saying today that it will be at least 3 billion.

Is he trying to stop people spending anything over the winter or in the run up to christmas. I don't understand his logic.

Is anyone else getting more and more depressed with our governments attempt to get us out of this mess. Year after year of austerity budgets that seem to be achieving nothing.

Do they have a clue what they are doing or how they are coming across to the ordinary man and woman in the street?

dan_d

In answer to your questions:

I haven't a clue what he's trying to achieve

They haven't a clue what they're trying to achieve.

I'm pretty much in the depths of depression right now.

Liam Byrne

I reckon it's so that when it's "only" 2.5 billion of cuts that we'll be relieved and some of the sheep will reckon that it means FF ain't so bad after all.

mikemac

People told to expect savage cuts or tax hikes

Then the cuts are big but not as bad as many predicted
Some breathe a sign of relief "well it could have been worse"
Anger dissipated, result achieved.
Not everyone will fall for it but some will

Standard political tactic, most every government in any country does it

danbohan

feelingstressed wrote: »

People told to expect savage cuts or tax hikes

Then the cuts are big but not as bad as many predicted
Some breathe a sign of relief "well it could have been worse"
Anger dissipated, result achieved.
Not everyone will fall for it but some will

Standard political tactic, most every government in any country does it

Standard political tactic, most every government in any country does it

most every goverment in most every country are not in the sh;t we are in , the cuts will be hard this year , they will be very hard next year and the year after that , maybe by then irish people will begin to realise the con job that has been done on them

changes

If its a tactic then its sounds like a dangerous one to me. They are going to frighten people into spending even less.

Liam Byrne

changes wrote: »

If its a tactic then its sounds like a dangerous one to me. They are going to frighten people into spending even less.

Considering that they're already after ensuring that we have less to spend, are you surprised ?

thebman

There is the possibility that they are trying to prep the public sector for more cuts and reforms and that they are being pressurised by ECB into doing so.

Most likely its just what everyone else is saying.

bryaner

feelingstressed wrote: »

People told to expect savage cuts or tax hikes

Then the cuts are big but not as bad as many predicted
Some breathe a sign of relief "well it could have been worse"
Anger dissipated, result achieved.
Not everyone will fall for it but some will

Standard political tactic, most every government in any country does it

Standard tactic of old but I'm not too sure about these days, it's gona be ugly..

hinault

We're now in the cliche uttering stage of the lifecycle of this govt.

They're mouthing phrases and words, for the sake of it at this point.

bryaner

I'll be looking good getting me €100 a poxy week cut, let's go fookin mental.

Could be jingle mail soon.

imme

It's been the FF-way in the last number of years to leak and/or announce in advance that things will be bad. That way people are softened up.

Nijmegen

Can this country not remember back 12 or 24 months? Before every budget we're told to expect doom and fire and brimstone and then we feel relieved when all we get is a bit of an earthquake.

That being said, with the increase in interest on our debt I think the government is going to have to cut further and further. And that's before we question whether or not their growth predictions are in line with reality.

In the coming years just paying the interest on our national debt will eat up 16% of the total tax take each year.

bryaner

Nijmegen wrote: »

Can this country not remember back 12 or 24 months? Before every budget we're told to expect doom and fire and brimstone and then we feel relieved when all we get is a bit of an earthquake.

That being said, with the increase in interest on our debt I think the government is going to have to cut further and further. And that's before we question whether or not their growth predictions are in line with reality.

In the coming years just paying the interest on our national debt will eat up 16% of the total tax take each year.

Everyone with a bit of cop knows the governments format before a budget,

throw out a few howlers and then pull them back, things are different now

and all howlers are likely to stay.

Idbatterim

at this stage I cant see how we can go on much longer, the cuts being implemented are based on quite high growth rates we wont achieve, the government are going to cut more and more, interest rates will rise across the board. The gap between expenditure and income is just too huge. You really wonder when it will all come undone, Id guess 2011, 2012 latest...

jimmycrackcorm

changes wrote: »

What exactly is the government hoping to achieve by warning us this early of the drastic budget that lies ahead. Brian Lenihan was saying today that it will be at least 3 billion.

Is he trying to stop people spending anything over the winter or in the run up to christmas. I don't understand his logic.

Is anyone else getting more and more depressed with our governments attempt to get us out of this mess. Year after year of austerity budgets that seem to be achieving nothing.

Do they have a clue what they are doing or how they are coming across to the ordinary Dole claimant and Public Service worker in the street?

FYP - not so bad now.
What are you trying to say- that either he should cut nothing or absolutely swipe tens of billions off?

Last budget took billions off and yet car sales went up this year for example.

maninasia

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

FYP - not so bad now.
What are you trying to say- that either he should cut nothing or absolutely swipe tens of billions off?

Last budget took billions off and yet car sales went up this year for example.

Wasn't there some type of cash back stimulus from the govt for cars?

dan_d

Yes there was a scrappage scheme introduced.I believe that car sales went up in recent months,not in the early part of the year, as it's coming to an end at Christmas.

murphaph

I hope it is a hairshirt budget, and I hope the next one is as well. I hope so because:
a) Ireland is broke and absolutely MUST get spending under control
b) It will make FG's task a tiny bit easier if FF make a few hard(ish) decisions before they are removed at the next election (hopefully)

Poly

Listening to Cowen on radio 1 now, sounds hungover and sick

ian_m

Poly wrote: »

Listening to Cowen on radio 1 now, sounds hungover and sick

Still píssed you mean? Time for a breakfast roll. Let's hope it doesn't make him go green.

gurramok

dan_d wrote: »

Yes there was a scrappage scheme introduced.I believe that car sales went up in recent months,not in the early part of the year, as it's coming to an end at Christmas.

Still way less than the amount of sales in 2008. The lure of a 2010 car(yeh extra digit for the ego) helped.

I have a feeling FF are delaying the worse until after the 2012 election so the opposition would get blamed for the necessary cuts.

Tora Bora

Whats a "hairshirt":eek:

Popped over to Paris last week, for my usual Charvet shirts, and I asked the guy there. He said he didn't know, so I just took the silk versions, I always get:D

Am I missing out on something?

Idbatterim

Idbatterim wrote: »

at this stage I cant see how we can go on much longer, the cuts being implemented are based on quite high growth rates we wont achieve, the government are going to cut more and more, interest rates will rise across the board. The gap between expenditure and income is just too huge. You really wonder when it will all come undone, Id guess 2011, 2012 latest...

have a look at when most government bonds are due to mature/roll over.....if we go bankrupt/sovereign default it will occur during the life of the next government FF are smart enough they bailed out their buddies, the politicians all have golden pensions and nobody answered if any ministers had money in Anglo or not.

They pulled off a massive heist and will be out of the office when the real trouble starts

changes

Isn't it amazing that we are giving anglo 10's of billions and we are still not up in arms demanding to know exactly who borrowed what, who the billions will be used to pay off etc.

People went mad on liveline and other radio stations when the government indicated that they wanted to spend 1 million on a tunnel but we (& i include our irish journalists) are not really really really pressing to know the true story of anglo (those who pay (i.e taxpayers) should have ther right to full disclosure).

Too many people's eyes glaze over when anglo is mentioned sadly.

Idbatterim

good point about FF probably knowing that they should currently do as much damage limitation as possible now. i.e. cut as little as possible, knowing that it is very unlikely the opposition will be screwed and then everyone a year or two later will say "FF werent this bad" and they will be back in power again pretty quick!