Off Topic Politics Thread
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So do I!! Labour needs a 21st century Harold Wilson, the UK best ever PM since 1945. Established the Open University, paved the way for a more liberal society, believed in investment in the infrastructure such as shipbuilding, reforming the school system and paved the way for fairness in Northern Ireland. He also advocated membership of the EU, as did his Conservative opponent, Edward Heath.
The 60s was a time of progressive politics in the UK. Apart from a few years of the Blair administration, everything else has been largely reactionary. Although the jury may be still out on the issue of the National Curriculum, implemented by Ken Baker!!!
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-37609114
I was given short shrift a year ago by some when I had the gall to suggest that the UK should have joined the euro at its inception. My reasoning was that the UK inside the euro would have traded with other euro countries without the fear of the £ yo-yoing up and down. This would have been a sensible measure to ensure stability for our manufacturers exporting to Europe and elsewhere. A year ago the £ was high, and people believed it would still remain high. Lo and behold, I hear that the £ has fallen below the euro. By the time the great Mrs May issues article 50, the £ will have half its present day value. And then the £ will continue to slide into oblivion as the multinationals and the financial service exit the UK.
Oh dear, what was the point of Brexit? Oh, to restore our sovereignty. Wonderful when the prices for imported energy will be sky high, and the new nuclear energy plants are funded by the Chinese who will charge good interest for repayment.
I was given short shrift a year ago by some when I had the gall to suggest that the UK should have joined the euro at its inception. My reasoning was that the UK inside the euro would have traded with other euro countries without the fear of the £ yo-yoing up and down. This would have been a sensible measure to ensure stability for our manufacturers exporting to Europe and elsewhere. A year ago the £ was high, and people believed it would still remain high. Lo and behold, I hear that the £ has fallen below the euro. By the time the great Mrs May issues article 50, the £ will have half its present day value. And then the £ will continue to slide into oblivion as the multinationals and the financial service exit the UK.
Oh dear, what was the point of Brexit? Oh, to restore our sovereignty. Wonderful when the prices for imported energy will be sky high, and the new nuclear energy plants are funded by the Chinese who will charge good interest for repayment.
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How's the pound going?
Please don't bring the doom and gloom, I try not to think about the negative impact of brexit, but holidays and fuel are becoming more expensive and we haven't left yet. But it's ok, we are British, we'll take over the world.
Please don't bring the doom and gloom, I try not to think about the negative impact of brexit, but holidays and fuel are becoming more expensive and we haven't left yet. But it's ok, we are British, we'll take over the world.
That's the spirit. Good old fashioned blind optimism in the face of reality!
Back under the duvet for me. Wake me up and tell me it was all a bad dream.
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**** go to 26 seconds ***
THIS is just an attempt to lighten the mood .
Yeah, we should have got over it by now. Bit hard to put the whole thing behind you though when every time you watch the news there's another item about the pound tanking, investment stalling, and business confidence disintegrating. Still, with a 5% increase in fuel costs due to the week pound about to feed through into prices avross the high street, at least we can all look forward to saying we've got our country back
Yeah, we should have got over it by now. Bit hard to put the whole thing behind you though when every time you watch the news there's another item about the pound tanking, investment stalling, and business confidence disintegrating. Still, with a 5% increase in fuel costs due to the week pound about to feed through into prices avross the high street, at least we can all look forward to saying we've got our country back
Don't forget the additional £ required for holidays.
Interesting article in the FT yesterday that suggests Brexit may lead to a re-balancing of the UK economy in the same way losing WW2 did for Germany and Japan. The City becomes less important within the UK and the economy becomes less dependent on financial services. Short term pain but quite possible there'll be long term benefits.
So we're being compared to germany in 1945? I don't find that particularly reassuring for some reason. Especially as they had Martial Aid to help them get back on the feet, something we won't be benefitting from.
Was that a German Pig flying past my window? No, it was an English Pig with a Chinese Nuclear Fire Cracker stuck up it's a**e.. Long term crap ...
When nearly 50% of the electorate voted to remain, of course there's every reason to be upset. May, like Cameron, has allowed the Tory party to drift and has allowed "UKIPPERS" to take over what was once a very pro-European party. Moreover, with Brexit she is taking away the citizenship of all British passport holders as it quite clearly states being a British citizen, also makes one a citizen of the European Community. The Government have no right to take away that citizenship. Furthermore they are taking away the rights of the Gibraltarians who almost unanimously voted to Remain. Is the Conservative Government going to take away their citizenship rights as well?
No we're not really being compared to Germany in 1945. A fuller version of the theory is that in many countries cartels and vested interests grow up which lobby for rules that benefit themselves but ultimately damage the nation's economy as a whole and create an unsustainable "national business model". A shock is then needed to reset the old, unsustainable, model and create something new. The argument is that this happened in Germany and Japan in 1945 but didn't happen in the UK. It's not all about money from the Marshall Plan. The UK received more Marshall Plan money than any other country but didn't recover as strongly as Germany after the war. Brexit may be the shock needed to shake up the UK economy and improve things in the future.
It's not just about the UK either. Three examples are given of European countries that currently have problematic (or potentially problematic) business models.
Germany is too dependent on manufacturing. I'm sure we've all heard statements along the lines of "The German car companies won't stand for the EU punishing the UK on trade, they want a free trade deal." This may or may not be true but the fact it's repeated so frequently is a sign of the power that manufacturing companies have in Germany. To be fair Germany is acknowledged to be the least problematic of the three examples but these situations tend to deteriorate and in a decade or two they may have problems.
The UK economy is too dependent on financial services. Successive chancellors have pandered to the City at the expense of other parts of the economy. Recently London was able to remain the hub of the eurozone despite the UK not being in the euro, a position that wasn't sustainable in the long run. That must now change. The City will have to adapt now and the UK economy will have to work differently.
Ireland is the final example. Their economic model is based on low corporation tax rates and effectively encouraging tax avoidance by foreign companies. The European Commission is clearly moving to stop the tax avoidance and the EU wants to harmonise corporation tax rates. Ireland is opposed to this but will soon lose the UK, one of their biggest allies on this subject. It's very unlikely that Ireland will be able to retain their current status as a tax haven of sorts - Ireland almost certainly has to find a new economic plan. This may happen as a result of something that happens in or to the eurozone or it could theoretically happen if Ireland decided to leave the EU.
Naturally. The point isn't that Brexit must be a good thing economically, it's that it doesn't have to be a bad thing.