There is a "maximum of £40 billion we can make available to the IMF", says Danny Alexander

 

Comments

[AspieMum]

And they can't afford for disabled people to have the legal aid they need to get the right benefits for their disability or to mend the assessments so there is less need for legal help so they can keep the legal aid and still in the long term bring down the cost of it?

[Phil Kean]

Oh, and Cameron says, and I imagine he hopes we are stupid enough to believe, that this extra funding is to be made available because Britain seeks to strengthen the IMF's ability to help, yes, NON EU countries.

However, I am not currently aware of any IMF assistance qualifying economies that are at present in such need.
Of course, I suppose that if the EU's proxy, the IMF, decides, to Cameron's, ahem, obvious displeasure, to use Britain's money to support the Euro ANYWAY, then I suppose Cameron can shrug his shoulders and tell Parliament of his disappointment that British money was used, ahem, for a purpose other than Cameron, ahem, intended it to be used.
.

[MartinW]

Cameron tells us that the 40 billion extra British taxpayers money for the IMF will not, of course (he assures us), be shunted sideways to Greece!??!. Perhaps, then, Cameron can tell us why the IMF has a sudden need for this monstrous amount of OUR money (not his). After all, if it is not (by sleight-of-hand) for Greece or other PIIGS, then we should demand he tells us who it is for, and why is it suddenly needed.
No, Prime Minister, your story will not wash.

[William Blakes Ghost]

Why should we bail out the Eurozone when the Germans and the French won't? What sort of idiots do the Coalition and particularly the morons in the Liberal Democrat party think we are?

[nonny mouse]

>>And they can't afford for disabled people to have the legal aid they need to get the right benefits for their disability or to mend the assessments so there is less need for legal help so they can keep the legal aid and still in the long term bring down the cost of it?

Any IMF payment would be a one off payment, unlike the spending programs that you mention which would be year on year.

IMF spending does not count as government debt or push up the deficit. Your spending programs do.

You can pay for IMF contributions with QE without creating domestic inflation, unlike regular QE.

The IMF money is eventually returned to the fund for the next time the global economy gets into trouble. It is not a gift.

>>Oh, and Cameron says, and I imagine he hopes we are stupid enough to believe, that this extra funding is to be made available because Britain seeks to strengthen the IMF's ability to help, yes, NON EU countries.

There are already hundreds of billions lent to non-EU countries. The problem is that bailing out the EU leaves the fund empty.

>>However, I am not currently aware of any IMF assistance qualifying economies that are at present in such need.

Angola 540 million
Bosnia 638 million
Dominon Republic 688 million
El Salvador 330 million
Georgia 470 million
Greece 16 billion
Iceland 880 million
Iraq 1.5 billion
Latvia 953 million
Pakisatan 4.5 billion
Romania 1.9 billion
Sri Lanka 1.0 billion
Ukraine 6.3 billion
Ireland 12.2 billion
Columbia 1.5 billion
Mexico 30 billion
Poland 12 billion
+ others

The current Greece bailout isn't even the highest.

Think of it this way: the EuroZone represents about 17% if world GDP. What proportion of IMF loans should it qualify for?

The IMF is a good thing for Britain because when we get in trouble we can call on it too, like we did in the 70s.

What is not a good thing is making the IMF bailout the EuroZone when the EuroZone has some very rich countries and its own central bank which can bail it out.

The problem is that Germany won't stump up the money, France can't stump up the money and they want large emerging countries to lend to them. Those large emerging countries will only do so via the IMF, which means that we and the USA will need to contribute.

If we refuse then so will China and Brazil. If that happens then Greece fails followed by Italy and the whole global economy fails.

We are playing a thee way game of chicken. Will Germany blink first, will China/Brazil blink first or will the USA/UK blink first?

[I Albion]

The IMF is an Organization started to secure financial stability, facilitate international trade,promote high employment and a sustainable economic growth.......it is not working very well is it?

[Denis Cooper]

Here is the 90 debate in the Second Delegated Legislation Committee on July 4th, which I read in its entirety at the time:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmgeneral/deleg2/110705/110705s01.htm

I haven't had time to re-read it all, but I've picked out the statements by Mark Hoban, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.

There's nothing in what he said to the Committee which remotely resembles:

"We in fact have two sorts of money that we give to/for the IMF"

If he had said that, Committee members or the other Tory MPs who attended the meeting might have asked some searching questions.

