My Christmas Message : Behold The Armies of One

If the Festive Spirit seemed lacking in my previous post, I hope that this one might make amends.

Just the other day, I came across an article by the US academic Harold Bloom in the New York Times (http:/www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/opinion/12bloom.html). In his NYT article, Bloom considers the relevance of Ralph Waldo Emerson's philosophy to our present day economic problems, and, in particular the concept of "self-reliance".

Now, for my money, if former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher felt that "there is no such thing as society", excluding her own (ie "one of us"), our present one, Gordon Brown, feels that there is no such thing as the individual, excluding himself and his cronies, of course.

This bring me to what seems a central message of "The Christ Story", the importance of individual conscience and action in the face of oppression (military, political, social, cultural, economic etc).

Sharing the same North American tradition as Harold Bloom, the management writer Tom Peters has drawn attention to the importance of the "Army of One" ie the self-reliant individual working within and without organisations , often overcoming the forces of oppression in the process, for some greater societal good.

Good Luck to Them and Seasons Greetings to All !

Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven ?

The above quotation is taken from John Milton's epic poem, "Paradise Lost", which BBC Radio 3 is broadcasting every afternoon this week and next at 5pm. Now here's some real "fear and loathing", to use those well known words of Hunter S Thompson, from Satan's "crew" !

Earlier this year, as it happens, I briefly attended - being short of time and attention span - an exhibition entitled "Citizen Milton" at the Bodleian Library (one of my all time favourite places) in Oxford. Near the start of this exhibition, I was perplexed to find the following quotation from our Prime Minister :

"At the core of British history, the very British ideas of 'active citizenship,' 'good neighbour', civic pride and the public realm." — Gordon Brown, 2007

This may well be true, but what has it got to do with Milton ?, I asked myself : Oxford Establishment cosying up to the Government, perhaps. Then as I listened to "Paradise Lost" yesterday, another thought occurred.

What particularly strikes me about Gordon Brown and his Cabinet is the pride and arrogance of some (not all, admittedly) of its key members, including the Prime Minister, himself. I wonder what "Citizen Milton" would have made of them ?

Postscript 24.12.2008 : If anyone is wondering where God is in my "argument" (to use Milton's word), let them look to Citizen Williams, although the Poet would, I think (had he been alive today) looked more to Citizen Tutu for his inspiration.

"The least accurate but most truthful account..."

So was the writing of Gonzo journalist Hunter S Thompson once described : a description which might well provide food for thought over the festive period for those concerned with matters more or less evidence-based.

More Cabaret & Less Strictly Come Dancing Please

Yes, I'm Back ! : Variously inspired by the German Finance Minister attack on Brownite Economics (if such a thing exists !), economist Tim Harford's BBC Radio 4 Programme "More or Less" (check out the website), and Lord Mandelson's aspirations to appear on BBC 1's "Celebrity Come Dancing". However, what I want is more "Welcome to Berlin"* style cabaret with Peter in a starring role, of course !

* The musical's original name

Importance of keeping Leviathan under control

Last week's good news (The Guardian, 6 November) that Transport for London (TfL) is to scrap the ill-advised Thames Gateway Bridge Project - see http://janetmackinnon.wordpress.com/ - should be some consolation for Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell, who is today fretting about the costs of London 2012 in the current economic climate.

TfL had originally hoped that the bridge would be in place for the opening of the Games, and it's demise should therefore be welcomed by Government on financial and well as environmental grounds.

Let us hope also that those involved in the promotion of this ill-fated scheme have learnt some lessons, and, namely, the importance of the options process in decision-making on major/mega projects and other enterprises.

This brings me back to "Shock Jocks" George Mathewson and Peter Burt, former chief executives of Royal Bank of Scotland and Bank of Scotland respectively, who yesterday issued a further press regarding their proposal to take temporary management control of HBOS and consider alternative options for the bank :

"A properly recapitalised, properly run and independent HBOS appears to be in the interests of the shareholders, its employees, its customers and all stakeholders, avoiding the dangers of an anti-competitive over-mighty leviathan...".

Government, again, please take note ! Incidentally, I write as one who been involved in the sagas of East London river crossings and a customer of the Halifax (HBOS) for over 20 years.

What did the Scottish Bankers say to the English Banker ?

Please see http://janetmackinnon.wordpress.com - I very much like this story from The Press Association. Here are some real "Shock Jocks" for you !

Smart Limits to Growth

In response to my "syndication" of a recent New Scientist editorial ("Time to banish the gods of growth") Derek Wall of http://another-green-world.blogspot.com/ has posted a comment (see below).

I have to say that this is a difficult subject area and my own "takes" on it are explored @

• http://smartlimits2growth.wordpress.com (Smart Limits to Growth) &
• http://limits-2-growth.blogspot.com (Social Limits to Growth)

Mr Wall is a key figure in the Green Party. Most intelligent young people plan to vote Green according to a recent survey. Perhaps their votes will lead to the kind of changes Britain and the wider world need.

Election of Barack Obama as US President

Perhaps some new "Glasnost" as "Perestroika" are indeed on their way. The election of Obama as President of the United States is certainly a much-needed victory for people exerting power ie their vote.

The Need for a New Glasnost and Perestroika

"Glasnost" : Truth, Frankness

"If the Russian word 'Perestroika' has easily entered the international lexicon, it is due to more than just interest in what is going on in the Soviet Union. Now the whole world needs restructuring; that is, progressive development, a fundamental change".

Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeyevich

Precisely what transpired between one of Russia's wealthiest oligarchs, the former European Trade Commissioner, and the UK Conservative Shadow Chancellor is today the matter of much media speculation, but this blog has more important matters to address.

For some time, Russian Prime Minister (and former President) Putin and current President Medvedev have re-iterated that : "There are no ideological differences between us" (ie Russia and the West). Meanwhile, Mr Putin describes himself - a former KGB officer and supporter of the Soviet Union - as a "Conservative", whilst Mr Medvedev, a wealthy oligarch, describes himself as a "Liberal".

Does this mean that the Russian Prime Minister would identify himself (ideologically that is) with so-called Worcestershire Conservatives ? There are certainly some Soviet-style bureaucrats amongst the West Midlands regional and local authorities, and other other public bodies, who, I feel, would welcome the kind of strong leadership favoured by Mr Putin.

As for the Russian President's "Liberalism", is this in reality little more than a culture of "Loads of Money". The UK Liberal-Democrats, I seem to remember, secured one of the largest donations to a British political party shortly before the last General Election, only to find that the donor was a crook who subsequently fled the country rather than face a prison sentence.

Under the circumstances, whilst I abhor much of what New Labour represents, neither the Conservatives or the Liberal Democrats hold much promise for me just now. What this country (ie Britain) needs is some real "Glasnost" and "Perestroika", and so I'm going to explore these concepts in a wider ideological context with the help of some "friends" @

http://janetrocco.wordpress.com/ (See Tails of 2 Nations)

However, I would like to leave readers of this post to ponder the following quote from Geoffrey Hosking's excellent book "Russia and the Russians" (Penquin 2002). Professor Hosking's notes (pg 580-1) the rise of "informed political movements" in the Soviet Union of the mid-1980s :

"These early initiatives focused on matters of "motherhood and apple pie" : no one could argue that historic buildings, the environment, and nuclear power were issues of legitimate public concern"...

Present day UK national and local governments please take note !

"Time to Banish the God of Growth"

Following the Miliband "Clone" Ed's announcement yesterday* (see below) - in his new role as UK Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change - I've decided to quote in full the following Editorial from this week's New Scientist magazine, from which this post also takes its title :

"IMAGINE an industry that runs out of raw materials. Companies go bust, workers are laid off, families suffer and associated organisations are thrown into turmoil. Eventually governments are forced to take drastic action. Welcome to global banking, brought to its knees by the interruption of its lifeblood - the flow of cash.

In this case we seem to have been fortunate. In the nick of time, governments released reserves that should with luck get cash circulating again. But what if they hadn't been there? There are no reserves of fish, tropical hardwoods, fresh water or metals such as indium, so what are we going to do when supplies of these vital materials dry up? We live on a planet with finite resources - that's no surprise to anyone - so why do we have an economic system in which all that matters is growth (see "Why our economy is killing the planet and what we can do about it")? More growth means using more resources.

When the human population was counted in millions and resources were sparse, people could simply move to pastures new. But with 9 billion people expected around 2050, moving on is not an option. As politicians reconstruct the global economy, they should take heed. If we are to leave any kind of planet to our children we need an economic system that lets us live within our means."

* New UK targets have been set for green house gas emissions.

