POLITICS CORNER

[Stanley]

Does the placard say I blame Roundhay School? Very small for my old eyes....

[Wendyf]

Yes it does.

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the meeting between Macron and Truss in Prague. (Anything to put off actually being asked direct questions in Parliament!)
Is this statesman-like behaviour or simply Truss continuing to thrash about confusing activity with action?
I was wondering when we would actually see her at the dispatch box and found this.... The House of Commons adjourned on Friday 23 September for recess and will next sit on Tuesday 11 October.
They don't exactly give the impression that they're going for growth do they...

[plaques]

Well that's all sorted then after 12 years of Tory government the reason why the economy is sliding into negative growth is because of the Anti-growth coalition.
According to Liz Truss its members are :- “Labour, the Lib Dems and the SNP, the militant unions, the vested interests dressed up as think tanks, the talking heads, the Brexit deniers and Extinction Rebellion.”
Virtually any political party other than the Conservatives although we could add those rebels who got her to drop the 45% tax. We could add Liz and Kwasi for backing down to these rebels. This of course would automatically add all those who voted for these MPs. The BoE could also be included for putting the mortgage interest rates up taking money away from growth. Edge funds and Kwasi's pals for betting against the £. On and on it goes.
Militant Unions, are probably those who are standing up for their workers to get a decent wage.
Vested interest think tanks, All those not lobbying for the Conservatives but with a tendency to lean more towards the poor and explaining what is really happening.
Talking Heads. Possibly like some people on OG who express a different view and refuse to be brain washed by right-wing propaganda.
Brexit deniers. Everyone knows that Brexit got done, (Boris said so) except those in Northern Ireland so we can cheerfully add NI to the list.
Extinction Rebellion. = A global environmental movement covering climate change and environmental concerns like fracking which U-turn Liz once agreed to ban.
Added to this are people who live in North London houses, plus those whose write on Twitter, and some who talk on the BBC doing podcasts etc:

What we need is a law that would put these millions of people in prison, It could be called the McTrussism bill. That would sort these Mythical Anti-growth coalition out good and proper.

[Stanley]

I've been reading history for a long time now and sometimes think I have learned some things. I might be getting to a position now at almost 90 years old where I am in a position to offer some opinions.
Unfortunately it isn't as easy as that but what I can do is share with you the suspicion that the root of the problem of stagnant growth could possibly be public attitudes to education. The system, as it was applied to the lower classes has been aimed at one simple fact, the production of good cannon and factory fodder. This has also been the aim of the scale of rewards for the lower classes, give them just enough income to allow them to maintain health and breed so as to give a reservoir of recruits/factory workers and govern the whole lot from London, making sure that all the levers of power were located there.
That was sufficient until we started to get industries that didn't need hordes of workers , or, in the case of the financial industries, smoke stacks and waste heaps. That meant that more and more of the essential functions of state could be gathered into the south. In the process, more and more of the wage slaves became redundant, not needed by the system. Leaving them embedded in the matrix meant they diluted the output of those that were still working so individual productivity fell and was cited as a reason for slow growth.
Ideally this signalled the need to thin out the unproductive masses. Historically this has always been done by starvation and that is working well in less developed parts of the world. The problem facing modern UK governments is how to achieve it here? The obvious first step is to stop importing unskilled workers by branding them 'economic migrants' and making them 'illegals'. But then where do you go from there? This is the position we are in at the moment and we must watch with interest how Truss proposes to deal with it. So far she has given no clue.
This is of course a demented rant by an old fool who is obviously suffering from the ravages of old age. They will probably send a van round for me. But my suggestion is this, instead of looking for external causes of low growth and even decline, have a look at yourselves and the system you support. Could the roots of the nation's decay be in there somewhere. Isn't this why all empires ultimately fail?
Must go and change my shirt, it's wet through from my dribbling.....
For some contemporary political news see THIS. I have only one comment.... Oh Dear!

