Chancellor Must Cut Fuel Taxes Now!

[Wolfie]

The ABD today reminds Britain's drivers that the UK has by far the highest average fuel prices in Europe and that 59p of an 80p pump price goes directly to the government, very little of which gets spent on the roads.

Diesel prices in particular are far lower in Europe. The UK price is now over 80p per litre yet in almost all European countries it is below 55p. This not only affects the many diesel car users but also, by forcing up costs for van and truck operators means we all pay an artificially high price for all goods delivered to stores - from Cornflakes to Cars.

Petrol is now above 80p a litre here - a ridiculous level when it is still well below 70p in most of Europe and below 60p in Spain, Switzerland, Austria, Greece and Czech Republic.

Recent pronouncements from Kim Howells, Transport Minister, however indicate the government has no intention of reducing the tax burden on drivers and vehicle operators. He indicated that fuel taxes should go no lower and stated that he felt the best way of getting drivers to switch to public transport "probably is to try to tax people out of their cars in the same way as the authorities have tried to tax people off cigarettes" followed by "I don't think fuel is particularly expensive in Britain." How out of touch can a government minister be?

No country taxes motorists like the UK, yet of the 46 billion collected each year by our cash hungry government, only around 6 billion is spent on our crumbling, archaic road system. One only has to cross to France, Germany, Switzerland or Spain to see good examples of what can be achieved with proper investment in roads with surfaces which are both safer and more pleasant to drive and cycle upon. Dangerous junctions are improved, whilst towns and villages are bypassed, often making use of tunnels. Any sizeable town boasts underground parking and a bypass, making life better for the inhabitants, whether on foot, cycle or in their car. Here, one is hard pushed to find any underground parking and bypass building virtually ceased in the nineties resulting in congested and dangerous town centres.

ABD Chairman Brian Gregory said: 'This extortionate milking of the motorist has to stop. This government sees drivers as nothing more than a cash cow. The average road in the UK would have signs warning of poor road conditions if it were in France or Spain yet we are paying far more in extortionate taxes. How have we been allowed to fall so far behind when we are charged so much?'

ABD spokesman Nigel Humphries said: 'The government had a stroke of luck after the last fuel protests when the price of crude oil went down. This eased the pressure on drivers and vehicle operators enabling the chancellor to avoid cutting duty. However, that luck has now run out and prices are at their highest for 13 years. How much more will drivers and vehicle operators take'?

 

[cianocarroll125]

another fuel blockade perhaps? not much fun while its on i know, but if it means the government takes notice i'm prepared to put up with it.

 

[roXXo]

What a load of bollocks

Do you want to pay French / german / danish levels of income tax.
There are as many shit roads on the continent as here.
These tax questions are pointless. Everybody has to pay so chill out and enjoy life. :beer:

 

[skippy]

Do you want to pay French / german / danish levels of income tax.
There are as many shit roads on the continent as here.
These tax questions are pointless. Everybody has to pay so chill out and enjoy life. :beer:

Ahh but we already do mate its called national insurance tax, council tax, fuel tax, noisy cans tax, small numberplate tax, road tax, dark visor tax, oops my wndscreen washer bottle has run out tax, speeding tax, victims of crime surcharge on the speeding tax tax,
if I choose to smoke tax, if I choose to drink tax, congestion tax, lets go to war tax, I forgot to renew my tax disc while I was away on holidays tax, VAT, soon to be introduced ID card tax, income tax and the multitudes of other stealth taxes that I havn't even thought of yet the list is endless as the Government now plots to flood the country with European emigrants in an attempt to force our allready appalingly low wages and conditions even lower the time for chilling is long gone .......its time to start sacking these incompetent imbeciles and keep sacking them until they realise they have to perform their duties at a half reasonable level to keep their jobs........but that will require a certain level of solidarity with the public won't it ...........



thats that idea out the window then :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang:

 

[nitehawk]

Ahh but we already do mate

I Gotta agree with Skippy, All those other countries may have high taxes but the standard of living is far higher and there are less 'Stealth Taxes'. Just makes you wonder where this country is going to go from here. :loo:

Personally, I've had it. I was out in Spain twice last month trying to buy a property, just had notification that my mortgage application was accepted. Now I have a 'foot hold', I will start selling off my assets in the UK and hope to be gone in a year or so.

