The mob is nothing new. Riots and violent protests by groups motivated by sheer rage have been a feature of British and indeed world history for centuries.

In the past the rule of the mob was characterised by unthinking, hate filled crowds pursuing vendettas against certain parts of society. In the past the mob has targeted ethnic groups, notably Jews as well as symbols of authority like the Police.

Well, in 21st Century Britain the mob is back but this time it is different. In the past the mob was made up of the uneducated, the poor and those with no stake in society. Now the mob is made up of a very different type of people.

The modern day hate and rage filled crowds driven by unthinking rage are an unlikely crowd of anarchists.

We have the anti capitalist protestors "occupying" the entrance to St Paul's Cathedral. These hardened anarchists are so committed to the cause that they go back to their comfortable middle class homes when the weather gets too cold, leaving their tents to stand as silent sentries. The ultimate expression of their rage against "the man" has been to defecate in the entrance to the cathedral and to shout abuse at Poppy collectors.

Then we have the student protestors. The supposed cream of our academic youth who believe that it is outrageous that they should be asked to pay towards their education have decided to hold protests in London. Their protests have included such noble gestures as the son of a rock star swinging from a war memorial and briefly occupying expensive shops, well I suppose it makes a change from being taken shopping in them by mommy and daddy!

These great heroes of the resistance are being joined by the Trades Unions movement with the latest group of the oppressed, underclass recently declaring their determination to fight back. Yes that's right, Head Teachers are on the warpath!

The modern day mob has a single unifying cause and that is self-interest. They declare they are against capitalism and certainly despise bankers and the financial sector and yet what are they really angry about? Are they angry about the prospect of a double dip recession, which may possibly lead to another great depression? Are they focussing on the blatant lies being fed to the people of Europe by the political class? Well maybe they are to an extent but what they are really angry about is their own pockets. Their anger is all about paying more for education or being given less generous retirement packages; in short their concerns are about themselves.

Lynch the bankers and attack the financial institutions, conveniently forgetting the vast amounts of tax revenue from this sector that was thrown away by the Labour government. All bankers are evil and Capitalism is sinful, despite the fact that a great many of the protestors will be going home to properties paid for by the proceeds of Satanic Capitalism.

Watch the burning passion in their eyes when you suggest that the country may not be able to stand paying such generous pension packages or fund every student who wants to enjoy university education for free and see real anger

One thing that has never occurred to these protestors is that there may be a bigger picture. When confronted with the scenario that if there are not cuts to public spending we may be on the road to a Greek style economic tragedy they flatly deny the truth. They instinctively reach out for a patented piece of Gordon Brown/Ed Balls economic nonsense claiming the only answer to our economic crisis is to spend more and accumulate more debt.

The truth is that the mob is wrong and must be defied. Economic reality has struck and all of the western world must accept it or end up permanently impoverished on a downward spiral of economic failure.

The British Government must stick to a programme of cuts to the size of the state, coupled with tax reform and cuts to encourage growth in the private sector. This medicine is painful in the short term and will undoubtedly lead to howls of protest from people who are seeing their artificially inflated standards of living reduced at a relatively rapid rate but it is essential and unavoidable.

The time for pandering to the mob is over. The foreign aid budget and other politically correct projects should be cut. We should leave the EU, thus saving Billions of Pounds in contributions and costly regulation. The tax system should be radically reformed including bringing in a flat tax rate and higher allowances for those on lower paid wages. The state should be cut right back to pre Labour levels.

It is now time for a government of conviction to take tough, decisive measures to set our economy onto the right track. That way our initial discomfort will be greater than other countries but our recovery should be swifter.