False Dawns before The Rise of the Real Economy

Around this time last year, I suggested at a meeting about the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy Phase 2 Revisions that local authorities in Worcestershire would not recognise real sustainability (ie environmental) if this was a bus about to knock them over. So with the present New Labour Government, and the real economy : I cannot think of any minister (least of all the "prime") who would recognise this in a similar situation.

Unfortunately, I feel pretty much the same about the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. With regard for the latter, although Vince Cable has been amongst the most reliable commentators on the current financial crisis, as the former chief economist of oil company Shell, I'm still not convinced even he fully grasps the real economy. Meanwhile, the Conservative leadership has floundered somewhat in recent weeks, and, as for Mayor of London Boris Johnson, I would suggest that he has about as much grasp of the real economy at the present time as his predecessor, Ken Livingstone.

So in this rather unpropitious context, I've decided to raise some key issues concerning the real economy, in the hope that these will help others recognise both false dawns and the "real thing". I'm going to do this with reference to :

1. The global financial system/economy
2. UK property market
3. Construction industry
4. Small and medium-sized business
5. The public sectors

Firstly, the global financial system is, I would argue, still far from adjusted to the real economy. Thus we should not put over-much weight on day-to-day adjustments in world stock markets. We should also be skeptical of government propaganda - I'm afraid that's precisely what it is ! - concerning the robustness of our own economy relative to that of other countries. For - surprising although it may seem - the United States economy is, with the exception some sectors such as real estate, better regulated than our own, and the economies of many European nations better placed to withstand a major international recession.

With regard to the UK, residential property values, in particular, are over-priced relative to the real economy, notably actual household incomes. Thus in Worcester, for instance, I anticipate that the value of small apartments could still fall by 30-40%. However, there are likely to be more dramatic declines in the values of such property elsewhere, including Birmingham. This is because one of the "urban myths" perpetuated by the present Government is that there is a burgeoning "class" of upwardly mobile young professional single people and couples, when, in fact, the growth in employment has been in low paid work of the kind more likely to generate households of multiple occupation. Therefore, until such time as there is an honest recognition of the real labour market in Britain, we cannot properly tackle real housing issues, and notably the need for the "re-construction" of the social rented sector.

Moving on to the construction industry - one of the UK's most important sectors - costs here have escalated unsustainably in recent years. Historically, the increasing costs of construction have been a key contributor to the end of the boom cycle in countries such as the UK and United States, and I, would argue, this will increasingly be the case elsewhere in the world. The Mayor of London should not, therefore, call upon national government to "Spend, Spend, Spend" on large-scale construction projects until such time as their costs are adjusted downwards.

Much has been made in recent days of the financial needs of small and medium-sized businesses, not least because these now employ, collectively, more people than large companies. It is unfortunate, therefore, that much of the "growth" amongst such businesses since New Labour came to power has been funded through the same credit boom - or, more accurately, binge - as much consumer spending. As with mortgage lending, it is highly questionable in my view, whether business lending can or should return to the levels of 2007 and earlier, and I think those UK banks who have just been bailed out by the Government will agree with me !

Finally, I would like to look at the public sector, particularly central and local government, health, education and the emergency services, but also the so-called cultural sectors. The point has been made that there are now more people employed in the collective public sectors of the UK than in Hungary before the collapse of communism; and the National Health Service is, I think, the second largest employer in the world after the Chinese army ! It is not surprising, therefore, that the public sector is more important to the economy of many parts of Britain than the private. As with the construction sector - of which it is one of the main clients ! - the cost of Britain's public sector has rocketed in recent years, and the current spending trajectory, including pensions, is, I would suggest, one of the least sustainable areas of the British economy, even for those authorities who do not had their finances "frozen" in Icelandic banks !

So how do I propose to tackle the above issues : in my Blog for the time being, is the answer. However, if someone wants to pay me fair fee, I'd be happy to advise them !

In the meantime, some may feel that in this and my previous posts I've been unfair to our Prime Minister and his Government, or "Brave Captain Brown" and his "Crew". Not so, I say ! It was, after all, former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, who compared Gordon Brown to the captain of the Titanic, or as the Chief Leader Writer for The Telegraph put it on 5 August :
"As befits a former ship's steward, John Prescott has a penchant for the nautical metaphor. It's proving a dangerous addiction. His blogpost in which he compared Gordon Brown to the captain of the Titanic was designed to be helpful. I'd hate to see Prezza trying to be unhelpful."
Alternatively, perhaps Mr Prescott, was, on this occasion, simply being honest, and, unwittingly, providing us with an augury of the impact of the real economy, after the false dawns of recovery.

De-constructing Gordon "Captain" Brown's Rhetoric

One the things that particularly riles me about the New Labour Project is the language deployed by its proponents, and I want to focus on Gordon Brown-Speak today. (see also :
http://limits-2-growth.blogspot.com - Decontructing the New Labour Project).

Two of Brown's preferred metaphors (for himself !) are "The Good Father" (of the New Labour Family) and, most recently, "The Ship's Captain" (based, apparently, on a favourite short story by Joseph Conrad) who is steering the British economy through "turbulent times".

With regard to "The Father" metaphor, it is the aphorism "Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan" which particularly sums up New Labour's record in office for me. Here is a Government which has called every passing economic success its own, and denied any role in these when they turned out to have a serious downside.

Let's take for instance, the current "favoured" policy of governments buying shares in banks. Now as far as I can make out "The Father" of this approach is United States private investor Warren Buffett (with his recent purchase of shares in Goldman Sachs), and not Gordon Brown.

As it happens, Mr Buffett likes to play his Ukulele, and I'm going to strongly recommend that our Prime Minister takes up this instrument for it brings me nicely on to his other preferred metaphor : "The Ship's Captain".

The only successful British sea-faring prime minister in modern times has to, my knowledge, been the Conservative Sir Edward Heath, who skippered his yacht crew into victory on the world class racing circuit, but, wasn't, by his own admission, much good in the galley. The help of former ship's steward, and later Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott might been useful here !

Returning to Gordon Brown, I'm reminded of the sea-shanty in which "Captain Brown" (yes, really !) played his Ukulele as the ship went down", perhaps after hitting a large iceberg. Here are a couple of verses from "Nancy Lee" :

"I sing you a tale of the Nancy Lee
A ship that got shipwrecked at sea
The bravest man was Captain Brown
Who played his ukulele as the ship went down....

....All the crew were in despair
Some rushed here and others rushed there
But the Captain sat in the captain's chair
And he played the ukulele as the ship went down."

Incidentally, folks who like a good old sea shanty might be interested in "Why I've lately been bound for Botany Bay" at http://the-green-man-project.blogspot.com/

The Tip of Brown's Iceberg.... is Already Melting

Yesterday, BBC Radio 4's "In Business" Programme hosted a special debate on the present world financial crisis. Various eminent professionals took part, but the main discussion was between a leading financier and a well-known economist, with the boss of a major firm of consulting engineers promoting a rather optimistic view of his business in Britain. He looked forward to a large amount of government-generated construction projects. Meanwhile the economist confirmed that there was still a lot of "free" capital in the world, but most of it is in Russia and China. The financier, however, offered a rather bleak outlook for most people.

On reflection, a composite "future" emerged from this discussion, which sounded rather like life in the former Soviet Union, with bureaucrats and technocrats doing rather well for themselves and the rest of society not faring too well at all. Iceland, I note, has already found "a new friend", to quote their prime minister, in Russia. However, if modern Chinese state capitalism is your preferred "business model", I would point you in the direction of George Walden's book, "China : A Wolf in the World ? "; and again remind readers of The Twilight of the God's (see below) wherein the Wolf Skoll eats the sun, recalling Walden's account of air pollution in Beijing.

A New Icelandic Saga - The Twilight of the Banks ?

In the Old Icelandic Sagas, it is the Twilight of the Gods, and the end of the world, which is prophesied, possibly based on a dim collective memory of pre-historic climate change.

The New Icelandic Saga appears to herald the Twilight of the Banks, bringing immediate freezing of the collective finances, including those of British local authorities.

However, given that the collective psyche of local government sometimes seems very dim indeed, the "big freeze" might just be a timely reality cheque.

Complex feuds are central to the Old Icelandic Sagas. In the New Icelandic Saga, this probably means a major legal action against the Icelandic authorities.

Incidentally, Transport for London is amongst the Icelandic investors, which, on a positive note, might mean the end of a certain Thames Gateway Bridge "Saga", for the time being anyway.

The Underworld of European Finance

Now we've all had sight of this, I think we can understand why Gordon Brown has recalled Peter "Mephistopheles" from the nether regions (see below) !

