Category: Politics

This is not just a knee jerk reaction to the Truss disaster. I have been thinking about growth.

Economic growth is only worthwhile if it leads to the growth in well being. I hesitate here because I would not want to deny anyone a chance to have a better standard of living. But this needs to be weighed against the cost to the environment. It is absolutely certain that there is no need for anyone to be hungry anymore. China has lifted 400 million people out of poverty – brilliant! But at a horrific cost to the environment.

Basically these are the groups of people who run this country. This so called think tank(Bruges Group) is far right. You can read what they say here and below. Specific criticisms are less easy to find on the web as basically it anyone that they call the Anti-Growth Coalition (Labour, Liberal, SNP,Green, Trade Unions, remainers, BLM, BBC,etc.) i.e. basically anyone who does not agree with them 100%. 55 Tufton Street is centre for many groups including major climate denial group (Global Warming Policy Foundation). Read more here

In my view they are a group of fascist nutters who have managed to manipulate Truss and the Conservative Party into an undemocratic situation. They believe in a very low tax, low state control and low public services. Abolishing environmental controls (unless beneficial to big business), abolishing labour safety laws (like minimum wage and maximum hours), abolishing the ECHR and anything to do with the EU. Basically they are inhumane fucking bastards with less compassion than my shoelaces! But you can read their poisonous shite for yourselves – or listen to any government minister. Please avoid reading the Daily Fail, Daily Exnewspaper, and the Torygraph. Be aware that the inewspaper has been bought by the Daily Fail.

Basically this governments policies are silly. Tax cuts for the rich, even if successful in generating economic growth, which I believe is not desirable anyway, will take years to generate the income to pay for them. It is the same crackpot policy with North Sea fossil fuel reserves and fracking – 5-10 years before anything comes on stream. Policies that reduce demand (insulation, solar panels are needed now.

Front page headline in the Sun is about the wife of ManC footballer Gundogan not liking the restaurants in Manchester! WTF!

Thus ignoring the Prime Minister making a speech to the Nasty Party’s conference.

The speech was of mutton dressed as lamb – same old pretending to be radical and new. Economically it was lets cut taxes (for the rich) and see the economy grow.

Ross McKibbin in 1999 pointed out that the “middle classes make more use of the NHS, public transport, public libraries, local swimming pools, public parks and their right to state welfare than anyone else”.

The Sunday Fail is struggling to find hate figures and so has said how upset Kharzi Kwangtung is that a back-bench Labour MP (now suspended) called him a token back man, I suppose they do not want to report that half of those who voted for them last time will not do so next time! Or the dire state of the economy where free marketeers are decrying the market. Or that the government basically stopped King Charles going to COP27 and giving a speech (I wonder what they threatened him with?). Or how upset people are in areas identified as suitable for fracking.

International banks have passed their comment via the tumbling value of sterling, The IMF have spoken out about the growth of inequality and the drop in productivity that results from this. Bond traders have shown their distrust of the governments economic policies by selling bonds forcing the interest rate up and nearly causing the collapse of pension funds. The Bank of England has had to bail the government out to the tune of £65billion (underwritten by the taxpayer). Interest rates will have to rise. House prices set to fall as mortgage offers are withdrawn.

Surely a matter of time? The crash in sterling is a result of the beneficiaries of tax cuts saying that they make no financial sense. The cuts are to. be financed by borrowing which is getting ever more expensive – to be paid back in the future by the taxpayer. Their latest ploy is to enable the rich to have fatter, tax free pensions

The odds on a growth in the economy to match the tax handout is getting more remote by the minute. It looks like the govt. borrowing costs are going to be in excess of 6%. So the economy will need to grow by (£50 billion plus the 6+% ) which I think equates to about £3billion per year before compound interest cuts in?

Meanwhile there will be increases in spending to allow for inflation, for hospitals, schools, public services generally. The intention is obviously for these to face further cuts, possible to be privatised and paid for by the user. Byebye NHS (regarded highly worldwide), and hello grubby US medical/insurance behemoths.

And Labour and whoever will inherit a mountain of debt, disfunctial public services and a fractured society. This last will be the result of the MSP blaming the poor, the unions, the teachers, the nurses and doctors, immigrants, the disabled, anyone but those in Tufton Street and their backers.

Oil and gas are priced in $ – therefore already a 10% increase in the last week or so. The MSP sites energy bills being halved (from a probable but still hypothetical level in Jan 23) rather than being doubled from last winter. Mortgage costs are going to rise quite steeply with no sign of them falling anytime soon.

Apologists for this avarice and cruelty will quote that other economies have inflation and rising energy costs. This true, although most seem to have less pain than us mainly die to the size of their economies (USA) or the size of their trade bloc (EU). China has lower growth than for decades, and some large economic hurdles looming. There is no “China” to ride into the economic wilderness and rescue capitalism as it did in the past.

Climate crises are worldwide, and the poorer nations are suffering more than most – so there will be no African miracle, no Brazilian miracle (unless they change their govt. pronto).

And growth is suffocating our Earth (yes OUR EARTH). Not the one where economics rules, where 1% own 64%. But the one real people live in. We do not need growth, just a sustainable fairer society. No one seems to have the guts to say this.

I think it is simple. It is not communism, but a just socialism. If you work harder or have special talents you earn more. if you are unemployed we will care for you, if ill we will care for you. etc.ect.

Top 1% of earners on track to own 64% of world’s wealth by 2030. UK Gini Index which measures inequality has risen from 25% to36.3% since 1977.

The capitalism practiced in this country has led to the mess we are now in. We did not chose to have the pandemic, or instigate the Ukraine War, but a minority did chose to leave the world’s largest trade organisation. Government policies have public services. Food banks in a country with average GDP $40000. It is fucking obscene. 172000 millionaires who this government have just a tax cut.

I am trying to work out the rationale for this. I assume that not all will spend the extra on more luxurious trinkets, or their children education; so they add it to their bank balance, where in turn it may allow the banks to increase lending to business. More likely they will buy more shares in FTSE100 companies like BP where their investment will make them more in dividends without creating a single job. Profits of these companies does get taxed so there could be some pay back for the government.

However this would not result in a surge in investment or jobs. The world currency market has shown what it thinks of this governments uncosted or scrutinised plans. The pound falls, FTSE falls, trade gap increases, debt increases, cost of debt increases, public services diminish, and the rich get richer. And still 30% of voters would vote for the nasty party like turkeys voting for Xmas! Fucking numbskulls.