[plaques]

With more and more u-turns Liz Truss will soon be spinning in the dustbin of history. Along with these u-turns are a number of backtracking and programme easing. All going under the heading of "we are listening" so we'll kick in it the long grass until you forget about it.
Meanwhile the little bit of local difficulty between Ukraine and Russia rumbles on. Europe is seeing that the gas from Russia will inevitably stop and that proactive action to conserve supplies has to be taken. Meanwhile good old Liz says that there is no need to offer advise probably on the assumption that if she did so it would contradict her statement that everything is under control " Don't panic,

I noticed that the Pendle Conservative council has got on the Anti-Growth Coalition band waggon. They were hoping to bring all the planning assessments under a single central (Nelson) committee rather than the smaller and more local area assessments. This move was outvoted by the Lab/Lib coalition because a number of Conservative councilors were off ill. The Conservative leader cried foul play.

[Stanley]

There is always an accusation of 'foul play' if right wing ambitions are thwarted. This is endemic in politics these days, see Trump trashing the US elections and Bolsanaro emulating him by threatening to do the same in Brazil.
The pattern wed are seeing right across politics is for old safeguards to be ditched in the name of the pursuit of growth. Planning regulations are an obvious place to start, deregulation of finance and banking is already under way and in the end it will even be applied to areas like Health and Safety.
I don't want to be boring but all this fits in with what I have always seen to be the major project of the Tories, ever since they got back into power in 2010. The aim of Brexit and 'regaining our sovereignty' was to give the party in power the ability to erode social values and rights and get us back to the 19th century position of Laissez Faire governance.
Before you dismiss this as fanciful look at what is happening. Truss has targetted political opponents, 'militant' unions and left wing think tanks (The Resolution Foundation) as the enemy. She wants certain key unions to be forbidden to strike. Her latest cunning plan is to associate benefit rates with wage rates instead of inflation because that is lower. She can do a lot of damage before we get round to a general election and are we certain, even then, of rectifying things?

[plaques]

I loved dead cats. Not real cuddly feline dead cats but the metaphorical kind that lands on the table of political debate bouncing a couple of times depending who had thrown them. There was something majestic in the way they led there peacefully and at rest quietly dead. Its all changed now Liz Truss has started throwing live cats on the table. This is absolutely terrible and the RSPA should step in immediately. After being praised at Tory party conference little 45% the poor creature hits the table so hard that its death is instantaneous. Not a flicker of remorse, something so minor that its life meant nothing, a distraction to be forgotten along with the other dead cats. But it doesn't end there we are told that new licences are being issued for gas and oil drilling in an attempt to guarantee total cat extinction? So assuming in 5 years time this bonanza comes on stream will it be sold to the UK at knockdown prices or will the energy companies screw us for every penny they can get. Growth, Growth, Growth, or is it Profit, Profit. Profit. Lets hope this gassing of cats is stopped in its tracks because the next on the food chain will be humans.

[Whyperion]

Seen at a protest march in Leeds last week and reported on the Roundhay Facebook page


309735899_3354267768150570_5628000696910412535_n.jpg

Post by Stanley » Thu Oct 06, 2022 9:10 am

Does the placard say I blame Roundhay School? Very small for my old eyes....

In fairness so does Truss as she seems to imply that Grammer Schools are better than comps, which is why we should have more Grammer Schools

[Wendyf]

Seen at a protest march in Leeds last week and reported on the Roundhay Facebook page


309735899_3354267768150570_5628000696910412535_n.jpg

Post by Stanley » Thu Oct 06, 2022 9:10 am

Does the placard say I blame Roundhay School? Very small for my old eyes....

In fairness so does Truss as she seems to imply that Grammer Schools are better than comps, which is why we should have more Grammer Schools

I think there was a hint of irony there....

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report of the replacement of Conor Burns by a Sunak supporter (Where is Rishi? ) in an attempt to heal division in the Tory Party.
Problem is of course that Truss has founded her premiership on being a disrupter and Tories don't like change. We hear rumours of letters to the 1933 Committee already and she hasn't spoken in Parliament yet. Will she be on parade today? Will politics restart? I think we should be told.....

