Waste of taxpayers' money

Iam64 that was totally uncalled for.

Have I said anything bigoted? I may be ignorant, and by golly I have discovered since joining GN that some people are quick to let you know if they think you are!

But I am not and never have been bigoted and I totally refute that suggestion and resent it. I wish I could delete the whole post: I only asked a question and do not feel I deserve some of the challenging and antagonistic remarks that have been made by people who should actually take a good look at their own attitudes as they hide behind their pseudonyms.

There are some people on GN who sound lovely so sorry to say farewell to them, but why should I log in just to be insulted. Life's too short, too many lovely people to meet to waste time on here.

Very good point Penstemmon. I do not understand the ignorance that goes hand in hand with expressing bigoted views about gay or lesbian people.

Goodness how long ago was this gay pride march? Before Chris Smith's time?
When a relative of mine was a very senior civil servant in the Welsh Office a decade or so ago, money was so tightly controlled that he was not allowed to order tea and biccies for a meeting with an external visitor unless he paid for it out of his own pocket. Not exactly the high life.

I wonder if the finger pointing in the press about money going to 'inappropriate' non-environmental work is to divert attention from the fact that major flood defence programmes were cancelled, postponed and curtaile, despite advice from the EA, as part of Government cutbacks?

I am learning, charleygirl, but it seems to backfire from time to time! Just a slow learner I think!

Meanwhile DGD2 is rearranging my conservatory

I could not agree more. It is impossible to have all of the facts and figures at one's fingertips. I am sure that like me, Margaretm wants a simple life in retirement.

It is all so complicated these days! Long gone are the days when, if the council wanted to dig up the road or pavement, then a notice was sent out to the utility companies asking if they wanted to do any work in the area to save the road/pavement being dug up twice. Way before computers.

Soutra, I mentioned the support of a gay pride march because that was what I heard of (Birmingham newspaper many years ago now, but resurrected recently). I didn't hear anything about religious marches or antiracist marches so they were not relevant in this particular instance.
I did also mention corporate-style entertaining - what was wrong with tea/coffee and biscuits or a sandwich in the HQ?

And if I had every report or statistic at my fingertip I would apply to work on Panorama.
I'm just a retired person asking a question.

There used to a Department of the Environment headed up by a Minister, with statutory duties and a budget authorised and overseen by Parliament. That was said to be inefficient so the quango we now know as the Environment Agency was set up. Nature has given the whole of the UK a good kicking this winter and all sorts of environmental cracks and fissures have been revealed, some going back a very long time.

Finger pointing will not solve the problems. I suggest that the way forward is to set up a cross-party and expert group to look into and prioritise the problems and recommend strategic solutions with estimates of costs. This all to be done over as short a time as possible. The chances of this happening? Not good, I feel. Many people demand instant solutions paid for by others, and in the meantime its far easier just to blame somebody else. I hope I am proved wrong.

PS: There is a very interesting article on the BBC about the 50 or so organisations entitled to dig up our roads and pavements and the colour-coding they use to indicate what they are up to. The complexity of it is amazing.

I thought your original post was very clear and again you are not being unreasonable.

I have a lot of those!

True. 'Twas but a passing insignificant thought!

galen went to bed so couldn't answer last night! Anyway back to the subject in hand - you couldn't use income tax for companies as tax isn't on income it is on profit.

I would find it hard to nitpick any of that! I think it was unfortunate that the inclusion of gay rights in your o p led to this thread taking on a whole new direction which had not been your original intention.

Yes! Well said.

Well said M

Oh dear, should have made the OP clearer.

Money designated for the protection and preservation of the environment should be used for just that. Workplace bullying due to race, creed, sexual orientation should be stamped on.

Money to rallies whether promoting gay rights, christian rights, promoting islamic rights, English rights, immigrants' rights ( I could go endlessly, please do not pick me up because i have missed your pet project) are not the domain of the EA using taxpayers' money. Or money spent on junkets for staff.

I have no objection to taxpayers' money being spent on anyone's rights by the appropriate department.
Even badgers.

What's the difference, Nellie, between local income tax and council tax? Surely it's just semantics. The government could still do what they do now. The council collects the tax, sends it to the government, and the government gives some back to the council, but not enough.
They can change the rules without changing the name.

What a lot of nit-picking. Of course government departments should spend their money on what they are set up for. What has gay rights got to do with it?

If anyone wants to celebrate their minority, single parents, ethnic groups, political parties, religious groups, people who play bowls, those who drink red wine, those who like to jump off mountains, pensioners etc. surely they should pay for their own celebrations. Unless it is a group which is really discriminated against at this time I don't think the rest of us should pay for it.

How about local income tax instead of council tax based on the value of your property? It would be a lot fairer way of getting revenue.

If I try hard, I can almost understand why the OP believes she isn't being unreasonable in expecting all EA money to be spent on flood defences etc. But then I reflect on the oppression and prejudice experienced by gay friends before legal and societal changes made it a bit easier to be out and gay. I can't find it in my heart, or even in my sensible bits, to get wound up about the EA using some money to educate/inform and challenge people about bigotry.

Hello margaretm74 answering your OP, no you are not being unreasonable.

Everyone would complain about having to pay it, Galen.
The government can promise to put income tax down whilst knowing it is going to raise more money from NI. Can you imagine the furore if people knew how much tax they really paid? I wonder why they do not call all taxes National Insurance.

The Danish section of Scandimania showed people being happy to pay high taxes because they knew they would benefit from it in the long run.
I had to ask my son's partner if she was sure her parents were Danish, as they are always complaining.

It would probably put a lot of new civil servants in jobs, Galen!

Seriously. If all taxes, except vat on goods, were amalgamated into income tax,
What would the effect be?