Thank you Tony & Blunkett 8l1nd 8l1nd ,Ars**oles !

 

[D.S.]

Spain hey! Well, there is no doubt you'll have a better quality of life there, but it won't be all plain sailing mate and I hope you are tolerant and have the patience of a saint, 'cos ya gonna need it. Take it from me. :beer:

 

[roXXo]

That's right fook off and go live somewhere else and stop moaning about this country

 

[Wolfie]

Everybody has to pay so chill out and enjoy life

Yes we do all have to pay , but for what??????

How the feck can people "enjoy" life when they are in the state they are in???? I go out to work 5 days a week, start at 8 finsh at 17.00(well that is when i am pay up to to, everything over 17.00 is unpaid overtime) quite often then for an extra hr or two each night, My wife works the hrs she can do, got two kids to take to school , collect from school etc. and we have fuck all money. Have no loans, credit cards are on a nil balance, mortage is "only 65,000" I might do to the pub twice a month and spend ?20 each time.

My fags are off the black market, so are my sprits. The tyres on our car and bike are changed when they are totally worn out, get a puncture then fix it, bike and car i service myself, we wash our own vehicles and house windows. Food is asda/tesco/sainsbury own bands, I get a pair of jeans at xmas and a few tops, no other new clothes throughout the year.

And i consider myself lucky because their are a lot worst of people out there in every street, town centre, etc. Our holiday this year is the same as last years, 1 week in butlins out of season for ?210 for the four of us.

My council tax has shot up by 15% again this year, and now the interest has gone up as well.

Yeah right enjoy!!!!!!! as long as you can afford it.

I have see better condition footpaths and bridle paths , than some of the roads that i have to use to get to work.

Have you ever see a 10ft long, 5 ft , and between 1.5-4inches deep pot hole???? i have cause i crashed on the fucker, and the council filled it in 11 months later, 6 months after that it is back and is still like it now 18 months later.

It is no good saying we all have to pay and ignoring it, because that is why we are in the state we are in now.

This country gives millions to other countries and spends millions on wars, sucking up to other countries and forgets its job is too look after us and our interests.

Have you ever seen people queing up for food handouts in this country, i have 5 years ago and things have got a lot worst since then.

The mp's get voted in and as soon as they walk through the door they feckin forget us and just start feathering their own and their mates nest.

Dont tell me that we are paying for the nhs either, because if that is where all our taxed money is going to then shut it down now. waiting lists are up, doctor surgeries are being closed, i can not get an appointment to see my doctor for 7 working days!!!! there are around 80,000 people in stevenage and there is five surgeries, each with 3-4 doctors in them, yeah that is value for money, the waiting time at our A&E for my boys split head last year was over 3 hrs, for a child of two with blood coming out of his head!!!!!

The police are so feckin tied up with paper and shit that half the time they can not come out to crimes/crimescenes.

We have gangs of youths at every local shops, where they do what the fuck they like to buildings and people and nobody can do anything about it.

I and millions of others have been taxed to the limit for the above and i am supposed to enjoy life!!!!!!!

Wake up mate, or better still tell me when somebody down your road is selling their house and i will move in.

 

[reefer]

hmm speaking of doctors......
im sure i heard on the radio the other day that there is only one dentist per 10,000 people in this country also..no thats wasnt a typo 1 in 10,000
and if a third of them are crap..then its even worse %$fan

 

[Wolfie]

Take down the Union Jack,
it clashes with the sunset
And put it in the attic with the emperors old clothes
When did it all fall apart?
Sometime in the 80s
When the Great and the Good gave way to the greedy and the mean
Britian isnt cool you know,
its really not that great
Its not a proper country,
its doesnt even have a patron saint
Its just an economic union thats passed its sell by date.

Take down the union jack,
it clashes with the sunset
And ask our scottish neighbours
if independence looks any good
'Cos they just might understand
how to take an abstract notion Of personal identity
and turn it into nationhood
Is this the 19th century that im watching on tv?
The dear old queen of england
handing out those mbes Member of the british empire - that doesnt sound good to me

Gilbert and george are taking the piss arent they?
Gilbert and george are taking the piss
What could be more british than heres a picture of my bum Gilbert and george are taking the piss

Take down the union jack,
it clashes with the sunset
And pile those history books,
but dont throw them away
They might just have some clues
about what it realy means To be an anglo hyphen saxon in england.co.uk


Just how true is that??????

