{"links":{"self":"https://preview.epetitions.website/archived/petitions/3017.json"},"data":{"type":"archived-petition","id":3017,"parliament":{"period":"2010-2015","government":"Conservative – Liberal Democrat coalition","dissolution_at":"2015-03-30T23:59:59.000+01:00","response_threshold":10000,"debate_threshold":100000},"attributes":{"action":"Add a 'Balanced Budget' Amendment to The UK Constitution","background":null,"additional_details":"The government has run a budget deficit since 2002 and, by HM Treasury's prediction, will continue to do so until 2015, the result of this is a huge national debt running into trillions of pounds. The government is living well beyond its means and it is our children and our children's children that will suffer from this gargantuan debt burden if it does not stop. Once the chancellor has eliminated the deficit we must continue to run a small budget surplus and never again borrow to spend - this surplus should be spent on repaying debt in the short and medium term but when this has all been paid back should go into the treasury's reserves for use in times of natural disaster or when war threatens Britain.\r\nThe government should amend the constitution with a clause to state that; in peace time British governments should never spend more than is generated in tax or other revenues.","committee_note":null,"state":"rejected","signature_count":1,"created_at":"2011-08-04T19:39:10.000Z","updated_at":"2020-02-16T19:26:29.900Z","rejected_at":"2017-06-21T12:32:50.076Z","opened_at":null,"closed_at":null,"moderation_threshold_reached_at":"2011-08-04T19:39:10.000Z","response_threshold_reached_at":null,"government_response_at":null,"debate_threshold_reached_at":null,"debate_scheduled_at":null,"scheduled_debate_date":null,"debate_outcome_at":null,"rejection":{"code":"duplicate","details":null},"government_response":null,"debate":null,"departments":[],"topics":[]}}}