[plaques]

Growth, Growth, Growth. Another smoke and mirrors idea going full tilt. FREE PORTS. an idea that's been tried before both in the UK and on the Continent but thrown out because it was draining money away and not contributing to overall tax revenue.

Freeports are a special kind of port where normal tax and customs rules do not apply. These can be airports as well as seaports. At a freeport, imports can enter with simplified customs documentation and without paying tariffs.

The end result was that they were taking jobs away from existing areas and relocation in the free ports. This did nothing to add to the overall output but reduced the tax take to be spent on services and infrastructure. The losers being loss of working rights and government income from duty that should have been paid. The winners being the financiers behind the scheme.

The recent dredging at Teesside to accept larger ships for the Free Port has resulted in pollutants being dredged up and washed down the coats towards Whitby killing shell fish and crabs. The dieback is devastating the local fishing industry that is already under stress. DEFRA don't yet recognize the problem as being cause by pollutants but are going to look into it.

[Tizer]

I don't understand why some ports would be made free and not all ports. Surely if free ports are supposed to be a benefit then you'd make them all free rather than starting competition between them.

[Whyperion]

I don't understand why some ports would be made free and not all ports. Surely if free ports are supposed to be a benefit then you'd make them all free rather than starting competition between them.

It is more complex than that. The idea is that incoming goods can be processed then re-exported . Goods sent to the home market would have tariffs added when they left the port , no tariffs for those going back overseas. Its not the same as the old (current?) bonded warehouses for items where duty had not been paid until taken out of bond.


The Chancellor is now bringing forward the detail of how to pay for tax cuts to 31st Oct. Which implies the benefits cutbacks will be announced by the departments before then. The Govt might also be able to reduce energy support costs for consumers owing to a fall in the present price of gas.

[Tizer]

I've been reading a long and detailed article about Putin and Russia by Roger Boyes in last Saturday's copy of The Times. With long experience he has good contacts and knows a lot about what's happening in Russia. One thing that caught my eye was that he used thermobaric (`vacuum') bombs to destroy many whole civilian apartment blocks in Russia's war with Chechnya in 1999. We know he's shown them off since he invaded Ukraine and the MoD claims he has used them, although we haven't been shown much evidence of that. Perhaps Putin will resort to them again after his birthday was spoilt by his bridge being blown up.

Boyes reports the Russian military being in a terrible state with the troops being thoroughly demotivated and the public also now becoming aware of how many of their sons, father, grandfathers are being pulled into the army and sent into battle with little experience and poor equipment only to be killed or badly wounded after a few days in action. The brutal regime results in many instances of soldiers killing their colleagues before they even get sent to Ukraine. It's no wonder that Putin is relying on missiles and bombs.

[Stanley]

Truss gets a useful two day distraction in Westminster today in the shape of THIS, the Supreme Court hearing of the case for and against a Scottish Referendum. She needs it as she struggles to stay in power only two weeks into the job.
See THIS BBC account of a speech that is to be made today. Ukraine is turning the tide against "exhausted" Russian forces, the head of Britain's GCHQ intelligence agency will say in a speech on Tuesday.
I hope the man is right but what he says may indicate greater danger of missile and even tactical nuclear attacks.
We live in interesting times....

[plaques]

See THIS BBC account of a speech that is to be made today. Ukraine is turning the tide against "exhausted" Russian forces, the head of Britain's GCHQ intelligence agency will say in a speech on Tuesday.

I can't help thinking that wars of this nature and intensity rumble on for at least five years. Its only when both sides realize that neither can win that some compromise is reached. Putin appears to set to bankrupt Russia because he at a personal level has nothing to lose. Will the West match this insane waist of lives and materiel we are not sure but it looks like we will and quite right too.

