Government Reserves Revealed - £1.28billion

[thebees]

Well they need to sort that right out, right away, why should a 16 year old kid get a £100 tax fine because her tax form was held up at the post office (True, I posted it for her) and people who have loads of money get let off relatively cheaply, do not kid yourself that these are the types who spend spend spend on the Island, most of them wouldn't dirty their shoes in Strand Street & there is such a thing as a free lunch, just not for all. Everyone was born with nothing, what ever people have they have taken from someone else in some way or another, so if the Isle Of Man government need extra funding, ta daaaa! Problem solved, hand over the cash fat cats. I wonder how much the Whittakers would give the kids if I took them Hop-Tu-Naaing down there.....lol. (I'm off to get some £1 coins, the kids do not want sweets, they want hard cash for their fireworks, innit?)

[The Old Git]

I think the same report also listed something like 32 million for notes issued. I assume this is the value of Manx notes in circulation? I remember a couple of old threads about why we should use Manx notes in preference to English notes, etc, when possible

[Gladys]

Well they need to sort that right out, right away, why should a 16 year old kid get a £100 tax fine because her tax form was held up at the post office (True, I posted it for her) and people who have loads of money get let off relatively cheaply, do not kid yourself that these are the types who spend spend spend on the Island, most of them wouldn't dirty their shoes in Strand Street & there is such a thing as a free lunch, just not for all. Everyone was born with nothing, what ever people have they have taken from someone else in some way or another, so if the Isle Of Man government need extra funding, ta daaaa! Problem solved, hand over the cash fat cats. I wonder how much the Whittakers would give the kids if I took them Hop-Tu-Naaing down there.....lol. (I'm off to get some £1 coins, the kids do not want sweets, they want hard cash for their fireworks, innit?)

What, the form was held up for 6 months in the post office? If she is old enough to earn, then she is old enough to ensure that her tax form is submitted on time. The rest of your post just smacks of green eye.

 

By the by, it is the likes of you giving kids £1 for hop tu naa that have taken the spirit out of it. It is pennies or penny sweets that should be given, not £1 coins, or is that your idea of re-distribution of wealth?

 

Normally agree or am untrammelled by your posts, but this is just petty jealousy.

[pongo]

John Wright gave a good answer re issuing paper money OG. Watch out for the double negative in the last sentence:

 

There is about £30 million of manx currency in circulation.

 

For every manx pound issued the government has to have a british pound in the bank, where it earns interest. Last year that amounted to £1.5 million.

 

As some notes and coins are never going to be redeemed, they are lost destroyed or held by collectors there is a surplus in the account anyway and on top of this, in effect, the use of a manx note or coin is an interest free loan to our government, whereas the use of an english note or coin is an interest free loan to the bank of england and the use of scots and nothern irish notes an interest free loan to the issuing banks.

 

Use of Manx notes gives the IOM government about £20 per person per year to spend on services for us. If we none of us used non manx notes it would be about £30 per person.

[Declan]

Be fair Gladys we got quids when I was nipper (and it was understood that we'd spend it on fireworks).

 

Also it is a national disgrace that our corrupt civil service are stealing £100 off a kid because she was a bit late telling them what they already know.

[The Old Git]

John Wright gave a good answer re issuing paper money OG.

 

I remember my father, an ex banker, explaining it to me ages ago, but I could never quite get my head around it. I think it has stuck this time and the figure of 32 million is close to what John reckoned in the post. I assume this figure and benefit will drop as we tend to use plastic and e-banking more and more.

[Gladys]

To Dec:

 

Did you? You must be younger than I thought. Yes, when I was a kid it was kind of understood that the money was for fireworks, but £1 as the benchmark? Come on, they'll be getting silver or little packets of Haribos when they call at my house.

 

As for the national disgrace, everyone knows they must get their return in by a certain date; if you are old enough to earn then you should be responsible enough to be able to get your return in within the six months allowed. Why should age exclude you?

 

As for telling Treasury what they already know, they don't alredy know everything, that argument was one I tried for my Mother's tax return and was given short-shrift that banks only advise interest paid when requested. So Treasury does not know everything that may be on your tax return which is why you have to complete one.

[Albert Tatlock]

The Foot report identified our reserves as £337 million (Mar 09). The rest is effectively committed isn't it, so how can it count as a reserve (as when used it would have to be replaced if used)?

 

It's like saying: "I've just been paid, and have £1200 in the bank. But at home have an electricity bill for £200, a gas bill for £150, a telephone bill for £150, a garage bill for £100, and a mortgage payment of £300 to make...and I've got to eat".

[Declan]

Did you? You must be younger than I thought. Yes, when I was a kid it was kind of understood that the money was for fireworks, but £1 as the benchmark? Come on, they'll be getting silver or little packets of Haribos when they call at my house.

 

This was over 20 years ago. Certainly a quid would have been the exception rather than the rule, but given a couple of decades of inflation and the economic boom of recent years a quid is not unreasonable. I suppose it depends how many people you get calling, and whether they sing Jinny the Witch. We don't get many so it's fair enough.