He did say:

"Our quota share is about 4%, but the way it works is this: we lend money to the IMF and it goes through our quota or it goes through the new arrangements for borrowing"

But he also said:

"We have an agreement to fund up to £20 billion, broadly speaking."

An agreement to fund up to £20 billion, not £40 billion.

In my view Mark Hoban misled the Committee, and its members should join together to propose some motion to take him to task over that and demand that the subject be re-opened.

Moreover, as I've argued before, any increase in resources provided or committed to the IMF for the purpose of bailing-out eurozone countries should properly require authorisation through a full Act of Parliament expressly disapplying the "no bail-out" clause which was inserted into the EU treaties through the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, not just through an Order under the 1979 IMF Act.

[Chris]

I see the Taxpayers' Alliance have decided to act on this, some time ago with their e-petition.
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/oppose-the-eu-bailouts.htmlOnly a few supporters at the moment, but maybe their petition will take off with the sort of news that is coming from Danny Alexander and Cameron. I agree the wording of the petition could be better (could a new one be launched?) but I am beginning to feel very concerned indeed about the current situation, and if a petition is the only way to get David Cameron to pay attention to public outrage, then so be it.
Thank you, Denis, for the extremely helpful information above - will contact my MP accordingly.

[Chris]

Apologies for the error in previous link to the e-petition regarding EU bailouts. Correct one follows:
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/oppose-the-eu-bailouts.html

[boudicca]

Cameron asserts that UK contributions to the IMF will not be to support the Euro. (Bacon Airways is back in action in No.10).

If that is truly the case, he should have no problem reassuring the Great British taxpayer that NO British money whatsoever will be forwarded to the Eurozone via the IMF and British support will only go to Greece when she returns to the Drachma.

'Lending' money to the IMF to bail out the Euro, when he is preaching austerity at home and our economy is flatlining is like pouring oil on the flames of taxpayer anger. He is risking an explosion.

[John Bright]

Ex-Treasury Secretary, Liam Byrne, left a note to his successor, "I'm afraid to tell you there's no money left."

If, indeed, this note was correct and there is no money left then the government must intend to borrow it in order to make it available to the IMF.

[Andrew Smith]

So we can make available £40 billion to protect the Euroland but we cannot pay more to protect the nation. So defense is cut but the IMF and EU alphabetti - spaghetti get as much as they ask for.

[John Prendergast]

I have no objection to lending money to the IMF, IF, and I say again IF, we get all the key jobs in the IMF. We need to sack the Frogs, since they will have thier grabbing bowls out in a few weeks too.

The IMF was after all our invention.

[nonny mouse]

>>So we can make available £40 billion to protect the Euroland but we cannot pay more to protect the nation

We are not cutting a cheque for £40 billion. We are accepting potential liabilities but there is very little chance of us having to hand over money.

Defence is cut because it is real spending year in year out that adds to the deficit. The IMF contributions do not add to the debt. They do not come out of taxes either.

[Bedd Gelert]

"Maximum of £ 40 billion..."

Au contraire, Danny, there is absolutely no limit whatsoever to the amount of money which can be p!$$ed up against the wall, or flushed down the toilet...

[Anne]

How dare any of you in that Houses of Parliament put the Eurozone before your own Country. Mr Cameron ensured us ALL that none of the UK's IMF contributions would go towards bailing out Greece.

How dare any of you in that temporary Government leave this Country VERY short on Defence-when after the last war promises were made by far greater men than any of you that this Country would NEVER AGAIN be left WANTING in the Defence of our own Country and particularly never again in the state this Country was in before 1939. One way or another we pay you to govern this Country according to its long standing Constitution. To make sure that this Country is SAFE at all times, THIS COUNTRY-yet you are putting a failing monetary system that we are not in and never will be before the essential needs of your own Country and its people. We are your employers, for we put you in that Parliament ONLY because there is no choice between any of you because you all want to remain in the European Union. We certainly contribute to your pay and vast expenses. There is a no bail out clause in the Treaty of LISBON or has that been altered without a debate in our Parliament? The people certainly did not have a say. Before any Treaty change is made-a referendum must be held in this Country. When the people run out of money to pay their taxes here in the UK where will your wages come from-the EU? Or the IMF?