I think the government may have got it wrong. They seem to expect about 1.3 million jobs lost over the next few years.
But expect the private sector to produce 2.5 million new ones.
And here we are in the private sector, all talking about having no work.
Its perhaps because we never did anything with our manufacturing industries years ago and put all our cash into finance, that we are probably having the problems we are having now.
Plus of course, even if we did have a good manufacturing base, who would buy our goods, the world is depressed not just the UK.
The Germans managed to avoid part of the problem though, through developing their manufacturing industries. And of course China does not seem to want to buy only sell to others.
The thing is, I think they relies, you got to have somebody who can afford to buy your goods. If you don't co-operate over prices, you both go down. Same applies in our home markets.
We seem to have developed a culture of selfishness in business instead of one with a bit of public service ethics. Even our government departments seem to work on a bonus culture.
This however could be set to crash.
In my own town, if you go to the city centre, the shops are nearly all trading on what I would call the "spare cash" economy.
In other words they are mostly based on selling fashion items, which people buy using their spare cash.
But lets be honest ,when it comes down to the basics, which these cuts may take people down to. What are people going to do, buy a pair of stone washed in bleach jeans or go hungry?
The answer seems obvious, the result the same, half the shops will close and even more people will loose their jobs.
We need to innovate and make living wage jobs, anybody in trade can usually make low paid ones.
Unfortunately that highlights another UK problem, as BT said last week 25% of UK job applicants where illiterate?
Boy! Oh! Boy! Does that mean, we can't innovate as well?
I don't think it does, but we have got to change the culture in our schools and colleges, an educator reported all our students ask is "How much do I need to know to answer the exam questions?" "Forget the rest, just tell us that!" which basically probably means they are not interested in the subject, but want the qualification to get the jobs that pay good money.
In other words they want the high living standard the wages provide but not the work. Their ambitions seem not to invent a world beating product, giving thousands of jobs, but to be rich and famous any way they can.
We where once a nation that gave the world television, radar, the jet engine, hover craft and so on.
Now it seems we give the world football, fashion and celebrities if we can, but even the Premier League are mostly foreign players and the fashion goods are made in the Far East.
We have to move away from the get rich quick attitude and back to respect for one another and an appreciation of everybody and their work. It has to be made "cool" to serve the public and to invent new engineering products that help our fellow mankind and world.
We have to cultivate subject interest not just appear to use it as a quick means to get super rich. Life consists of a lot more than money.
I see no reason why we can't change thinking to one of "We did a good job there, brought it in at a good price for the customer through our own internal efficiencies working to lower customer prices!"
"It all works to over specification and the design is good!".
We also came up with ideas for new system designs and more efficient boilers, helping with green issues.
We also used better working practises making the job quicker and easier.
Got a good reasonable wage off that job.
"That way we may have contributed something toward helping our fellow humans or at least that was part of the intention!".
As the Toyota chairman roughly said "Do nothing that doesn't help your fellow mankind"
What I suppose we don't want is: "Made a packet out of that!"
"High wages and big profits as well!"
"Suckers!"
"I want to be rich and famous with an island of my own, that is getting on in the world?"
"I work hard so have the right to charge as much as I like, regardless of everybody else!"