[bluemonday]

Excellent news.

The IOM is so fucking rich it can ignore everything.

 

Till the piggy bank is empty.........

 

Perhaps a new airport with a three mile runway and 60 foot fence.

That should help.

[thebees]

By the by, it is the likes of you giving kids £1 for hop tu naa that have taken the spirit out of it. It is pennies or penny sweets that should be given, not £1 coins, or is that your idea of re-distribution of wealth?

 

this is just petty jealousy.

 

Pennies? Come on Glad it's 2009, pennies are for Guys, most of the children calling to our house are from our neighbourhood, a quid is not very much between 5 really. Not so much redistribution of wealth as realisation of inflation

 

Jealousy? of what? I am extremely happy with my lot, whats to be jealous of? I'm not in the least bit jealous, but I do think that if the government need more money, there are better places to look than the 'working class' and the 'benefit class'

 

Regards the miniBee, they let her off with the fine because she wasn't alone in beening sent a late filing fee incorrectly.

[localyokel]

The Foot report identified our reserves as £337 million (Mar 09). The rest is effectively committed isn't it, so how can it count as a reserve (as when used it would have to be replaced if used)?

 

It's like saying: "I've just been paid, and have £1200 in the bank. But at home have an electricity bill for £200, a gas bill for £150, a telephone bill for £150, a garage bill for £100, and a mortgage payment of £300 to make...and I've got to eat".

 

That was pointed out earlier in this thread. Its a shame that MR just elects to cut and paste official press releases straight out if its inbox and post them online without even stopping to have a quick read. The £1.2bn reserve figure was a load of cobblers; but as the announcement came with a self congratulatory fanfare from spin HQ nobody stopped to ask the questions - really? how does that work? or why does that differ hugely from the reserve figure given in the pink book and other reports? before they put it online.

[Fred]

The figures are from a question in the Keys.

 

Published by © the High Court of Tynwald, 2009

 

Government Reserve Funds and cash

Total values

 

 

2.1. The Hon. Member for Michael (Mr Cannan) to ask the Minister for the Treasury:

 

(1) What the value was of each Government Reserve Fund as at 30th September 2009;

(2) what the total was of all cash held at the bank on behalf of the Treasury and Government Departments,

but excluding the reserve funds on 30th September 2009?

 

 

Answer: (1) The market values of Government external Reserve Funds which were held with

Government’s investment managers as at 30th September 2009 are shown in the following table:

 

External Fund 30 September 2009 £ million

National Insurance Investment Account 533.3

Reserve Fund 378.8

Public Service Employees’ Pension Reserve 214.5

Hospital Estates Development Fund 50.3

Media Development Fund 55.9

Notes Issued Fund 31.5

Economic Development Fund 14.7

Total 1279.0

 

 

 

(2) The total value of all cash managed by Treasury held at banks on behalf of the Treasury and

Government Departments, but excluding the external reserve funds on 30th September 2009 was:

 

Cash at Bank 30 September 2009

 

Sterling £222.9 million

 

 

From what I can gather things like National Insurance and Public Service pensions are normally paid from current year income,in past good years government have been saving in reserve/investment funds,so the above funds should be over and above current year liabilities?

[localyokel]

Government Reserve Funds and cash

 

No. They are 'reserve funds' those being monies allocated towards specific liabilities, debts or projects (such as the Media Reserve Fund) that the government has. They are not general 'reserves' as poorly reported by MR. The Foot Report is explicit - the IOMG official Reserve figure is just £337m.

 

The public sector pension liability is £1bn already so how can we have £1.2bn in 'reserve'?

 

This all goes back to my comments about MR not reading or questioning anything.

 

If you look at the average insurance company (which is a better comparison than a bank) its 'reserves' are the assets it holds in excess of its current liabilities, and this is not the situation we have here as we do not hold £1.2bn of assets over and above our government's liabilities.

 

I am not saying that the fact that IOMG has build up considerable contingency funds to help it meet future liabilities is not impressive, just that the reporting of this gargantuan figure as a 'reserve' is just plain wrong.

 

(edited)

[Albert Tatlock]

Government Reserve Funds and cash

 

No. They are 'reserve funds' those being money allocated towards specific debts the government has. They are not 'reserves' as reported by MR. the Foot report is explicit - IOMG Reserves stand at just £337m.

 

The public sector pension liability is £1bn already so how can we have £1.2bn in 'reserve@.

 

This all goes back to my comments about MR not reading or questioning anything.

 

If you look at the average insurance company 9which is a better comparison to a bank) its 'reserves' are the assets it holds in excess of its liabilities and this is not the situation we have here as we do not have £1.2bn of assets over liabilities.

Exactly...and the public sector pension liability is increasing by £100M this year according to the pink book.

 

We need a 'Logans Run' approach to government. Realistically, we need to cull the civil service by around a third over a 5 year plan - it can be done IMO.

 

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