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布莱尔首相演讲:The Extreme Weather and Fuel

时间:2007-06-19 08:02来源:互联网 提供网友:ddrjra   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

Prime Minister's Webcast on the Extreme Weather and Fuel - 2 November 2000

I'm recording1 this webcast just before I go to see for myself the severe damage that the recent storms and torrential rain have caused and are still causing - to large parts of the country.

Despite the remarkable2 efforts of the emergency services, thousands of people have seen their homes flooded, their possessions ruined and their lives disrupted. Sadly too, some lives have been lost.

It's not possible, of course, to be sure these storms are the result of climate change.

But the increasing frequency of such extreme weather here, in the rest of Europe and around the world, does lend support to those who say that global warming is no longer a theory but is a daily fact of life.

And, of course, in and immediate3 and practical sense there are lessons to be learnt from the flooding and the havoc4 caused.

We must see, for instance, how flood defences can be improved to help existing communities.

We must also ensure that threat from flooding is given more serious consideration in planning any new development.

The Government for it's part will carry on working with the emergency services, local authorities and others to try and make sure that we have the best possible defences against these changes in weather that we can have. And on an international as well as national level, we will continue to give the lead on tackling the issue of climate change.

Let me turn also to the other big issue that is concerning people which is in respect of fuel and the possibility of fuel duty protests over the next few days and weeks.

I believe that no government could possibly give in or yield to the types of demands that are made by some of the fuel protesters. But I want to address myself instead to the issue of the demands themselves, because some of these demands which range from anything from a 15p to a 26p cut in fuel duty, would have economic consequences far beyond those that the protesters, at the moment at any rate, are prepared to accept.

At the moment the British economy is the fourth strongest economy now in the world. And we have managed, through changes in economic management, to produce a stability which has delivered the lowest inflation in Europe, mortgage rates at half the level of the last Government, billions of pounds saved in debt repayments5, rising living standards, and approximately one million more people in work with the lowest unemployment levels seen for over 20 years.

And although people talk about the Government having a surplus, and of course it's only because of the strong economy that we have this surplus, it's worth as well just remembering the last time a Government decided6 to treat a surplus as something that can be spent overnight. That happened in the late 1980s.

In 1989, the then Government had a very large budget surplus indeed. Just three years later as a result of them spending that surplus without thinking of the long term, we had the largest deficit7 borrowing requirement in any Governments history, a national debt that was on its way to being doubled, 15% interest rates, recession, spending cuts, and finally, tax rises.

So, it's not simply that no responsible government could of course make policy on the basis of people threatening so called Armageddon or blocking food supplies or so on. It is that on the actual issue itself, of fuel duty, there are constraints8 and limits on what the Government can do.

So I hope that those making this protest will listen to those warning of the impact of their action on pensioners9, hospitals, schools and jobs, thats been spelt out very clearly, by people like the CBI, the TUC and the British Chambers10 of Commerce.

And I hope they will understand that we are in no way ignoring the concerns of those who say that the high cost of petrol is hurting them. And we understand that that is so, but we have to balance anything we might do to meet those concerns against the wider impact on the economy - on interest rates, on other taxes, on what we can do for pensioners or to improve our schools and hospitals.

And yes it is true that petrol duty is higher in this country than elsewhere in Europe. Although many of those comparisons, of course, are changed because of the very strong level of the pound at the present time.

But even if we accept that, that petrol duty is higher, what people often don't mention is that income tax is lower than elsewhere in Europe. Business tax is lower, we dont pay motorway11 tolls12, our National Insurance charges are lower. Many other European countries levy13 VAT14 for example on food, on childrens clothes, and on newspapers.

Overall, Britain has the lowest tax burden of any major European country. So, of course, if we had the income tax rates or the business tax rates of other countries in Europe, or if we are putting VAT on food or other essentials, then we could give a bigger cut in fuel duty.

But, the truth of the matter is most people would not want our tax levels to be like those in those other European countries. So there is a limit to what we can do and we also have other demands for our help.

Pensioners, for example, have got a good case for more help, and if we simply changed petrol duty, we could do less for them, and less for those who also desire investment in our schools, our health service, our police and transport.

