who should pay for the london olympics? the british people or the govenment?
960936
i couldnt agree more.\ni dint want it here- i feel sorry for the athletes cause it will more than likely be pissing it down
863884
the united kingdom\n\nand theres none difference
892861
They should have to pay if the want to call themselves Britsh...after all they are quick enough to come back and use the infrastructure when it suits them
1041062
There has been talk in the past of doing away with royalty in the UK.  They no longer have any say in government affairs but they do serve a purpose, as good will ambassadors and someone for the rest of us to talk about ;-)
19942
In Great Briton the Head of State is the Queen.  The Head of Government is the Prime Minister.\n\nThe Head of State can be more of a ceremonial post while the Head of Governmentis the person in charge.  In some countries the Head of State and the Head of the Government are the same person.
411592
The mayor (not prime minister) of London is Ken Livingston!\n\nAnd our largest resource is the people!!! We are a service and financial capital of the world.
255699
Don't know what government you're talking about.  Here in U.S., only local/state governments would contribute, definitely not Federal.\n\nAnswer to your question depends on the opportunity costs of the expenditure by government.  It might make sense for a government to invest in the Olympics if the associated infrastructure development will be useful for economic expansion following the events.
968179
Firstly and most crucially, the royal family DOES NOT live off the taxpayer. HRH Queen Elizabeth II is the owner of crown property (ie the Duchy of Lancaster). The tax which the government receives from the residents and businesses in the duchy itself is collected and a portion of that tax money is given to the queen herself. In essence, it is the monarchy which subsidizes the government NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.\nFrom this income, she must pay her staff and the other royals who are on the Civil List.\nThis nonsense that the British royal family lives off the taxpaying public is mere tripe. You can debate the merits of giving any portion of the taxes the government receives frmo the Duchy of Lancaster to the British Royal Family but you can't debate what constitutes fact.\nHope that helps.
296335
Technically, Britain is a constitutional monarchy... and the fact that the police and army and MPs etc have to swear allegiance to her is outrageous (the Queen is also head of the Church of England, of course, and Britain is now a secular multi-cultural country, and proud of it). Laws cannot be passed in this country without the Queen's signature. And as a previous messager said, they are anyway greedy parasites who have the IQ of an amoeba between them because they are all inbred. What right do they and the rest of the so-called aristocracy have to their wealth? Did they earn it by honest toil? Or did they steal it at the point of a sword? Let's be done with them all. Stuff them all and put them in Madame Tussauds. The wasters.
894586
The United Kingdom does not have a President.  It is a parliamentary democracy.  The head of government is Prime Minister Tony Blair, and the head of state is Queen Elizabeth II.
1157934
How much money do they generate in tourist dollars??? Do you remember Princess Diana's funeral and the days leading up to it???Remember the flowers??? Do you remember the recent death of HRH the Queen Mother? Do you rember all the Royal Weddings, even the most recent between Prince Charles and Camillia? Even when no Royal function is on, there are things like "The Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace", the many events surrounding Royal tradition...even visitations to the Bloody Tower and seeing the Crown Jewels. Yearly we are talking Millions...with or without a major Royal Function taking place...thier mere presense generates cash like no other individual action in the UK. Although the upcoming Olympics might generate more cash for a bit, it will also generate more money still because with or without the games...the Royal Family will still be there.\n\nGod Save the Queen!!!\n\nBp. David
358508
vote. What a pointless waste of time, get rid of this Head Of State rubbish, you need one democratically elected leader and that's that.  The Yanks do it, and it seems to work for them.  I guess you can tell I'm a Brit who wants a republic, but I wouldn't replace the queen with a president, just keep the role of PM
392874
The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy.
482816
Lets hope it's not politically decided as it is every year. The UK deserve to win for once.
292509
It is a country which is in Union with England, Wales, and Northern Ireland to form the nation of the United Kingdom. Until the King of Scotland James VI of Scotland inherited the throne of England and became King James I of England, the two countries had totally separate governments. \n\nScotland has its own parliament which is responsible for its own  internal affairs. The government of the UK is mostly responsible for foreign affairs, some taxaton, etc.\n\nScotland competes with England in the Olympics, but in other international events (such as World Cup soccer) it competes alone as Scotland.
962285
The BNP is a legit. organisation and should be heard. Its old stuff and Enoch Powell had it copped in the 60s
1012596
"Australias head of state would support England."\n\nHow can Australia's head of state support England when, like YOU said, they don't have one!