Incidentally, in updating myself on the career of Tina Brown, I find she has recently set up The Daily Beast @ http://www.thedailybeast.com

On Caligula's appointment of his horse as Consul & Peter Mandelson's return to Government

In a 2005 New Statesman book review, Sir Peregrine Worsthorne referred to former New Yorker editor Tina Brown's appointment of an "old friend" to edit "The Talk of the Town" as "only a little less outrageous than Caligula's appointment of his horse as consul". Interestingly, the same edition of the New Statesman notes, in "Trouble in the Ranks", that :

"By the time Margaret Thatcher finished with the Conservative Party, the aristocrats had been banished by free-market zealots who made it unelectable. Peregrine Worsthorne laments the demise of the old-style Tories, who at least served to restrain corporate greed."

The comparison to Caligula's horseresurfaced last weekend, this time with reference to the appointment of Peter (now Lord) Mandelson as Business Secretary by Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

However, from my perspective, Caligula's appointment of his horse as consul was probably one of the Roman's more sensible decisions, and so it may be with Gordon Brown's appointment of Peter Mandelson as Business Secretary.

If this appointment has upset Ed Balls (and his wife, Treasury Secretary Yvette Coooper, no doubt); and, for that matter, the Conservative Party, then, as far as I'm concerned, so much the better.

With regard to the Conservatives, I have to say that their Leader David Cameron shrunk in my estimation when, in his closing speech to the party conference, he tied the fortunes of " David Cameron's Conservatives" firmly to the legacy of Thatcherism.

Returning to Peter Mandelson, I would nevertheless suggest that readers consult the Postscipt to my E-Pantomime, Carry on Communities, where the "Lord" appears in the guise of Mephistopheles, and a post of around the same time entitled "Know the Difference between Objectivity and Aspiration" which I have re-produced at : http://janetmackinnon.wordpress.com/

Enter "The Dogfather" of British Politics ?

Those of us who would like to see changes at the top of the British Establishment welcome the prospect of one less Blair, namely London Metropolitan police chief Sir Ian Blair. London Mayor Boris Johnson has described any plot to oust Sir Ian as "Barking", a response which has caused me some reflection.

Now Ken Livingstone's manual of government, as Leader of the Greater London Council, was The Godfather and, indeed, the plot of this book has been the inspiration for contemporary thinking on the darker arts of management.

Not having read The Godfather myself, or managed to stay awake through the film, I was nevertheless entertained recently to find a local canine consultant advertising himself as "The Dogfather". With his reference to "Barking", a canine management style sounds more up the street of Boris Johnson.

Proud to be viewed across 5 Continents !

Yes, it's official : according to Google Analytics, this blog is now viewed across the 5 Continents, and I have genuinely gone global ! A Big Thank You to all my readers out there.

Back To The Basics Of Economy....Again

The debate about Main Street vs Wall Street : whether the proposed United States Government bail-out of the latter is in the best interest of the former is an important one. However, the key issue is not so much whether the Wall Street bail-out is essential for Main Street USA, but whether it is in the best interests of the global economy, by which I mean the banking systems and, consequently, government finances of other major economies, such as our own. Here, the answer is, almost certainly, yes. This high level of co-dependency is the downside (and, yes, it is a downside !) of the most recent wave of globalisation, and, to a very real extent, we are all in this economic boat together.

This is not to say that there is no "real economy" out there in the real world, of which Main Street is a part, which could not survive a major international banking failure. There may well be. However, the consequences of such a failure, not just for private sector corporations but also for public finances would generally be regarded as unacceptable.

My greatest concern is whether the lessons of the current financial crisis will be fully learned, particularly in this country. Our economy has become more and more dependent on a smaller and smaller number of sectors, namely, banking and financial services, property and construction, and retail/distribution. These are especially vulnerable to present problems. We need to develop a more broadly based economy again. This will require action at every level of government : national, regional and local. A good place to start might be London, and I can recommend Mayor Boris Johnson some good reading : The Greater London Council's London Industrial Strategy, published shortly before its abolition by the Thatcher Government in 1986.

See also : http://witchofworcester.wordpress.com & http://janetmackinnon.wordpress.com

Why I want to vote for a People's Party (and not a Piffle Party !)

Piffle = "Foolish or futile talk or ideas; nonsense" (The Free Dictionary)

One of the main reasons we find ourselves in the state we're in has been the over pre-occupation of the main political parties in Britain, most of all the New Labour Government , but also the Conservatives and to a lesser degree the Liberal Democrats, with piffle, to quote London Mayor Boris Johnson. By piffle, I mean a foolish, and frequently futile, pre-occupation with domestic social issues to the exclusion of serious attention to the economy, geopolitics and the environment.

Personally, for instance, I'm fed up with politicians invoking "hard-working families". What on earth does this mean ? A return to 19th century domestic economy where several generations of the same family labour under one roof, and live in fear of the work house perhaps. What people need is economic stability and a sustainable livelihood, including fair incentives to work, whether they choose to live in a conventional family or some other arrangement.

The main function of government, to differing degrees at the local/regional, national and global levels, is to create the conditions for sustainable economic development through good regulation, and other measures, having regard to the need for environmental conservation and protection. As far as possible, avoidance of violent international and civil conflicts is also a key requirement, as is emergency and disaster management.

The provision of health, education and other social services is also an important role of government, but this is not possible in the absence of good economic management, based on a realistic understanding of the main contributors to the economic cycle at any particular time, something the present government has never possessed. Given their own shortcomings, the role of this and, indeed, other governments is not, therefore, to tell people how to run their own lives.
For New Labour, this has been a fatal distraction from the real work of government.

Power at Any Price

The Prime Minister has been keen to emphasise just how "ordinary" he is during the Labour Party Conference, although he also wants to be seen as a "serious man for serious times". Sounds a bit like Iain Duncan-Smith's "quiet man" stuff to me, so I'm hoping Gordon Brown will be off doing something more suited to his "ordinariness" in the not-too-distant future : adviser to the nuclear industry perhaps, like his brother. Yes, whilst the global economy and our own have been playing havoc, British (nuclear !) Energy is being sold off to the company for whom the Prime Minister's brother works, French government-owned EDF. Quelle Surprise ! However, the economic and financial viability of nuclear power - like so much else just now - still remains very much open to question.

World Exclusive : Chancellor's Cat on Economy

The Chancellor of the Exchequer's cat speaks out on the economy to my own moggie. Her comments have been transcribed by me @ http://janetmackinnon.wordpress.com

My Lessons from the Last Recession

I genuinely "feel" for those people who have lost their jobs recently or suspect they are in danger of doing so. Yes, this even applies to some of those in government.

As someone who was made redundant in early 1990 by the property development and investment company for whom I worked, I know how it feels to suddenly lose a well-paid job when you have a large mortgage to pay. Fortunately, the terms of redundancy were better for most people in those days, and I had little or no credit card debt at that time. However, the situation was no less scary : interest rates were escalating and other companies to whom I might have looked for work - like the then owners of Canary Wharf, Olympia and York - were also going under.

Again fortunately, I found new employment within a few months in the Construction and Property Group of accountants and management consultants Coopers & Lybrand Deloitte (now PriceWaterhouse Coopers) where I remained until 1992. Frankly, I was surprised to have "stuck in" here for so long, as new waves of redundancy continued around me.

All this uncertainty fundamentally changed my attitude to life and, most of all, to work. No matter how how hard you have worked and how successful you may feel you are, remember that in the worlds of business - as in other areas of life - things can change suddenly for the worse, and, also, for the better. Although, the "better" may be something very different from what you are doing now, requiring nothing short of a shift in consciouness or mind-set. The last recession was for me a catalyst for what was ultimately a considerable improvement in my life, although not so much for my material success. In short, it fundamentally changed my values.

However, if all this sounds a bit airy-fairy, then you might consider procuring a "power object" or "fetish" to help you on your way. See my blog @ http://janetstone.wordpress.com/

The Business of Government

Update : see http://limits-2-growth.blogspot.com : 1984 as a "Manual for Government" from www.politics.co.uk

WARNING : What follows will almost certainly be regarded as an offence against political correctness, for which I offer no apologies ! Having reflected on the matter over the weekend, I feel it would be beneficial for this country if the Labour Party were to have a leadership election. The other main political parties almost certainly do not want this, which is precisely why it would be a good thing for the rest of us.

