At some point during the past three years we've all heard the cliche that there's "no money left". Obviously there is - there's never no money left or else the country would grind to a complete halt - but the phrase has become accepted wisdom due in large part to the success of the government in popularising the idea.
At some point during the past three years we’ve all heard the cliche that there’s “no money left”. Obviously there is – there’s never no money left or else the country would grind to a complete halt – but the phrase has become accepted wisdom due in large part to the success of the government in popularising the idea.
Much like those “libertarians” who find themselves calling for censorship when there is a chance the BBC may play a song which might offend their sensibilities, the government’s austerity hawks are able to conjure up reams of cash when they happen to approve of where the money is being spent.
Margaret Thatcher’s funeral tomorrow is expected to cost around £10 million pounds.
Whether one agrees with that or not, it would indicate that there is (at least some) money left. Here are a few other things that £10 million might buy:
- 177,777 jobseekers’ allowance claims of £56.25 for one week
- Two years of foreign aid to Iraq
- 152 MPs’ salaries
- The upkeep and maintenance of England’s cathedrals for one year
- 1,999 students’ annual tuition fees
- 25,773 household electricity and water bills for one year
- Double the UK’s funding for global human rights projects on sexual violence against women and girls
- Pay for the monarchy for three months
- Double the funding designed to boost innovation in offshore wind turbines.
- 269 paramedics
- 322 nurses for one year on £31,095 each
- Buy two tonnes of European white truffles (£2,300 a pound)
- A mortgage on Dracula’s Castle in Romania (full value £86 million).
Source: Andrew Spooner: http://momentofcrisis.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/thatchers-funeral-in-numbers.html
It’s interesting to note that the Taxpayers’ Alliance have been relatively silent about the cost of Lady Thatcher’s funeral on the public purse. I say relatively silent because Matthew Sinclair, the chief executive of the group, will be giving a speech.
29 Responses to “Things you could do with £10 million”
OldLb
Largely because there are lots of them on the streets at the moment. They are being paid.
OldLb
1 million for the funeral
2 million for the policing
7 million as a fee to Tony Blair.
David M
She helped bring down the Soviet Union? That’s a new one I haven’t heard in a long time, there were many factors pertaining to the fall of the SU and believe me that witch Thatcher was not one of them. And while were talking about murderous ideologies I can tell you something she was responsible for, bringing General Pinochet to power in the name of ‘Democracy’, or more like ‘Corporate America’, resulting in the killing of thousands and torture of 10s of thousands.. all I remember of her legacy here was sending thousands to die in the Falklands just so Britain could flex their muscles to the rest of the world not to mess with us.
Cole
So you made it up. As is often the case with right wingers.
OldLb
Tony Blair’s fee for his appearance.