Aveline
Well. Gosh.
?
How did you vote and why today
Happy Birthday - 100 years on Earth
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The U.K. 2022
(553 Posts)If you have made the mistake of following the Tory leadership election then you will, presuming you suspended your disbelief, now know that we are facing a bright future under Liz Truss, where growth, prosperity, light touch regulation, low tax and strong international trade will deliver us all we have ever aspired to.
In fact, more than that, the climate crisis will, under her rule, be so insignificant it can be ignored; the rule of law will no longer be required; every town, village and hamlet will be a freeport making its own regulations and laws under the benign guidance of a company given the task of doing so; and the land will flow with milk and honey.
None of this is true, of course.
This morning we have news of drought and the risk of hose pipe bans and even outright water shortages.
There is also a warning of power cust to come this winter as electricity supply will not meet demand.
Avanti has just axed two-thirds of its train services on the West Coast mainline.
Six million people are waiting for NHS treatment.
Half the UK's households do not know how they will pay their fuel bills when the average energy price increases to £4,200pa this winter. The likelihood that many will simply be unable to pay is high.
As a consequence, the rest of the economy is under severe threat of recession.
A banking crisis is possible as rents go unpaid, landlords fail to service their debts, joining those mortgage holders who will be in the same boat.
Schools and hospitals face impossible choices due to their increasing energy costs this winter.
Hardly talked about, but something I fear greatly is the risk that many care homes - which have to be warm - will simply be unable to afford to carry on trading this winter as those they p[provide for cannot pay increased bills, creating a massive care crisis.
It is actually quite hard to think of anything that is working well in the UK now, and which is not at risk of failure quite soon.
The Tory leadership election is taking place in some fantasy space created by a political party wholly out of touch with reality. The difficulty is that one of those taking part - and making the absurd promises on offer to the Tory party faithful, will be governing us soon. There is little sign that they will embrace reality then.
We are in deep, deep trouble.
Richard Murphy
10/08/22
Well. Gosh.
Charter Cities are beginning to look like the East India Company, only this time it will be regions of the U.K. governed by foreign companies.
That is horrific.
One thing becoming clear is that in order for Charter Cities to function, the U.K. needs to come out of the ECHR.
That is why Sunak has been following that line.
Johnson is the worst PM we have had since 1945.
Whitewavemark2
Extract from Yorkshire By-lines.
A charter city is basically territory within a nation which is taken out of the sovereign charge of the host country to be governed by the rules of the assuming entity, often a private company, under guarantee of a third nation. The cities would have administrative, fiscal, monetary and judicial autonomy. Basically, the laws of the host country concerning human and workers’ rights, wages, healthcare and resource to legal protection do not apply to these areas.
WWM That is so clear. I wonder how many know that is what they are? Especially those who voted to "get our sovereignty back?
I think it would be worth starting a thread with that quote. At least then people could not say they didn't know.
The UK has had freeports in the past - introduced by Thatcher in the 1980s. They were closed in 2012 because they had not achieved the aim of encouraging economic activity in the areas they served. They are essentially private fiefdoms, often owned by overseas developers.
Aveline
What are the actual benefits of free ports? Do they lead to increased employment and improved economic activities for areas? If so then why not let private companies pay to develop the infrastructure?
Well it seems that proponents of the scheme argue that free from regulation, like environmental regs, workers rights, planning, etc, than business can thrive without hinderance.
But that begs the question, that if they are free of these so called hinderances, where does that leave those living and working within the area and their democratic rights?
Apparently after a week in the UK following his holiday in Slovenia Boris Johnson has now gone on holiday to Greece.
Extract from Yorkshire By-lines.
A charter city is basically territory within a nation which is taken out of the sovereign charge of the host country to be governed by the rules of the assuming entity, often a private company, under guarantee of a third nation. The cities would have administrative, fiscal, monetary and judicial autonomy. Basically, the laws of the host country concerning human and workers’ rights, wages, healthcare and resource to legal protection do not apply to these areas.
What are the actual benefits of free ports? Do they lead to increased employment and improved economic activities for areas? If so then why not let private companies pay to develop the infrastructure?
It seems to me to be another opportunity for greed and corruption. But I'll keep reading.
Suggested
So what happens to democracy under this regime?
Some extracts from an Article in The National (a Scottish publication)
What are charter cities? They are privately owned and operated cities where everything from health care, education and the police force to the legislature and the judicial system are not controlled by the state but by a private corporation accountable only to itself. The corporation sets the rules and enforces them with its privately owned judicial system.
As with freeports, proponents claim charter cities will create huge economic growth (is that really what a world threatened by climate change needs?) and reduce poverty but there is little evidence to support this claim. On the contrary, there is plenty of evidence about the exploitation and corruption that actually follows. For example, we know already that freeports will lead to an erosion of workers’ rights and environmental protections.
I have yet to find a site which gives those details, but I will keep looking.
If the cities are privately owned - what do they actually own? What about the local authorities and things like water quality, river quality etc.
I really don’t have any understanding.
henetha
What would that involve? I'll Google it, but any information would be interesting, please Wwm2.
I know very little about them, but it would seem working people would have different regulation etc governing them.
I need more information, if anyone has any idea please?
Wikipedia a starting point says very little. There is information by those promoting the cities, but I want some objective reading if possible.
Oh dear.
You might think, as would happen in parliamentary republics, that our head of state would have something to say about the cost-of-living crisis or might perhaps clarify the constitutional situation during a political crisis, or at least acknowledge in a public speech or interview that the country is going through challenging times. Instead, we get silence and the occasional off-the-record briefing from 'sources close to' Prince Charles. The monarchy fails to set standards of decency and probity in public life, fails to perform any meaningful constitutional function and fails to offer even the slightest hint of leadership for the nation.
www.newsweek.com/your-majesty-its-time-go-please-take-royals-sideshow-you-opinion-1732631?fbclid=IwAR0PDVwkomvRQq0gjg2qo2-pkUG9CgM2nxvohMCtHqeODUb4d7SbD0fjn38
I have just Googled it, and it seems these cities would be privately owned! Appalling!
What would that involve? I'll Google it, but any information would be interesting, please Wwm2.
The next horror to deal with are the proposed charter cities and free ports.
I have been looking at the proposed area for the Plymouth chartered city. It extends way into Dartmoor and towards Exeter.
Why?
rosie1959
Whitewavemark2
Starmer putting pressure on Tories by calling for price fuel rises to be fixed at current rate, saving families £2000 pa.
Further details tomorrow.He must have been listening to Gordon Brown pretty sure he came up with the very same suggestion in an article in the Guardian
Yes almost certainly as he has employed a number of people to look at various issues.
Of course that is the sensible thing to do as you can’t possibly be an expert in all fields, and recognising that is a real strength.
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