A couple of weeks ago, former London Mayor Ken Livingstone appeared on BBC Radio 4's "Any Questions" having just returned from seeing his friend Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Chavez, it seemed, had asked Mr Livingstone to submit proposals for providing "technical assistance" on urban planning and development. Let's hope it's sustainable !

Now it sounded to me as if Ken might have been a little jet-lagged, as he managed at one point to confuse David Cameron and David Miliband - a revealing Freudian slip perhaps - before confiding to the audience that he had been invited to appear on Celebrity Wife Swap, although his partner had apparently put the phone down before Ken could take up the offer.

As an admirer (but not that sort !) of Mr Livingstone, I was actually rather sorry to learn that one of the mighty had fallen on such hard times. For Ken (Lord Livingstone, I presume !) would be my obvious choice for a Labour Deputy Prime Minister, and the natural successor of John Prescott in a newly resurrected Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions.

Why do I propose this ? Quite simply, Ken Livingstone (warts and all) understands the business of government. His quote from The Godfather in the rather good 1987 memoir "If voting changed anything they'd abolish it" in which he distinguishes the personal from "business" reflects this understanding, even if he has sometimes forgotten his own good sense.

I have yet to be convinced that the leadership of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats really do understand the business of government. For they seem to offer, or so it appears to me, a continuation of the kind of Hello -or GQ - magazine style politics favoured by The Blairs, even if new media channels are their preferred medium of expression.

As for Gordon Brown, his tenure as Prime Minister appears to reflect a classic confusion of the personal and political realms, after the practice of a former Soviet dictator to whom he has been compared. The wave of sackings over the weekend, and the Prime Minister's attempts to undermine the Labour Party constitution regarding the circulation of ballot papers in advance of Conference for a possible leadership contest, only serve to re-inforce such comparisons.

It's the Economy & the Environment, Stupid !

Feeling a little "Do Minimum" today, I've decided to sydicate a post from my Witch of Worcester Blog (see below). In doing this, I'm following the advice of Gerd Gigerenzer in "Gut Feelings -Short Cuts to Better Decision Making" published by Penquin, which I've just picked up in the local library.

Environmental groups in the UK have accused political parties of letting the environment recede as a priority, so it's time to remind ourselves that in sustainable development & regeneration these issues are inextricably linked. Development which is unsustainable economically is, often as not, environmentally unsustainable as well.

The UK could - if our politicians were minded to make this happen - be a global leader in planning for sustainability. We are a small island, with one of the highest population densities in the worlds. We need to reduce our own environmental bootprint, and set an example to other nations. Sustainable land use and area regeneration policies should be a priority for us.

The British Property Federation and the Planning Inspectorate.
A few years ago, I drew the Planning Inspectorate’s attention to an error on their website. This referred to Liz Peace as Chief Executive of the British Property Foundation (instead of Federation). Ms Peace was identified as an non-executive director of the Planning Inspectorate. At that time - and still - I have mixed feelings about this kind of appointment. No environmental interests, as far I can make out, are represented on the board of the Inspectorate, an Executive Agency of government. However, it has to be said that some of the most sensible work on area regeneration and sustainable development has come from the British Property Federation, and, indeed, some property developers are more advanced in their thinking on these matters than most local councillors and officers in an area like South Worcestershire.

It is fair to say that planning in South Worcestershire is dominated by the mass housebuilding industry. Certain places are positively swarming with house-builder’s “agents” wanting to expand their own or their client’s land banks, with a view to obtaining change of use for housing development and planning consents. This in turn drives local authority designations and planning permissions. The argument being that if change of use and actual consents are withheld, developers will win on Appeal.

This kind of practice is going on all over the country and is a contributing factor to the current parlous state of the mass housebuilding industry, for which, incidentally, I have absolutely zero sympathy, although I am sorry for individuals and small businesses who have lost their jobs. The fact is that too much land has been allocated for housebuilding and too many planning consents granted in places like South Worcestershire. Developers have land-banked excessively and the value of their assets have plummeted as a consequence. There is also no market for much completed development, particularly for apartments, notwithstanding the various government initiatives being promoted to convert these into affordable housing.

Perhaps we do really needs a British Property Foundation (as distinct from Federation) to tackle the underlying problems of the mass housebuilding sector, as no one else - least of all central government - is doing this. It has to be said that none of the other main (or minor) political parties have much to offer either. However, in the short term we need the Planning Inspectorate to demonstrate that it has a real grasp of land economy and property market issues, which has not, by and large, been the case to date

Blogging for Charity : A Call for Help !

As a consequence of listing my voluntary work and charitable interests on another Blog (Bloggers please consider doing this !), I have been contacted by an Animal Shelter in Jamaica who are struggling with damage caused by Hurricane Gustav in the Caribbean and urgently need financial support : http://www.theanimalhousejamaica.org/

I've had enough of all this Balls...

It seems to me that Children's Secretary Ed Balls is pushing for the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer. Stop Pushing, That Boy ! I think it's high time you were excluded from government office. You've been the bully of Gordon's Gang for too long, setting up poor Alistair Darling with no forewarning of the Credit Crunch when - clever boy that you are - you'd been the Chancellor's (ie Gordon's) Representative on Earth for all those years. Of course, perhaps you didn't know the Crunch was coming either, in which case, like your wife, you're not so clever as you make out, and perhaps even a little stupid !

Having got that off my chest, I now want to move back to the subject of gender equality. For it seems to me that Mr & Mrs Balls (Schools Secretary Ed Balls and his wife Yvette Cooper, Chief Secretary to the Treasury) epitomise what the New Labour Elite understand by gender equality in the workplace : having a spouse who has a job about as powerful and well paid as one's own, which also enjoys generous allowances and tax breaks etc. Of course if Ed Balls were to become Chancellor and his wife remained Financial Secretary, I'm not sure how they'd manage !

Now, as it happens, this "Golden Couple" are also New Labour's leading lights on "Class". In short, they don't like "Toffs" like David Cameron and George Osborne, respectively Conservative Party Leader and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer. This in turn brings me back to the US Republicans choice of candidate for Vice-President, Sarah Palin or "Rottweiler Mom", as we don't allow ordinary folk to have Pit Bulls (even with lipstick on) in this country. For it seems to me that if any of Ms Palin's offspring were failed, as children over here have been, by Ed's Balls Ups.....the consequences for him might be not only serious, but painful !

Why Class Politics are Important for Them and Us

Whilst I don't believe Sarah Palin represents the future for Feminism, I do recognise that Patrician John McCain's choice of Republican running-mate reflects his appreciation of the importance of class politics in the United States, as in this country. For many people class identification remains as important as other forms of social affiliation, including ethnic origin, and, however much some politicians may talk of a "Classless Society" this is not the reality. Nor is it without irony, therefore, that both the US Democratic and UK New Labour Parties have are faring less well on the "Class Issue" at the present time than there Conservative counterparts.

Over here, the case of Blackpool is a good example of the failure of New Labour to understand Class Politics with the result that the local council has recently, after many years under Labour control, turned Conservative. Now Blackpoool in a "Political Town" in so far as it has been one of the main Party Conference venues, although it has been the preferred host of the Conservatives, Labour preferring Metropolitan and Southern venues in recent years. Moreover, the Super Casino fiasco also left Blackpool (and a few other places for that matter) in the lurch, as the townhad been positioning itself for some time as the Las Vegas of the North of England.

Blackpool sees itself as a the UK Capital of Entertainment (as distinct from Culture), and its appeal is to the more traditional tastes of the Working Classes. This is a town apparently fuelled by the flow of alcohol, the downside of which is that it has some of the highest rates of alcoholism in England; and some of the worse deprivation because traditional working class pleasures, and pleasure grounds like Blackpool - as well as other sea-side towns - have been out-of-favour with their New Labour "Social Worker". I mean by "Her", Liberal Elite "feminists" like Deputy Party Leader Harriet Harman and former Culture Secretary (now Olympics Minister) Tessa Jowell.

Is Neo-Con Mom the Future for Feminism ?

US Republican Vice Presidential hopeful "Mom" (and soon to be Grand Mother) Sarah Palin has been hailed by certain press commentators in the Mail and Financial Times as a "true feminist". Well, some feminists certainly like the personal to be political, and Ms Palin has rapidly achieved this, or rather her pregnant 17 year old daughter has on her mother's behalf. Bristol is also, or so we are led to believe, shortly to have an "arranged", marriage to her baby-father, a spotty youth of 18 whose Bebo entry proclaims that he doesn't "want kids", nor a "forced" marriage I strongly suspect. All this because Mom's teachings seem to have fallen short on sex education and contraception - or perhaps Creationist's don't go in for these - and abortion is an absolute "NO, NO" for "Conservatives Christians", like Sarah Palin.

