Budget? What budget....

Budget. What budget? Oh yes, the national budget. A great pooha about nothing much really. I often wonder what people expect! I have said this before, who do you think will pay for Covid? Governments have no money of their own, people seem to think they do somehow. Governments spend only one thing, your money, our money! So, if the Chancellor of the Exchequer says he is having to raise 100 billion or more he or she has only two ways to do so. First of all raise income through taxation and secondly he or she can borrow the money. Borrowing is usually through government bonds or saving schemes. Called Gilts but I am not so sure whether today it is such a good investment for investors, banks etc. It is a safe way but safe usually means less interest. Anyway the country has amassed a debt now of over two trillion pounds. For the uninitiated that is £2,000,000,000,000! Pocket money of course but at 2% interest it costs the UK £60 billion a year to service that kind of debt. That is money which could have build a number of hospitals or re-structure Wales in its entirety! Instead it goes in the pockets of bank managers (usually all abroad) and big investors like pension funds. So, except for bank managers at least pension funds will pay for the retired people who were wise enough to have paid for a pension in later life. Money has a way to circle around. It never stays around long enough! So, friends take it from me, national budgets are important but in fact do little for the common man. Because in some way it’s you where the money is to come from.