 

[Supabird1100]

Andy...... :bow: :bow: :bow: ....total respect to ya Mate.

 

[nitehawk]

That's right fook off and go live somewhere else and stop moaning about this country

Thank you for your support. Seems like moaning's all that's left. I've tryed being a bit an activist. Bit of a waste of time when there's nobody standing with you !

I've always fought for what I believe in but I think that one day, in the not so distant future, people are gonna wake up an wonder WTF happened and where did all their liberties go. The governments of this country will keep taking and taking until people have nothing left to loose. Then, I predict, all fcuking hells gonna break loose. $%3un

Still, as long as you're alright roXXo, then I guess it doesn't matter ! Hope you still feel the same way in five years time.

 

[nitehawk]

Spain hey! Well, there is no doubt you'll have a better quality of life there, but it won't be all plain sailing mate and I hope you are tolerant and have the patience of a saint, 'cos ya gonna need it. Take it from me. :beer:

I think I'll manage the pace mate ! May even be considered a workaholic over there. :beer: :beer: :beer:

 

[Wolfie]

Enjoy life like these poor feckers????


Euro Packaging

Workers in battle to win dignity

By SALMA IQBAL

"THEY TREAT us like slaves. It is almost criminal." Those were the words of one striking worker at the Euro Packaging factory in Highgate, Birmingham. In the first week of a 48-hour walkout and overtime ban, expected to last for the next eight weeks, up to 200 workers walked out over poor pay, working conditions and threatened redundancies.

Members of the Graphical, Paper and Media Union (GPMU) voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action, with 132 in favour and just one against. The stories of workers employed by Birmingham's plastic bag tycoon Abdul Alimohamed are reminiscent of those from factories during the Victorian era. Workers are expected to work up to 84 hours a week and are paid a meagre wage of ?4.50 an hour, with no overtime rate except on Sundays, and a night shift allowance of only ?5 a night.

One striker said, "I have been working for this company for the past five years. During this period I have not received a single pay rise. I know others who have worked here for 12 years. They started on ?4.50 an hour and they are still receiving ?4.50 an hour."

Management at Euro Packaging take advantage of the fact that the majority of employees are recent immigrants from Pakistan and India who have families to support in Britain.
Workers only receive 20 days of holidays a year. This includes eight annual bank holidays. They cannot choose when to take their remaining 12 days leave-this is dictated by the company instead.

Until recently they were entitled to four weeks unpaid leave-now this has been reduced to two weeks. This has serious repercussions for a largely immigrant workforce who may have to take leave to visit family abroad.

Another striker commented, "They treat us like animals, not humans. It is only a week ago that we got a water cooler-before this we had to use the taps in the toilets for drinking water. We want our rights and to be treated with respect."

Attacks on the workforce intensified when members of the previously un-unionised workplace became involved with the GPMU and demanded union recognition. Management have refused to recognise the union, even though the majority of the workforce belongs to the GPMU.

Management are also moving machinery to other factories. They have sacked 18 people and are threatening to sack 49 more. They have also threatened to move jobs abroad. The strikers are demanding a reduction in working hours to 37.5 hours a week, union recognition, the reinstatement of those unfairly sacked and the removal of the threat of further redundancies. In an attack on the GPMU, Euro Packaging has claimed that officials are being unreasonable and that the company cannot afford to give in to the demands of the strikers. Management claim that this will cost them ?1 million, which will result in further redundancies.

This is laughable-company owner Abdul Alimohamed is worth ?105 million, with his fortune growing by ?10 million in the past year alone. According to a popular rich list, he is the richest Asian in the Midlands. "He should treat us like his own family," said a GPMU shop steward at the factory. "It is because of us that Mr Alimohamed is where he is now. We built the company-without us he would be nothing."