This is very strange because I thought "Feminism" was all about a Woman's Right to Choose : whether or not to have children, get married etc. In much of the world, if not in Alaska, these are absolutely key issues for Women's Human Rights, as is the issue of contraception both for birth control and to reduce the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. As the case of Bristol shows, sexual abstinence may neither be the preferred choice (or even an option !) for the majority of women, most of whom are far less fortunate than Sarah Palin's daughter in their economic circumstances, and those of their unborn children. So as far as I'm concerned this Neo-Con Mom is no more the future for feminism than any of the other regressive religious ideologies, including much of what passes for "christianity".

Another Lady of Letters* Goes Global...

Yes, I've decided to "Go Global" (http://janetsgeopolitics.wordpress.com/). After years of being berated by former friends and colleagues, for my "localism" it's time to take on the world again. Nevertheless, I would still remind all and sundry that it's precisely those "little" local difficulties that also raise serious, and sometimes deeply troubling, questions of our "world view" : please see my provincial blog @ http://witchofworcester.wordpress.com/

* A rather good radio comedy in the modern epistolary style.

Need for UK-wide Regeneration Task Force(s)

Area regeneration (regional, urban, rural) in the UK is not working ! We need a National Regeneration Task Force (which represents the interests of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) as well as regional task forces.

In England, these should be set up by the Regional Development Agencies. However, they should not be quango-led ! Representation should go beyond "the usual suspects" for which regeneration and development "sectors" are somewhat notorious.

As part of my contribution to the much needed regeneration debate, I'm this week re-activating two blogs :

• Smart Limits to Growth (http://smartlimits2growth.wordpress.com/) tomorrow
• & A Manifesto for Regeneration (http://regen-man.blogspot.com) on Friday

Incidentally, the major catalyst for this blog was a train journey from Worcester to Birmingham International Station in March 2006 : the "wastelands" of the West Midlands Conurbation inspiring a post entitled "The End of Birmingham and the Beginning of My Blog" (See Planning 22/9/2006).

The "Bombsite Britain Tax"

In recent weeks The Financial Times (FT) has carried articles on :

• The vulnerability of regeneration areas to the economic downturn/recession
• Skepticism about whether the English Regional Development Agencies are "working"
• The financial levy on empty shops, offices and warehouses introduced last April

The article on the empty property levy (or "Bombsite Britain Tax") which appeared in The Weekend FT 23-24 August, opened as follows :

" British Cities are "beginning to look like like broken teeth" , with hundreds of buildings being razed as the result of a damaging tax on empty property, a government regeneration chief said yesterday..."

All this does of course beg the question : where is the joined up government, given that regeneration of brownfield sites is supposedly a priority for this one ?

I will be tackling the subject of "Bombsite Britain" again at a later date. However, just now I would refer readers to my E-Pantomime on the theme of regeneration "Carry On Communities", which opens with these words from The Giant ( an ogre !) known as "The Big Clunking Fist" (aka Gordon Brown) :

" Fee Fi Fo Fum

I smell the Funds of an Englishman.

Be He Alive or be He Dead,

I'll have His Money for My Bread !"

Please see http://eponaland.wordpress.com/ for EPONA News & Updates

The Travails of Transport for London

I sympathise with London Mayor Boris Johnson's problems at Transport for London (TfL). This is indeed an extremely "political" organisation. However, may I remind TfL's new leader that "stakeholders" in the "Re-opened" (?) Thames Gateway Bridge Public Inquiry (like myself) need a clear statement from him on whether this episode in the life of a proposed East London London River Crossing is, as his own comments and press speculation seem to suggest, in fact going to close. I can also offer this advice (based on nearly a quarter century of area regeneration work) that in planning strategy (as no doubt in Geopolitics - see below) all reasonable options need to be considered, including the "Do Minimum".

Please see http://crookbarrow.wordpress.com for Crookbarrow Associates News & Updates.

Trying Times for The Russian Bear (& "Comrade Wolf")

In response to Mr Trying Times criticism of my Geo-political Bestiary ("Don't Goad The Russian Wolf Too Much !) in my post of yesterday, I would draw attention to the following extract from The Guardian of May 2006, which anticipates the G8 Summit in St Petersburg :

"Mr Putin, in his speech, noted that the American military budget was 25 times the size of Russia's and said the US had turned its home into a castle.

"Good for them," the Russian president said, looking up from his notes, directly at his audience, "but this means we must make our own home strong and reliable. Because we see what is happening in the world. We see it."

He added, in what appeared to be a reference to the US-led invasion of Iraq and its approach to Iran: "As they say, 'comrade wolf knows whom to eat. He eats without listening and he is clearly not going to listen to anyone'." He accused the US of hypocrisy over its criticism of Russia's patchy human rights record.

"Where is all this pathos about protecting human rights and democracy when it comes to the need to pursue their own interests?"

In another veiled reference to Washington's approach to Iraq and Iran, he said: "Methods of force rarely give the desired result and often their consequences are even more terrible than the original threat." He added that Russia was "unambiguously" against the spread of nuclear weapons.

In another apparent jibe aimed at the US, he said countries should not use Russia's negotiations over membership of the World Trade Organisation to make unrelated demands".

I hope this puts my reference to the Russian Wolf in the correct Geo-political context !

Don't Goad The Russian Wolf Too Much !

In my latest post @ The Edge of Town (http://the-edge-of-town.blogspot.com/) I've reflected upon the real and potential dangers of Russian oppression for countries of the former Soviet Block, as demonstrated in the current crisis in Georgia. However, foreign politicians must, in my view, be equally careful not to goad the Russian Wolf to much. The West, notably the United States and Britain, does not have an unblemished record on recent interventions in foreign territories, particularly where energy supplies are at stake.

"New" politicians on the international scene, like David Cameron, want to reflect rather more on how they might handle relationships with Russia, should they win the next British General Election, not least because of our important trading links with that country.

Russian treatment of BP (British Petroleum) may have been heavy-handed, but this is, after all, a company which can justly be accused of gross profiteering, and a tarnished record on environmental and safety issues in some parts of the world.

For my own part, I'd like the Russian Government to take a less "macho" stance on domestic and foreign policy. It's a shame all that testosterone hasn't apparently focused itself more on winning medals at the Beijing Olympics, as I thought one of the main functions of "The Games", along with football and other macho sports, was to distract energy and attention away from violent Geo-politics. However, in the case of Russia we may need more "Nudge Politics" (I think they're called) in the future, if we are to avoid real War Games.

Some Background Information from the US Department of Energy (May 2008)
Russia holds the world's largest natural gas reserves, the second largest coal reserves, and the eighth largest oil reserves. Russia is also the world's largest exporter of natural gas, the second largest oil exporter and the third largest energy consumer.

In 2007, Russia’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by approximately 8.1 percent, surpassing average growth rates in all other G8 countries, and marking the country’s seventh consecutive year of economic expansion. Russia’s economic growth over the past seven years has been driven primarily by energy exports, given the increase in Russian oil production and relatively high world oil prices during the period. Internally, Russia gets over half of its domestic energy needs from natural gas, up from around 49 percent in 1992. Since then, the share of energy use from coal and nuclear has stayed constant, while energy use from oil has decreased from 27 percent to around 19 percent.

Russia’s economy is heavily dependent on oil and natural gas exports. In order to manage windfall oil receipts, the government established a stabilization fund in 2004. By the end of 2007, the fund was expected to be worth $158 billion, or about 12 percent of the country’s nominal GDP. According to calculations by Alfa Bank, the fuel sector accounts for about 20.5 percent of GDP, down from around 22 percent in 2000. According to IMF and World Bank estimates, the oil and gas sector generated more than 60 percent of Russia’s export revenues (64% in 2007), and accounted for 30 percent of all foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country.

Kremlin policy makers continue to exhibit an inclination to advance the state's influence in the energy sector. Taxes on oil exports and extraction are still high, and Russia’s state-influenced oil and gas companies are obtaining controlling stakes in previously foreign-led projects. State-owned export facilities have grown at breakneck pace, while private projects have progressed more slowly or have been met with roadblocks by state-owned companies or by various government agencies.

Why Britain Needs a Labour Government

I awoke this morning from what Carl Jung might have called a "Big Dream", so first let me recount this - it was short ! - and then offer some interpretation.

Entering a glassy office, I ask to speak to "The Tower". "Don't call Him that !" responds the Secretary, who bears a passing resemblance to Yvette Cooper, Chief Financial Secretary to The Treasury. In a further glass office, rather smaller than that of his Secretary, but apparently with an external view, sits a gloomy looking man reading documents : it is Gordon Brown.