There is one other consideration as well. The economy is growing very strongly at the moment, as I say, employment levels are at their highest for this country ever, there are around 28 million people now in work in this country and unemployment levels at their lowest for over 20 years.

Even within the surplus that we have, and some of the tales of that surplus incidentally are greatly exaggerated. But even within the surplus we have, we have to make sure that any spending we make, whether its in relation to the concerns of fuel protesters or pensioners or indeed spending on our public services, is sufficiently15 prudent16 and disciplined and leaves us enough leeway for the long term, that we don't have that spending leading to a rise in interest and mortgage rates.

Because if we did that, then people might get some short term benefit but then if their interest rates and their mortgages went up then they would be worse off.

So, the cost of returning to boom and bust17 would be far greater for every family in the country than the recent rises in the price of petrol. Rises, by the way, which recently have been driven solely18 by the steep increase in the world price of crude oil which is why these protests have taken place, not just all over Europe but in other parts of the world too.

So, we will do what we can but we won't do something that is irresponsible either in respect of the economic stability and success of this country, or the key investment we need in our public services to make us a stronger, better, and fairer country in the future.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 recording UktzJj     
n.录音,记录
参考例句:
  • How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间?
  • I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。
2 remarkable 8Vbx6     
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的
参考例句:
  • She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
  • These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
3 immediate aapxh     
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的
参考例句:
  • His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
  • We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
4 havoc 9eyxY     
n.大破坏,浩劫,大混乱,大杂乱
参考例句:
  • The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
  • This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。
5 repayments f8b697bfb3107d78e4b040d051ee8608     
偿还,报答,偿付的钱物( repayment的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The repayments of the loan are spread over 10 years. 贷款可在十年内分期偿还。
  • The repayments of the loan are spread over 25 years. 这笔贷款分摊二十五年偿还。
6 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
7 deficit tmAzu     
n.亏空,亏损;赤字,逆差
参考例句:
  • The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
  • We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。
8 constraints d178923285d63e9968956a0a4758267e     
强制( constraint的名词复数 ); 限制; 约束
参考例句:
  • Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
  • What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么? 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
9 pensioners 688c361eca60974e5ceff4190b75ee1c     
n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He intends to redistribute income from the middle class to poorer paid employees and pensioners. 他意图把中产阶级到低薪雇员和退休人员的收入做重新分配。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I am myself one of the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. 我自己就是一个我们的高贵的施主遗留基金的养老金领取者。 来自辞典例句
10 chambers c053984cd45eab1984d2c4776373c4fe     
n.房间( chamber的名词复数 );(议会的)议院;卧室;会议厅
参考例句:
  • The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间:Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网
11 motorway kFvxw     
n.高速公路,快车道
参考例句:
  • Our car had a breakdown on the motorway.我们的汽车在高速公路上抛锚了。
  • A maniac driver sped 35 miles along the wrong side of a motorway at 110 mph.一个疯狂的司机以每小时110英里的速度在高速公路上逆行飙车35英里。
12 tolls 688e46effdf049725c7b7ccff16b14f3     
(缓慢而有规律的)钟声( toll的名词复数 ); 通行费; 损耗; (战争、灾难等造成的)毁坏
参考例句:
  • A man collected tolls at the gateway. 一个人在大门口收通行费。
  • The long-distance call tolls amount to quite a sum. 长途电话费数目相当可观。
13 levy Z9fzR     
n.征收税或其他款项,征收额
参考例句:
  • They levy a tax on him.他们向他征税。
  • A direct food levy was imposed by the local government.地方政府征收了食品税。
14 vat sKszW     
n.(=value added tax)增值税,大桶
参考例句:
  • The office is asking for the vat papers.办事处要有关增值税的文件。
  • His father emptied sacks of stale rye bread into the vat.他父亲把一袋袋发霉的黑面包倒进大桶里。
15 sufficiently 0htzMB     
adv.足够地,充分地
参考例句:
  • It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
  • The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。
16 prudent M0Yzg     
adj.谨慎的,有远见的,精打细算的
参考例句:
  • A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
  • You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。
17 bust WszzB     
vt.打破;vi.爆裂;n.半身像;胸部
参考例句:
  • I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
  • She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。
18 solely FwGwe     
adv.仅仅,唯一地
参考例句:
  • Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
  • The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。
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