Richard recently appeared on BBC's Any Questions radio programme, recorded locally in Hertfordshire. The audience asked a range of topics which included the British economy, a scenario which could lead to an early general election and the current state of political debate and freedom of speech in the UK.
In discussing the state's liabilities Richard Fuller MP said:
The UK economy is roughly £2.5 trillion but the State's liabilities, made up of existing government debt, the commitments to the state pension and public sector pensions is £9 trillion - a debt that eventually will have to be picked up by our children and grandchildren.
Successive governments have allowed this situation to arise by assuming that there would be sufficient working age people paying taxes that would cover these liabilities therefore negating the need to put money aside along the way.
The likes of Zack Polanski and Nigel Farage offer simple slogans but no credible solutions, and seem to believe that simply blaming 'others' and sowing division is a route to electoral success.
You can listen to Richard speak on this topic here: https://youtu.be/fYWaIujLyo0?si=_r_b8fFCUi7cZedK
On the likelihood of an early general election, he commented:
A year ago, having just been elected with an enormous majority of 174, any talk of a general election before 2029 would have been discounted as farcical.
It is still an unlikely proposition, however on BBC's Any Questions, I presented a scenario whereby it could become more probable.
The Government has made a great many missteps in its management of the economy, leading to a significant black hole in the public finances and an ever-shrinking ability to borrow more money. If, as is likley, further tax rises fail to plug the gap, then the Government will find itself in a very precarious position of essentially having bankrupted the country. Under such circumstances governments can collapse thereby opening the door to a general election.
You can listen to Richard speak about this at: https://youtu.be/Hjzsal5loaI?si=uSwQ83-vBFESnPpB
And on political discourse and free speech, he added the following:
Political debate has descended to a depressingly low level and recent events have shown the awful consequences of people being so entrenched in their own views that they are prepared to go to the ultimate lengths to shut down opposing voices.
It used to be the case that people would meet and talk and perhaps learn from each other. Now we have a 'crisis of certitude' where people believe that theirs is the only acceptable view.
The clip of him discussing this can be listened to at: https://youtu.be/QypO64CwZtM?si=5YcfCCJkcHPSEjAk