At this point, I awake feeling somewhat cheerful. My first thoughts are of "The Tower" card in the Tarot deck.

Students of The Cards will know that The Tower depicts two figures, a man and a woman, being thrown headlong from a tall structure apparently stuck by lightening (or reality !).

Now Ms Cooper and husband Balls remind me of that Northern couple whose husband faked his own death, and who later turned up at a police station in Southern England claiming to have no memory of anything that happened before the year 2000 : a problem incidentally common to New Labour policy makers, until recently anyway.

It also seems that Children's Secretary Mr Balls may have disappeared lately - too many difficult questions to answer ? - or he may just be on "Child Care" leave.

As for the gloomy figure of Mr Brown, he may have realised that Ms Cooper's Secretarial skills are no better than those of her husband; and, of course, she may claim at some later stage that she was bullied by both of them into pursuing the wrong policies. However, my impression is that for Mr Brown, at least, the grim light of reality has (at last) struck home.

So what's to be done ? Well, the first thing is to sack his Secretary. Sorry New Labour Ladies, but we need a change of Administration here ! Mr Brown also needs to sack her husband.

Next, Mr Brown needs to create a Labour Government, and if he is unwilling or unable to do this he needs to stand down as Prime Minister and Leader of his Party.

This Labour Government needs to radically "Cut the Crap !" ie thoroughly "Jargon-Bust" the Corridors of Power, and focus on policies which have real meaning to ordinary people. High amongst these must be measures to target growing wage inequality, including a radical cull of highly-paid (from the public purse) "Jobsworths" in favour of those who represent Real Labour.

Trying Times for Security and Defence Services

Mr "Trying Times", who describes his profession as "Accountancy", has posted this comment on my earlier Blog regarding "Professions Better Suited to Single People". This refers to the case of Max Mosley, who was "outed" by the wife of an ex-employee of MI5 :

"Who said her husband was a former Director of MI5. What's the source of that information? The best I can place him at is earning £23,500/year as a staffer on the middle-east desk working in Circulations. I'm pretty sure that a (former) Director of MI5 wouldn't be living in a two-bed Semi in Chavsville, so what is your source please?"

My source, or so I thought, was BBC Radio when the story first broke in ? March/April this year, but I may be mistaken. Perhaps the Director was sacked for failing to "vet" his staff sufficiently.
However, like Mr "Trying Times", I also interested in remuneration.

Surely the key issue here is money, which I take up in my earlier Blog :"Spooks and the Real Power Inquiry". My guess is that many MI5 staff, like their counterparts in the Armed Services aren't earning enough, and they and their families are easy prey for press payouts. Remember the case of the British marines captured by the Iranians who were then paid for their stories !

30 Years On & Why History Matters

In 1978, I visited the State of New York on family business : although this was a vacation I did not spend much time in the tourist areas. Upstate New York was very beautiful and the traffic moved sedately on the freeway because strict speeds limits were in place to conserve energy. Remember the 1970s Oil Crisis ! Meanwhile, the City of New York teetered on the brink of bankruptcy, but was saved, by amongst other things, its new Mayor. Elsewhere, in the cities of eastern USA, news bulletins showed spates of burnt-out apartment buildings which had either been abandoned by their inhabitants, and/or used for insurance claims because property values were plummeting. Nevertheless, in the midst of all this new shopping malls were springing up in so-called "Edge Cities", accessible only to cars consuming energy the country was trying to save.

I visited the United States again in 1991, this time travelling to California to visit a friend, and my last visit to date. Most of my vacation was spent around the San Francisco Bay area, but I also went to Yosemite and Santa Cruz. On this occasion, I was again struck by some wonderful scenery, but also by overdevelopment, and by the disparities between "good" and "bad" areas. However, the situation seemed much better, for California anyway, than in 1978.

The US economy was in recession during both my visits, so perhaps I'm due another, but this "downturn" (a current euphemism, I feel) seems to be different from previous ones. "The Good Places" seem just as vulnerable as "The Bad", as revealed in the last weekend's business section of The Observer newspaper. This contains a feature on the State of California and home of one the world's largest economies, whose government currently has budgetory problems.... ?on a par with those of New York City in 1978. The State's Standard and Poor Credit Rating has been downgraded because of its so-called "bubble economy" ie one overly vulnerable to a plummeting property market. The Observer article highlights the plight of the Stockton, a commuter city to the north of San Francisco and also now scene of abandoned neighbourhoods.

This sorry story makes for stark reading, but am I in the least surprised ? Nope, not at all. The US City-States have never been models of sustainable development, and nor has the country's wider economy. Let's not forget that North American capitalism is precarious, not so precarious as the capitalism of much of the so-called emerging economies - of South America, India, China etc - but precarious nonetheless. History shows this. UK Government please take note !

PS "A Man in Full" by Tom Wolfe, which I felt was even better than "The Bonfire of the Vanities", deals with the propensity for US property "bubbles", this time in Atlanta.

A New Department for Land Economy

News that Gordon Brown is to host a Cabinet Meeting in the West Midlands on 8 September is to be welcomed. Might I suggest the newly refurbished Council Chamber at Worcestershire County Hall, if this has not already been put forward as a possible venue. I would also like to propose an agenda item for the meeting : a new Department for Land Economy.

For it seems to me that most economists have an inadequate understanding of land economy (planning, property markets etc) and most planners have a poor comprehension of economy.
As a starting point, I think we need a Centre for Land Economy in the West Midlands. Perhaps Vice Chancellor Green of Worcester University, and a Cambridge economics graduate (a University with one of the world's few departments of land economy) could help here.

A Government Department for Land Economy would, of course, need to be thoroughly "joined-up", bringing together regional, urban and rural development, regulation of the property and housing markets, land-based industries, and, of course, planning, for a start. Sustainable development and, particularly, regeneration would be central to the department's mission.

If all this sounds a bit "blue sky" might I suggest the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs's (DEFRA) Foresight Centre look into the proposal. As someone who regular does some "Horizon Scanning" herself (from Crookbarrow Hill next to Junction 7 of the M5), I can tell the boffins that they and their political masters need to come down to earth....and I can think of few more appropriate places than Worcestershire.

"This isn't the Roman Empire"

No, indeed ! Nor is this a reference to the Murdoch Media Empire's relations with the British Security Services, Boris Johnson's address in Latin at the opening of the Emperor Hadrian exhibition, or even London's preparations for the 2012 Olympics. No, this quotation - from yesterday's West Midlands edition of the Metro newspaper - refers to Worcestershire County Council's expenditure of "£850 000 on one room" (!) which provoked these comments from the TaxPayers' Alliance :

"This isn't the Roman Empire - taxpayers don't want glittering prestige buildings, they want their bins collected on time."

Now, as it happens, Worcestershire's bins are collected by the District Councils - Worcester City, Malvern Hills, Wychavon etc - and do not fall under the auspices of the County Council. However, the structure of Worcestershire's local government is pertinent to the underlying issues here : value for money, sustainable development and local democracy. The "room" in question, incidentally, is the Council Chamber in County Hall (built in the 1970s, when it accommodated not only Worcestershire but also Herefordshire County Council).

This annexation of Hereford County Council was subsequently abandoned, and it is a testimony to the rolling forward of the frontiers of the local state that said building - whose (? New Brutalist) structure would have done proud any former Soviet regime - now has difficulty accommodating the one County of Worcestershire's bureaucrats, and, more particularly, their vehicles in the adjoining acres of car-parking. Some may find such expansionism curious in a local authority which is regarded, by and large, as Conservative.

By way of explanation, I would propose that the expansion of this particular "empire" is testimony to the power of the local bureaucrat, many of whom now command salaries higher than their "peers" in higher eschelons of government, and, indeed, in some cases, the Prime Minister. Sadly, such power does not so much cascade, as trickle, down to local communities, as the individuals and groups whose concerns have been "silenced" in the Council Chamber of Worcestershire County Hall can testify, and, this is notwithstanding the current expenditure of :

"...£115 000 ...on electronics ...65 microphones, a sound system, two radio microphones...."

This expenditure, reported in yesterday's Metro, along with "about £631 000...on construction" helpfully brings me back to the subject of "waste", although not bin collections. For it was last year that the protestations of local people went unheard - because they were not allowed to speak - in that "room" now under consideration, when Worcestershire County Council granted planning permission for a major new waste facility on an environmentally sensitive site, served by poor infrastructure, and prone to flooding.

