Ahhh, tax payers money funding the big company fat cat pay outs and bonuses then….profit profit profit all at the tax payers expense under the guise we are doing a good thing for both them abroad and this country…..
I say let us vote on how OUR money is spent ...... Or would that be democracy...... So a no then.The way I see it there will always be people in favour of foreign aid and always some against, we all pay tax so in my view should all have a say on how it's spent.I just can't remember anybody once asking me
The UK is fairly unique in that it DOESNT sell UK PLC unlike USA and most countries. Sure it has some revenue flow-back but its not conditional and certainly not on a equal scale. This was a radio dial in this week, interesting stiff and an argument for reasons not to only provide aid on a reciprocal basis.
Indeed. The best universities should be for Britons. They are financed partly by taxes after all. If I had my way, they would be entirely financed by taxes and student grants would be reintroduced and loans abolished. But no. The Government's short-sighted policy has been for higher education for all, despite many students not having the mindset for it, or perhaps the ability. Then there isn't enough money to go around, so the UK accepts massive applications from foreign students to balance the budget, allowing the young from all countries to benefit from a superior education system. It is not in the remit of the universities to educate the world - at least it shouldn't be. Will these people benefit the UK economy over time? Very unlikely. More likely is the reverse. The best universities will always accept the best talent. For every foreign student educated there, it is a place less for a native born Briton, whatever his ethnic origin. Madness.
Too damned right. I may be an immigrant, but I'm a hugely integrated immigrant. I like Switzerland how it is (actually, how it was in 1984). I don't want it to become another central London. What would happen to the cow-fighting and the flag-throwing?
Just die out from lack of interest. Not that I know of any cheese rolling, or have ever heard of it here. Maybe it's already died out.
Not madness at all - Oxford and Cambridge are among the best in the world, to start prioritising Britons over the best is to devalue their standing (their brand, if you like). If we want more Britons in these universities perhaps our young should start working harder and earn their places there instead of filling themselves with alcohol at every opportunity. The United Kingdom is still a world leader in design and development, so many of these 'young stars' do benefit our economy by keeping us at the forefront of research and design
I don't agree Phil. You have no idea how hard it is to get into Oxbridge. It was always extremely difficult. If you're up against a load of foreign students who are bringing money with them, it only makes it harder than ever. It's a cliché to think that the top kids in schools are all binge drinking. Of course they're not. The top kids work like stink and the best British schools are very good indeed. To put it in forum terms, you might compare MotoGP riders who can bring sponsorship and budget with them with those who only have their talent to offer. It's not a level playing field. Whatever the state of British education, I am sure that the brightest students are just as capable as ever, but there are only so many top university places available. it's not just an Oxbridge thing in any case. There are another large handful of top British universities - London, Durham, Bristol et al, and I bet the situation is the same. That is not to denigrate the top foreign students, but if you're going to throw your universities open to the world, they might benefit, but indigenous students will suffer.
Sorry, but you're on the wrong tack here, Lucasz. Food: agriculture in both Europe and USA is heavily subsidised, and when overseas aid is sent in the form of food what happens is that the food is purchased in UK/Europe/USA and shipped across the world to the recipients. This provides a big market for agricultural producers, who always lobby strongly for food aid to be continued and expanded. If food aid was cut, agriculture would be greatly damaged - "shooting ourselves in the foot". You say "...better to give that money directly back to business ...". Not possible. Free trade is only practicable when the participating countries agree NOT to subsidise their businesses directly, and that is what they have agreed. Giving money directly to businesses as a blatant subsidy would wreck free trade agreements, so it is not allowed. As I explained, one of the principal purposes of overseas aid is to effect a concealed subsidy which side-steps the free trade agreements - for which purpose it is pretty effective. Overseas aid has other policy purposes too, such as rewarding allies, influencing government policy in developing countries,, outbidding other donor countries, etc. Again, giving all that up, just because there are floods in UK at present, would be beyond stupidity.
Any major break through or discovery that are financially viable, made at a university, are usually shared with the university, so it's not all a one way street.
Would we really want aid anyway? I can't see how air-dropping cases of sauerkraut and rye bread is going to help the average Surrey resident...
i actually like both Rye bread and sauerkraut...... although im not flooded but welcome an air drop anyway
Still can't get my head around that in England you pay 9k a year for Uni but in Scotland you don't, my son is off to Uni this year perhaps he should apply for foreign aid and go to Scotland.
And, unbelievably, the Scots can get away with charging other UK students £9K, effectively discriminating against them, but they cannot do so for other EU students as I understand it.