Euro Packaging supplies plastic bags to leading supermarkets and high street stores including Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's, Gap and Woolworths. Kathy Brookes, a GPMU official, said, "It is a shame that these workers earn less than the people who stack shelves for these supermarkets. All we want is justice and to be treated with dignity and respect."
Union officials are set to meet with management this week. One senior union rep said, "People have been out on strike all day. Only one person has been inside the factory to work. We are optimistic about the outcome."

There was a good mood on the picket line, with strikers shouting, "What do we want? Respect!" and "What do we want? Union!" Managers and directors were booed and jeered at as they left and entered the building. The level of support from local people was high, with many people bringing down food and drink for the strikers.

John Rees and Salma Yaqoob, candidates for the Respect coalition, visited the strikers to show their support. Salma Yaqoob told the workers, "The Respect coalition endorses the minimum wage of ?7.50, which is a lot more than Euro Packaging workers are being paid

 

[Tony from Belgium]

I hate the world for about 20 years now, but it hasn't got me anywhere. I just stopped thinking or worrying about mony, and try to enjoy.
But I know what your saying, when I watch the news, I get agressive at almost every topic. So much stupidity, ignorance, bad leadership and lies, it blows my mind.
Only consolation is that it is everywhere, hell I live in Belgium, do I need to say more.You can't escape it, so why bother with it. c7u8

 

[Wolfie]

so let us all lay down and forget about the bad world shall???

No don't think so, all stand together and beat the fuck out of anybody who trys to hurt us.

Let the mugger take your wifes purse, no way catch the bastid and give him a kicking.

Why will people not stand up for themselves here???


Or is it a case of as long as i am ok then everything else is ok sort of .


I would pay more on income tax, if i could get food/fags/drink etc etc at their prices. People said that when the east and west germans became one again the west germans would suffer and their standard of living would fall through the floor, it hasn't it is still better than ours.


the french stop their country dead when they do not agree with their government , we mutter and moan in little corners, or sweep it under the carpet.

Being British is nothing to be proud of any more, this land sucks and we all suck as well for doing feck all and letting our representatives(what ever party they come from) put it into the shit hole it is in.We own it to ourselves to tell these bastids that enough is enough and fuck off.

 

[frenchuk]

That's right fook off and go live somewhere else and stop moaning about this country

Sorry mate, you call it moaning, others call it freedom of expression.

 

[Tony from Belgium]

The whole world told Bush to fuck off, but did he? There is only so much we can do, that is the problem!We have no real power, the world is controlled by a few very greedy people. We are all slaves of kapitalism and get exploited just like a 1000 years ago, and probably the 1000 years to come.
The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, what's new?
When will it end, the day all over the world poor people had enough, and climb over the rich man's fence, and claim what's theirs to begin with.
A revolution will come,, and it will be a violant one.
We live in stupid, but interesting times.

 

[Wolfie]

The whole world told Bush to fuck off, but did he? There is only so much we can do, that is the problem!We have no real power, the world is controlled by a few very greedy people. We are all slaves of kapitalism and get exploited just like a 1000 years ago, and probably the 1000 years to come.
The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, what's new?
When will it end, the day all over the world poor people had enough, and climb over the rich man's fence, and claim what's theirs to begin with.
A revolution will come,, and it will be a violant one.
We live in stupid, but interesting times.

No the world did not tell him to fuck off, most tried to but this place licked arse, and supported him, TO DO SOMETHING IS BETTER THAN TO DO NOTHING IT HAS TO BE!! Yes we are. true to a certain degree. Not if we do something.

True, nothing.

South africa took back some of what was thiers, the russians made an impact, oliver cromwell changed things for ever, the tolpuddle martyers did the same, the govenment even reduced royality to nothing, the yanks took back there country.

If the poor poeple climb over the fence, this country will back the yanks to sort them bloody ragamuffins out, and we will still sit here and let them do it.

Stop the war lot very nearly brought this government to its knees, it should off done it. but people are just happy to let others do it for them.

Block the refinnerys, block the storage depots, bring this land to a halt, and tell them NO MORE!!!.

 

[Tony from Belgium]

TO DO SOMETHING IS BETTER THAN TO DO NOTHING IT HAS TO BE!!

In the west people say 'don't just sit there, DO something'

In the east they say ' don't just DO something, sit there'

There is something to be learned here.
Many stupid things could have been avoided, if people just would have stopped and thought about it first.