My prediction is that the Council's current "splashing out" of £850k will most certainly not lead to the creation of a Temple of Democracy in County Hall, nor will this facilitate better decision-making on controversial local development projects be they "glittering prestige buildings", waste facilities or the urban extensions much favoured by bureacrats. Real democracy in places like Worcestershire will require, quite simply, fewer empire builders facilitated through the streamlining and re-structuring of local government in the County. Let's get started !

The Next Leader of the Labour Party.....

... should of course be Diane Abbott. Never mind the wimpish Mr Miliband, or one makeover too many Ms Harman, the Labour Party needs a woman of substance to renew its values, and tackle any rogue elements amongst the security services and its spouses, amongst other things...

Professions better suited to single people

In a society increasingly mawkish about marriage and the family, I am sure that some will censure me if I suggest that some professions are best suited to single people. I would include amongst such professions those of spy and purveyor of sado-masochistic services, and, perhaps particularly, where the two roles are combined. The case of "Witness E" in the deliberations of Court 13 regarding "Family Man Max Mosley vs Family Values News International" has of course focused my attention on this matter.

For it seems that Witness E - please correct me if I am wrong -, a married woman with 2 children (? and wife of a- now former - MI5 Director ), was the catalyst for this media furore, playing the role not only of dominatrix, but also, as it were, agent provocateur and "double agent" in accepting payment from both Mr Mosley, for a domination services, and The News of the World (for hosting a secret camera in her cleavage). Unfortunately, one serious consequence of all this was that her husband lost his job, unless this was some Spooks-style sting, of course.

Yesterday, Witness E expressed remorse for her actions. Well, she would, wouldn't she ! She had, apparently, discussed the matter - in what detail she did not confide - with her husband on the day previous to the event. One would have hoped that he had shown the good judgement we expect of spouses and members of the security services, but obviously this was not the case. Perhaps the prospect of £20k (? cash up front) from The News of the World had something to do with it. Maybe he felt he was standing up for family values in helping to expose Mr Mosley.

Witness E described her anticipated activities with Mr Mosley to her husband as in the nature of a "joke", leading me to suspect that her own marital relations, like those of her client, were rather odd. Therefore my message to all those - all be they non-uniformed - relationship and family fascists out there is this (please take note !) : marital/civil partnership and family status is no guarantee of probity etc in professional and public life; there are as many married perverts as unmarried ones, and probably more ; and some professions are better suited to single people.

Please see also my earlier blog : "Spooks" and The Real Power Inquiry

You Can't Always Get What You Want....

I recently decided to purchase a new bicycle, and set myself a budget of £250. My old one had served me well for 8 years and I was looking for a similar "work horse". However, having visited 2 local independent (ie the sort I wished to buy from) shops, neither seemed particularly enthusiastic about my custom, and one was positively discouraging.

In the event, I purchased a Universal Mystique from Woolworths for £69.99, and had this assembled by a local cycle maintenance shop (Lewis's). Lewis's, as it happens, is one of the oldest businesses in Worcester and conveniently resides in a railway arch adjacent to the entrance of Worcester City Council's Planning Department. How's that for integrated transport !

I'm not sure the "Mystique" will last as well as my old Phantom, which in turn was assembled from foreign parts (mainly Chinese ?) by Witcombe Cycles of Deptford, South East London, but you never know. The Mystique was "Hand Built" in Sri Lanka, a country which , I realised recently, appears to be the source of most of my hard wearing Marks & Spencer "wardrobe".

Thus I was surprised to read in The Observer Magazine a few weeks ago that Sri Lanka is one of the world's worst "conflict zones", due to fighting between government forces and Tamil Tiger militia, increasingly associated with suicide bombers. The escalation of the conflict has obviously impacted upon the country's economy, particularly tourism.

However, Sri Lanka, it would seem, remains an important source of products for British High Street retailers catering for the cost/quality-conscious customer (of whom I count myself one), and, quite possibly, for other sections of the retail market. People like me may well hanker after independent retailers and locally made goods, but you can't always get what you want !

But if you try, sometimes, you can get what you need....and hope that others can too !

"We Dont't Know How Bad It Could Get"

These, or similar, words were apparently captured by press photographers on papers carried by the Housing Minister, Caroline Flint. We've obviously come a long way since the days when things could only get better !

"Spooks" and The Real Power Inquiry

Some may remember the so-called Power Inquiry, chaired by the fragrant (some may also recall this epithet was applied to Mary, wife of Jeffrey, Archer) Helena Kennedy QC. The report of this so-called "inquiry" seems to have sunk without trace, although Baroness Kennedy carries on talking, rarely pausing for breath* when given the opportunity of a media airing.

This brings me naturally enough to the subject of sado-masochism, or S&M, which I somehow also associate with the last recession (early 1990s and all that). It was at this time that Madonna (always a barometer of zeitgeist) published a volume called, straightforwardly enough, "SEX", which was sold in a sealed foil bag, I think, and had strong S&M overtones, which the entertainer later said were heavily laced with irony. Maybe.

It may also have been about this time that proclivities of the former Lord Archer, consort of prostitutes started to emerge. He, like Max Mosley, by all accounts, paid handsomely for his pleasures with Ladies of the Trade, although there was no suggestion that these involved shame and degradation, that came later when he committed, amongst other things, the crime of perjury.

Nor was there any suggestion that one of Jeffrey Archer's consorts was the wife of a senior British Security Services officer, as was a member of Max Mosley's sexual consortium (some might say "orgy"). This lady's husband (a director of either MI5 or 6 ?) had to resign as a consequence. Not even a Howard Brenton penned episode of "Spooks" could have imagined this !


Now, whilst for the likes of Madonna, or Helena Kennedy QC for that matter, 500 knicker (as they used to be called) for a giving someone a good spank might not seem worth getting out of bed for, many of us, like the spook's spouse, would feel empowered by such generous financial reward, even if we had to buy our own work gear.

All this said, I'm naturally concerned that senior public servants (and particularly high level spooks) may not be earning enough money if their spouses feel the need to go on The Game, even if it's a game by another name. Have their earnings not kept pace with those of other senior public officials ?. I'm thinking of local authority chief executives on c£200k pa, for instance.

For my money, these are precisely the sort of issues a Power Inquiry should have examined, and if not, why not ? Perhaps Baroness Kennedy was not, as I strongly suspect, the right woman for the job. Do New Labour lack a dominatrix of suitable clout ? Or could this be a new role for Cherie Booth-Blair ? Not a woman averse to making a good whack, by all accounts !

However, we should be grateful that, in the case of Max Mosley, any extraordinary rendition of "Allo, Allo !" (which German TV has recently procured and is now showing) was confined to role play amongst "friends" in the basement of his London home. Equally reassuring, is that all surveillance (in the best public interest of course !) was conducted by The News of the World, and not by some hostile foreign power, unless of course the Murdoch Empire constitutes one.

"Breath" : a very good contemporary novel by Tim Winton which strikes a serious note on S&M; as does the equally good "Fame & Fortune" by Frederick Raphael about the Thatcher years.

Patronage Politics & Strategic Planning

Yesterday's Financial Times carried an article about plans by the University of Oxford's Said Business School to run a Masters course on strategic programme and project management. A lack of UK (and international ?) skills in these areas was cited as the main catalyst for the course. However, I would argue that these skills do already exist both here and abroad, and that the main constraint upon them is the increasing dominance of so-called patronage politics, or clientalism as it is sometimes called. The latter term also points to another problem. Lack of expertise, and, more importantly, experience amongst the "clients" for (and procurers of) strategic projects and programmes. Administration rather than management is the modus operandi of many of these organisations and groupings, with an over-reliance on often inappropriate and/or inadequately customised IT systems. Sound familiar ?

"A Binge rather than a Boom"

The well-regarded economist Roger Bootle recently commented that the circumstances leading up to the present "credit crunch" reflect a "binge rather than a boom".

When news of the former Deputy Prime Minister's bulimia broke yesterday - incidentally, I did think for a moment that Bremner, Bird and Fortune had hijacked Broadcasting House - my understanding of the New Labour Project was, therefore, profoundly deepened.

The fact that, in a world where there are serious food shortages and many people are starving, just why Mr Prescott should anticipate that the British public might feel sympathy with him is interesting in itself.

Hard working people often say to me that what they particularly dislike ("what I can't stand.."!)about New Labour's time in office is "The Greed" to which it has given rise and then rewarded.

News of Mr Prescott's erstwhile desire to chomp his way through the entire menu at his local Chinese Restaurant, and then spew up, may well make many British people, struggling to pay their rising food bills, feel sick.

