Spending Challenge closure countdown begins

The Treasury's crowdsourced cutbacks website Spending Challenge is to stop accepting new ideas from 12 August. The site proved hugely popular with racists and Raoul Moat fans and was shut for 'maintenance' two days after it launched. It reappeared later once its interactive features had been removed. Spending Challenge will …

[Neil Lewis]

Making unpopular policies look popular

It must be obvious to everyone that this no more than a way to legitimise whatever the government wanted to do in the first place. If 'they' like an idea, it will be used, if not then it won't. When ideas are used and anyone objects to it, the cry will be 'but it's what ordinary people told us they wanted'.

[Dr. Funk.]

Not sure why they need this site

The new Con-Lib government seems to be getting the hang of announcing poorly thought out/barking mad policies all on its own.

[Anonymous Coward]

Trying to boost support for ...

My suggestion was scrapping Trident and use some of the money saved to deploy more infantry, particularly snipers.

[Tim Bergel]

@AC

My suggestion was scrapping Trident and use some of the money saved to deploy more infantry, particularly snipers.

Bet you it never shows up in the list of options to vote for ...

[Anonymous Coward]

Trident v snipers

It would take quite a lot of snipers, to get our own back, if someone actually nuked us, though!

[Anonymous Coward]

Small problem with that...

It's not exactly doing the same job, is it?

A good sniper can deliver a single round mebbe a mile on a good day, line of sight.

Trident can deliver a payload of about 3 tons (based on 8 x W88 warheads at about 360kg each) a full seven thousand miles via low earth orbit.

Not sure they're going to be particularly effective as a direct replacement.

[Tigra 07]

RE: AC

And when we get nuked, will a sniper be able to shoot the warhead out of the sky?

Or retailiate?

The UK has nukes for defense for good reason, cutting numbers is a good idea but they shouldn't be completely scrapped.

[Anonymous Coward]

What Civil Servants?

They are all to be sacked and more expensive Private Firms to be used instead.

I am sure you meant to report that some bastion of Private Sector efficiency, say Capita or EDS or Sema will get the job.

Not those evil CiviL Servants who, we learnl lend money to bad risks, gambled on the risks failing and then forced bankers to take huge bonuses against their will

[Kay Burley ate my hamster]

W, w, what!!

"The Treasury said it has received 100,000 ideas in total, 44,000 apparently from members of the public."

...So what, did they hear the voice of God (Sure sign of crazy), or did they get some backhanders from the buddies in the lobbying biz?

[Anonymous Coward]

Good one.

"George Osborne - hot or not?" froth of beer onto the keyboard, nice work.

[Anonymous Coward]

My suggestion ...

... was to close down all the "soft" university courses (media studies, trick-cycling, art history and the like) and divert the funds back into sciences, engineering, computing, maths and medicine. Not so much a money saver but it should be cash neutral.

Wonder if that will ever happen?

[amanfromMars 1]

Eton Field Games ..... Rogues and Ruffians at Royal Play and Venerable Charade

In this new era of the Great Transparency, if the Cameron Clegg Crew don't purchase and lease maintenance for running costs on what they really need whilst in the thrall of the Public Purse, which is considerable, will they have failed demonstrably.

Capiche, Blue Bloggers.