This made me laugh a little because Romania doesn't have a single ocean port. — Zophie

From the Black Sea you can get to an ocean. Here's a Romanian port.

Thanks I never knew the Black Sea was an ocean.

"I know all about the effects of the EU on the UK because I put tiles on a roof"

That is absolutely ridiculous. Identity politics at its finest.

You're in your 50's, your entire working life has been one where the working class in the UK is getting more and more squeezed; the cost of living is perpetually on the rise, government institutions have faced cut after cut, small businesses operate perpetually close to their bottom line. Money is hoovered out of the country through tax avoidance and international ownership of what once were national assets. The Tories and Labour see it as the best of all possible worlds, and have lost all credibility as a result.

You've read news stories about immigration, and seen more European born people going about the country, and more European born people working in the UK than ever before. You've put two and two together, I don't blame you.

You know what would make your perspective have more value? Actually studying what you already claim privileged insights into.

@Chester

Without a lot of immigrants your country will die, not just economically, but in every way. Like most Western European countries, you're not reproducing yourselves enough to maintain economic growth. And the Tories know this. So, what's going to happen is simply that the immigrants you didn't like from Europe are going to be replaced by immigrants you don't like from somewhere else. Apart from everything else, you realize this, right?

It will be far easier for us to form trade deals with smaller nations than it will be to get a sensible one with an empire that is more concerned with preserving itself as a post-democratic political entity than the well being of its citizens. — Chester

Probably would, but the issue with that proposition is not the conditional itself but the existence of the entity to which it refers.

How many thousands I'm sure I've moved more than that. I've moved over 15 tons in the last couple of weeks and I'm older than you.

You both worry me. Please be kind to yourselves.

I don't "put tiles on a roof".

The cost of living is not on the rise with all goods and services...for instance most people can afford electrical appliances that older generations could only dream of, food's got cheaper in real terms cars are cheaper in real terms . One of the biggest cost growths has been in housing, and guess what causes the cost of housing to go up? Increased population and smaller family groups.

As it happens I have never blamed immigrants for coming here, but let's not pretend that the huge, unprecedented, scale of immigration hasn't caused severe issues ...pull your head out of the sand.

Complete BS. The Uk is over populated and mechanisation means many menial jobs will be done by machines over time (taxi driving for instance).The idea that an ever expanding population is a good thing is utter madness.

Something else...my wife works in a care home ...everyone that works there is British apart from one African born lady, 20 people work there...so much for Brits not willing to do dirty jobs hey.

It's the demographics not the numbers.

E.g.
http://aei.pitt.edu/11030/1/20090203155203_SCOPE2008-3_2_JoanMuyken.pdf

You don't hit the replacement rate, you not only end up with a huge burden of economically unproductive elderly to pay for (especially with increased life-spans), you eventually just die out. You're currently below the replacement rate. You need immigrants to survive.

The constant population growth idea would end in disaster for individual countries and the planet. Do you think these younger workers stay young forever? Other solutions to ageing populations must and are being found.

Collapse of the Euro ?

Ah, but if the old people unfortunately die of Corona, it's not a problem anymore. We need less immigrants then because there's less work for them to do. Win win. I'm sure that Cummings is thinking of the economic boom after the Black Death in the Middle Ages. It literally solves all their problems. No wonder Steve Baker and the Tory Grandees (billionaire backers) are calling for the lockdown to be lifted.

Oh and that one about robots doing the menial jobs is a classic ( I reminisce about Frank Zappa' Joe's Garage, cyborg). They'll be wiping our arses and various other roles I don't want to mention.

and guess what causes the cost of housing to go up? — Chester

Speculation on the property market, financialisation of property through banks offering lower threshold mortgages, government incentives to support homeowners as opposed to renters.

Very little to do with overpopulation as new home-building coupled with renovation has almost completely kept pace with population growth.

What are you going to do, force people to have kids? Below the replacement rate, the English are dying out. That's fine by me, but I thought for some odd reason it might bother you.

You do know what percentage of people that get the virus die , don't you? I think you'll find most old people will survive this...

Population decrease now will cause a population resurgence later when people begin to like living here again.

Funny thing about [mod edit: verbal diarrhoea follows].

Nice one Baden...you're almost a dictator here...your dreams are coming true in a very small way lol. You're still basically English though, that you can't change.:)

I mentioned that Oliver Cromwell ensured that most "Irish" are basically English.

Missed this , sorry.

Population growth combined with smaller family units (single occupants etc).

Missed this , sorry. — Chester

It's not a problem... Really.

Population growth combined with smaller family units (single occupants etc). — Chester

No. Speculation on the property market, financialisation of property through banks offering lower threshold mortgages, government incentives to support homeowners as opposed to renters.

It's fairly standard economics.

From the LSE report put together with Migration Advisory Committee .

"the impact on house prices of the accumulated increase in Tier 2 type immigrants over a five-year period is likely to be well below 1%. This might generate some transfer of properties to the rented sector but the effect on total new supply is likely to be very limited."

Or should I ask some taxi drivers....?

I don't like you either, so no probs.

...and using the LSE as proof of anything ...fuck me hang your head in shame...

For people that don't know...the LSE was founded by fabians.

Nice avatar. Makes you look a lot smarter than your posts would suggest.

Cheers mate...I was trying to imagine what you looked like .:) Some of the ideas were a bit rude though....

Stick with it. It suits you. :up:

Most intelligent thing I've read from you mate , cheers, I will.

Wash those spuds properly mate or you'll get diarrhoea.:)

The clowns have spilled out of the government onto the page. I hope it's not infectious.

I think Chester got frustrated at the idea of having to argue using facts and reality and decided leprechauns would work better. Each to his own.

People are OK in Japan, so why worry?

Old people don't get violent, right?