Back at home in our own lunatic asylum Liz Truss is on a charm offensive. Do you feel charmed? By doing a few minor U-terns and not replacing senior civil servants with swivel eyed growth nutters she thinks she can calm the markets bring down interest rates and make people forget that they are suffering the worst cost of living crisis for decades.
The latest figures show the lowest level of unemployment in living memory. This will be spun as good news to prove the economy is expanding. In reality it because we were daft enough to stop European workers coming to the UK and doing thousands of low paid jobs adding to the overall workforce. Everybody except Suella Breverman understands this logic so she's the one Liz Truss should be targeting as Anti-growth.

[Whyperion]

P
The levels of unemployment / employment seem to be affected by
those whom are inactive because they are long-term sick hitting a record high of nearly 2.5 million. (BBC doesnt report the amount of , or time frame of, the increase to that figure). Truly the sick men of Europe ?

[Stanley]

Ken, two things got my attention this morning. The first was a man who seemed to know what he was talking about who said that the reason why there had been another sharp deterioration in the bond market was that the market had done the sums and couldn't see how Quasi Kwarteng could balance the books without a £60billion annual saving and as the only place that could possibly come from was more welfare and benefit cuts which are political suicide they are hedging their bets.
The other thing was Jamie Oliver arguing powerfully for more free school dinners. He described children going to school with no credit on their dinner money cards and having to beg food from their classmates or steal it from the canteen. And this in the fifth biggest economy in the world. It is shameful and an absolute disgrace. (This only applies to England, Scotland and Wales have different scales and not the same problem. In other words it's a Tory condition.....)

[Whyperion]

"This Morning" (ITV) Journalist suggests that the Government can find £5 efficiency savings from every £100 it spends. I think she needs to get real.

[Stanley]

Later.... the crisis in the bond market continues and all the experts day the same thing. The cause is the government announcing unfunded tax cuts. This is an existential threat to the UK economy and the way to repair it is for the Truss/Kwarteng budget to be reversed. The biggest screeching U Turn of all time. Will they do it? If they don't can they survive?

[Stanley]

Read THIS BBC report and wonder how our leaders could be so stupid that they manufacture an economic crisis by setting stupid policies in their budget. Even worse Quasi Kwarteng has refused to change the policies insisting he will be 'relentless in chasing growth'.
This is sheer stupidity and we are all paying for it. Will someone please stop this demented pair of idiots before it is too late!

[Stanley]

Later, we are getting news that the £Sterling has fallen again, news that the Tories are going to impose a windfall tax on generating companies which do not use expensive gas to generate the electricity but are getting the same price rises as companies that do. (Solar and wind cost 9X less than gas....) and Andrew Bailey saying that the B0fE is going to stop supporting bond prices on Friday. (But the imposition will not be called a 'windfall' so the deadly duo can't be accused of a U Turn.)
Meanwhile mortgage costs and price inflation chisel away at our incomes, pension funds are under threat and there are no signs of any meaningful changes in policy that will address the problems.
This is disastrous leadership. Will someone please do something about it.....

[plaques]

It all kooks like the BoE (our central bank) and the government (Liz Truss, Kwarteng. Rees-Mogg) are playing a game of chicken with the economy. Truss et al are quite blatant in saying Yes we've bugger it up but only in the short term just wait you'll hear the trickle of coins dropping down into those begging bowls any time soon. The BoE are basically saying enough is enough. I've gone along with this nonsense long enough and apart from some technical tweaking I'm not going to add to the already massive debt.
The Anti-Growth Coalition of international money funds, Investment banks, Thinking heads, agree with the BoE. Its now a case of everyone's out of step but me (Truss). Repeating the claim that's its the BoE job to look after the £ Stirling while we bugger it up isn't going to wash any more. Truss, Kwarteng and Rees-Mogg want putting into solitary confinement until after the general election and even then it may not work.

[Tizer]

Rees-Mogg upset my breakfast this morning by talking to the interviewer as if she and we are naughty children. He's enough to put almost anybody off voting Tory! It's time nanny dealt with him.