Rachel Gives A Thumbs Up To The Third Runway

It’s still Field of Dreams stuff, though, Wyllow. I don’t think that growth will magically appear because of improved infrastructure.

Did Robin Hood airport contribute much to the local economy when it was operational? (I went to one or two airshows there in its previous incarnation as RAF Finningley😊) Is Teesside Airport contributing much to the NE economy?

Not noticeably.

I agree growth isn't magical (I read what you write!) but you need the infrastructure. I think the jury is out on the future ££££ wise benefits of that specific airport, the railway stuff is essential.

Do we need geographical movement though in Silicon Valley jobs?

Heathrow has 2 runways, Schipol has 6. Planes stacking up to land at Heathrow cause more pollution than adding another runway to enable them to land without circling. Funny no one mentions Brexit as the reason for the decline in the U.K. economy, estimating as costing us billions.

The way she was talking yesterday, you would think this country is cut off from the rest of the world and a new runway is the answer to all our problems.
This whole government seems to be totally lacking in intelligence and common sense.

Don’t know how much Robin Hood Airport contributed to the economy, but it was very useful for anyone who lived in that area and wanted to travel.

Its closure was a shame.

Great if it opens again for that part of the country.

mum2three

The way she was talking yesterday, you would think this country is cut off from the rest of the world and a new runway is the answer to all our problems.
This whole government seems to be totally lacking in intelligence and common sense.

You’d only think that if you didn’t listen to anything else that was announced yesterday, the Heathrow runway was one part of a raft of significant developments.

GrannyGravy13

I imagine the bottom line is they (the government) will only develop where they know the passenger numbers will make it worth while.

I think it important not to underestimate the importance of freight.

Wyllow3

I agree growth isn't magical (I read what you write!) but you need the infrastructure. I think the jury is out on the future ££££ wise benefits of that specific airport, the railway stuff is essential.

What I am trying to say is that Reeves has her ideas about the economy back to front. She is saying that until we have ‘growth’ very little, or no, money can be spent on restoring public services. She is following the ‘national economy is just like a household economy’ model promulgated by Thatcher in order to reduce ‘the state’ and to privatise public services.

This model is not only gainsayed by economists, but, even when taxation did fund spending prior to the abandonment of the gold standard, the power of the state to create its own sovereign currency could be used to a limited extent. Because that is the essential difference between a state and a household, the power to create its own currency.

If the state didn’t have this power the supply of money would rapidly dry up as money is taken out of circulation by people saving it (some might say ‘hoarding it) and as the population increases (does no-one ever wonder how there is always enough money despite there being an ever increasing number of people needing it?).

This was the power used by our post war government to establish the NHS and to nationalise industries. When it was nominally broke…. and it led to growth…

The government has to spend money into existence before there can be growth and before there can be any to tax back.

Labour are not only making a serious economic mistake, it is also making a massive political mistake. The ‘change’ people voted for was functioning public services, the remediation of crumbling public infrastructure, to include schools, hospitals, and law courts, a relief from inflation and ‘austerity’. Labour is giving them none of this because it is fixated on growth before spending when it should be spending to kickstart growth. It will end in tears for them and us…

Mamie freight goes hand in hand with passengers, apart from the likes of DHL etc who have freight only flights.

MaizieD 👏👏👏

Calendargirl

Don’t know how much Robin Hood Airport contributed to the economy, but it was very useful for anyone who lived in that area and wanted to travel.

Its closure was a shame.

Great if it opens again for that part of the country.

We have dear friends who used it a great deal and who miss it, but wasn’t it closed on economic grounds?

Well! I go off to browse for today’s news and opinions an what do I find?

Aditya Chakrabortty in the Guardian this morning. This guy speaks for me (and I promise I posted long before I read his article 😆)

I completely agree with his conclusion (and everything that goes before it)

The polling shows that is what voters actually want. Two surveys this week alone show the cost of living near the top of the reasons voters give for being angry at Starmer, just after cutting winter fuel allowance. But I suspect ministers will not listen until next year, by which time the photo ops will not have translated into better polling and Nigel Farage’s troops will be preparing to wipe the floor with Labour in the elections for the Welsh Senedd. Ah well: roll on the next reset.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jan/29/labour-rachel-reeves-growth-trickle-down-economics

Is she secretly working for the other side.? She is utterly useless. She bluffs her way through. Heaven help UK.because that shower won't.

Casdon

mum2three

The way she was talking yesterday, you would think this country is cut off from the rest of the world and a new runway is the answer to all our problems.
This whole government seems to be totally lacking in intelligence and common sense.