However, this kind of thing appeals to the neurotic middle classes, who in my view, have come to make up much of the hard core support of New Labour, and have certainly been the main beneficiaries of its policies, including a "bingeing" economy.

Does Boris have the "Ken" to run London ?

I was recently asked who would have my votes (ie first and second preference) in the elections for London Mayor. This is a hypothetical question because I do not live in London. At the time, I responded the Green and Liberal Democrat candidates. However, on reflection my first choice would be Boris Johnson and my second Sian Berry : who might, incidentally, make a very good team, compensating for one another's weaknesses. Mr Johnson is a tad (or should that be cad ?)too clownish, and Ms Berry a little too serious. My questioner, although a Liberal Democrat who also lives outside London, said he would vote for Ken Livingstone, although I hope Brian Paddick would be his second choice.

My questioner was, I suspect, surprised that current London Mayor Ken Livingstone would not be amongst my voting preferences. The main reason for this is that I believe politicians should be limited to fixed terms of office ie 2 successive terms, and not "go on and on, and on" as Ken's great adversary, Mr Thatcher, threatened to do, but did not succeed, thankfully. Moreover, I have to confess to preferring early vintage Livingstone (as Leader of the Greater London Council) to the later variety. In short, Ken seems to have lost some of his metal, and perhaps like Vladimir Putin needs a sabbatical, if only to attend to his lady friends, as Mr Putin is reputedly engaged in doing.

I also happen to feel that Mayor Livingstone has run out of ideas, something Boris Johnson seems to have, although I'm not quite sure what they are, aside from the return of the Routemaster bus, which I heartily support. Indeed, if BoJo had no other ideas, I might vote for him on these grounds alone, being a great fan of the Routemaster, and occasionally experiencing an all too brief epiphany when I infrequently catch sight of an old one (usually the No 12) around Worcester, unfortunately no longer taking public passengers to Oxford Circus. However, like the Routemaster, old "Red" Ken holds not only a certain nostalgia, but the sense that he could make a comeback at a later stage.

In the meantime, I'll be asking, along with many other people, I'm sure : "Does Boris have the "Ken" to run London ?". Working with a good green woman like Sian Berry, he just might have.

Planning, Growth and Regeneration in England

Planning in England, and particularly in Southern England (an area stretching from the South East to Cheshire, albeit that some places in between are excluded !) is particularly problematic at the present time. This Government labours under some fallacious assumptions about the relationship between planning, growth and competitiveness which have proved remarkably resilient thus far to reality check. These assumptions have, by and large, been imported from the United States, and are based on the belief that the domestic economy can be continually grown through increased access to mortgage and other forms of consumer credit. The current crisis in the world's financial markets, itself largely brought about by the implosion of the US sub-prime home loans sector, is evidence that this is not a prudent fiscal strategy. However, our government's plans to increase housebuilding in the South of England are substantially founded on it. Another assumption imported from the US is that economic competitiveness is the beneficiary of a planning system which accommodates high vacancy levels, especially in the commercial property sector. Although again, over-supply of commercial, and residential, property in this country and the United States were important contributors to the previous global recession of the early 1990s.

In the above context, the current predicament of the West Midlands Regionals Spatial Strategy (WMRSS) Revision Preferred Option, which has in fact been hi-jacked by Central Government, provides an interesting point of reference. The Government believes that the West Midlands Regional Assembly's (incidentally WMRA is due to be abolished) plans for house-building in the period 2006-2026 are too low. Although, WMRA's risk assessment for its own proposals suggest that over-supply is more likely to be a problem than under provision. Moreover, the Government's intervention is not restricted to housing. The WMRSS Revision also covers employment land, transport and distribution and waste provision, all of which will have to reflect the increased numbers of housing proposed for the region. The outcome of all this is that the WMRSS Revision Preferred Option is unlikely to be sustainable in either economic or environmental terms. Furthermore, the WMRSS core strategy of "Urban Renaissance" (ie the regeneration of the 2 major conurbations in the West Midlands) is likely to undermined through excessive release of greenfield sites in counties such as Worcestershire, and even here greenfield sites may increasingly be developed before brownfield. In this scenario, the region would revert to the dispersal of economic activity and people away from the older urban areas. Isn't this also happening in the United States by a not-so-funny co-incidence ? So much for evidence-based policy making.

Please see also my blogs @

• http://limits-2-growth.blogspot.com (subtitled : Deconstructing the New Labout Project)
• http://smartlimits2growth.wordpress.com

One the Benefits of Health, Marriage and Family etc

In an interview with Channel 4 News's John Snow, an Islamic Cleric, since deported although his large family remain here, had the candour to say that he had enjoyed the benefits of living in Britain, including state benefits. Let's face it, at least he was being honest !

Now the Conservative Party have become very vociferous on the benefits of marriage and the family recently. I seem to remember that Ian Duncan Smith had to resign, in part, for employing his wife's administrative services, and, more recently, Derek Conway MP for paying his two sons (handsomely) as research assistants, although it wasn't clear that they had done any work.

Let's face it, Britain is a nation on the make where "state benefits" are concerned, whatever form these may take. Those in high office are just as culpable as those they regard as "the underclass", and so is just about every class in between.

I, for one, have become increasingly sympathetic to those claiming incapacity benefit, although I've never been a claimant myself, not yet anyway. However, I've found it so difficult to see an NHS doctor in recent years, that I'm seriously considering asking for a state medical, if such things exist these days. There might be some benefit in it for me after all !

We Are Not Being Served !

There has been a flurry (or should that be storm ?) of correspondence in my local paper recently about the wages of local government officers. Many feel these to be too high, and the upmarket vehicles on display in the council's car park are a particular gripe. My own view is that this is a difficult issue. Some council work does need to be well rewarded, to attract and retain high quality staff. However, the remuneration "package" for the new chief executive of said local authority was reported by a local councillor to be approaching £200K, which seemed rather steep, even by the standards of overpaid and under worked GPs.

I have to say that I was particularly unimpressed by a recent encounter with another new director (bearing the name "communities" in her job title) of the same council. A"stakeholder group" meeting for a major PFI project was in danger of being cancelled because of low attendance, so I thought I'd better go (in a voluntary capacity I hasten to add). The meeting was packed with paid staff from other local institutions, with rather fewer people, like myself, attending in the public interest. Needless to say, there was a great deal of waffle by the public sector cronies, and a few probing questions and points made from those attending in their own unpaid time.

At the end of it all, the new local authority director, a busty woman, bearing a passing resemblance to the character of Mrs Slocum in that classic British comedy series "Are You Being Served ?" - who'd spent a good deal of time fiddling with her earrings during the meeting (I'm sure you know the type !) - approached me to ask how I came to be in attendance (incidentally I was invited !) She clearly hadn't liked my contributions - obviously a reality check too far - and was obviously hoping to exclude me from future sessions, something I wouldn't mind, having only attended out of a sense of public service....and local authorities wonder why they can't attract high calibre councillors !

As for Mrs "Director" Slocum, I'm afraid she lacked both customer service skills and any sense of humour : both core competences for her position, I should think. Therefore, dock her pay, I say !

The Nationalisation of Northern Rock

News that Northern Rock is to be nationalised does not come as a surprise. There was a certain inevitability about yesterday's announcement. The prospect of an increasing number of "uncommercial" ventures having to be bailed out by the UK Government also looms. This Government's own over-optimistic faith in the god of economic growth, together with poor regulation of the economy, are the root causes of the present predicament. But would a change of government save the situation ? As one yet to be convinced by the "substance", as distinct from "spin", of the other political parties, I doubt it.

PS The following article pretty much sums up my take on Northern Rock :

"Life on Mars: Brown and Darling go back to the 70s
Richard Hunter, head of UK equities, Hargreaves Lansdown
February 18 2008

It seems the retro-fashion for all things 1970s has now extended to the corridors of Whitehall.

The decision to nationalise (albeit temporarily) Northern Rock is one that will not have been taken lightly and it may yet prove - although by no means guaranteed - to have been the "least worst" option, to use what has become Northern Rock's catchphrase.

In the 1970s, a number of faltering British companies were taken back into public ownership in an effort to revive their fortunes. Rolls-Royce in 1971 (subsequent privatisation did not take place until 1987), British Leyland and British Aerospace were among those nationalised, with the likes of the banking arm of Johnson Matthey following on in the 1980s.

In the mid to late 1980s, the trend was reversed with the Conservative government's decision to privatise a number of businesses in an attempt to promote wider share ownership, which saw the likes of British Telecom, British Gas and British Airways becoming quoted companies".