Cummerbund Economics

The epitome of uncool is an overweight male dressed in Back Tie, stomach spilling over the top of stretched trousers.  Some cover up this spillage with a waistcoat but of-course the correct solution is the trusty cummerbund.  The cummerbund carries out a number of important functions, covering up years of largess, giving some comfort to the squeezed middle and providing a sartorial link between the bottom and the top.



Despite the evidence above it is a well known fact the George Osborne the UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer (Finance Minister) is an avid collector of cummerbunds and there is probably a good 'Freudian' reason for this affectation.  Rather than dealing with the underlying problems of our economy George is happy apply cosmetic fixes that only tinker with the problem.  This has become known a Cummerbund Economics but its can't mask the waistline issues we have in the UK!

To get the British economy spruced up we need to lose some weight in our public finances.  The Prime Ministers recent EU budget success in reducing our spending in Europe but 3% over the next 7 years - a much bigger real decrease when you take inflation into account - shows what can be done.  But where there is the political will to sort our domestic debts.  In the last 4 years George has banged on about austerity but the reality is that Government spending is 7% higher this year than it was in 2010!!

So let's lose the Cummerbund and fix the underlying problems and then we can all cheer up!