You’d only think that if you didn’t listen to anything else that was announced yesterday, the Heathrow runway was one part of a raft of significant developments.

I’m so bored with constant whinging about anything and everything. People complain when anyone in the government suggests we are in dire straits because of poor previous government. How very dare they complain they shout - then proceed to whinge endlessly
There appear to be no magic solutions so a third runway may happen.

MaizieD

Well! I go off to browse for today’s news and opinions an what do I find?

Aditya Chakrabortty in the Guardian this morning. This guy speaks for me (and I promise I posted long before I read his article 😆)

I completely agree with his conclusion (and everything that goes before it)

The polling shows that is what voters actually want. Two surveys this week alone show the cost of living near the top of the reasons voters give for being angry at Starmer, just after cutting winter fuel allowance. But I suspect ministers will not listen until next year, by which time the photo ops will not have translated into better polling and Nigel Farage’s troops will be preparing to wipe the floor with Labour in the elections for the Welsh Senedd. Ah well: roll on the next reset.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jan/29/labour-rachel-reeves-growth-trickle-down-economics

I don’t think she understands tha nature of Welsh voting MaizieD. There does need to be a change of government in Wales, because it’s become too complacent as Labour have been in power since the original Welsh Assembly formed, and we have now got poor leadership. It won’t be Reform in charge though, they will get some seats, but so will Plaid, who won’t work with them, and have a strong leader who is popular with voters. People see Farage as English, and the vast majority don’t want to go back to being a province of England. The Tories are going to struggle, again there is poor leadership. I think it will end up as a coalition.

I agree, Casdon

I agree with MaizieD on this topic.

Maisie
Criticizing the Tories economics is fair enough we didn’t get much “trickle down”, but with the drag of Brexit, Covid and Ukraine we weren’t likely to, remember Brexit was not policy it was the will of the people who clearly shot us in the foot. Lord Sugar had a few words about that today.

To maintain public services we either have to succeed in growing the economy or taxes will have to rise much more. I dont believe a Third Runway will contribute much and better value would be achieve elsewhere.

The ‘failure of ‘trickle down’ has nothing at all to do with Brexit, Covid or Ukraine, David. It is a completely discredited economic theory which has never worked.

MaizieD

The ‘failure of ‘trickle down’ has nothing at all to do with Brexit, Covid or Ukraine, David. It is a completely discredited economic theory which has never worked.

Trickle Down is used to justify high wages for the rich, that doesn’t work for sure, investing to grow the economy by improving infrastructure providing more better paid jobs is different.

Heathrow is the one project that is contentious there are many others that are planned, Wind Power, Nuclear, Battery and Tech incentives the jobs that come from them aren’t trickledown.

A number of the other projects are contentious David49, the new reservoirs in particular. That doesn’t mean they aren’t needed though.

Casdon

A number of the other projects are contentious David49, the new reservoirs in particular. That doesn’t mean they aren’t needed though.

There will always be nimbys objecting to reservoirs or any other large projects near them.

Casdon

MaizieD

Well! I go off to browse for today’s news and opinions an what do I find?

Aditya Chakrabortty in the Guardian this morning. This guy speaks for me (and I promise I posted long before I read his article 😆)

I completely agree with his conclusion (and everything that goes before it)

The polling shows that is what voters actually want. Two surveys this week alone show the cost of living near the top of the reasons voters give for being angry at Starmer, just after cutting winter fuel allowance. But I suspect ministers will not listen until next year, by which time the photo ops will not have translated into better polling and Nigel Farage’s troops will be preparing to wipe the floor with Labour in the elections for the Welsh Senedd. Ah well: roll on the next reset.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jan/29/labour-rachel-reeves-growth-trickle-down-economics

I don’t think she understands tha nature of Welsh voting MaizieD. There does need to be a change of government in Wales, because it’s become too complacent as Labour have been in power since the original Welsh Assembly formed, and we have now got poor leadership. It won’t be Reform in charge though, they will get some seats, but so will Plaid, who won’t work with them, and have a strong leader who is popular with voters. People see Farage as English, and the vast majority don’t want to go back to being a province of England. The Tories are going to struggle, again there is poor leadership. I think it will end up as a coalition.

I can see some voting for Reform in Wales but I agree, I doubt that Reform will wipe the floor.
There will always be protest votes, of course, especially if the Westminster Goverment fails to deliver what people want.
Neither has Reform voted a leader in Wales as yet so are reliant on Farage as the focus.

Remember the population is due to rise significantly and some of us have not understood why reservoirs have not been dug before now. Oh yes, we were all meant to save water and reservoirs were not needed. Now they are. Fascinating.