The eight hundred million
So Guido and Old Holborn are declaring victory in their campaign against subsidising India by £800million per year. After all its help the Indian's don't ask for and they do have more nuclear weapons and aircraft carriers (with aircraft !) than we do.
But David Cameron is equally not being put of the idea of borrowing money to spend in other countries and is backing, wait for it £800 million (well £814m according to the BBC, but who's counting) for child vaccination in the third world.
What to think ?
Well vaccination is a cheap way of buying lots of benefit on a human scale, as long as food and other resources are available. It also helps economies grow to a state where they can afford our products and services ( so a little self interest there also perhaps - but it rather assumes that we'll be the ones providing the things people want, and you could easily see other people doing that ).
It also shows our government addicted to spending other people's money.
I hope and pray this money is well spent.
5 comments:
Listening to the sanctimonius gits on the Jeremy Vine show made me puke.
YOU, YOU and YOU can give donations to any charity you want. Why does the Government have to do it?
And if you believe only the State can make donations, why not just voluntarily pay extra tax? You will be unsurprised to know the virtually no one does this.
You see what a low oily oik of a man Cameron is.
Who would be so cruel to complain about vaccinating third world children ,so complaining about that aid is out.
And as for the aid to India i bet it wont stop,he will give it out in vaccine.
He has cameras there for every sad and what he thinks are good things in his life, he is a odious man.
He ALMOST makes Mr Blair and Brown look quite decent.
Ensuring the flow of future illegal immigrants.
As I am always cynical of motives, I wonder whether this surge in vaccinations into poorer countries has anything to do with the doubts about the safety of vaccinations and something to do with ensuring that there will be no controls to test the hypothesis against.
@Anon - The question on the why does the Govt. have to do it is a good one.
However I think vaccinations are a very cost effective way of doing good - Bill Gates is many things and amongst them is very smart. If he puts his money towards it, I'm willing to believe its been thought through.
@Anon - I'm not worried about the vaccinations themselves. My question would be can the governments concerned really not afford them? What else are they spending money on ? But if we have to spend money via the government on overseas aid this has to be a good option for effectiveness and transparency.
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