There should be respect for the position if not for the person.
The General Election is round the corner and people in all parties are working hard on writing their manifestos, drip feeding us with the highlights. I thought it was about time we joined them I went public too.
We in the Labour Finance and Industry Group have also been dreaming up our wish list for the next Labour Government to enact.
It is just too easy to criticise government and politicians. It is quite another thing to come up with answers. What would you do if you were in their position of power? No. Seriously. What would you do? You would need to take into account unintended consequences and the undesirable effects of your proposals on other people. Asking for more of something is the easy part. But who should pay the price? Giving to some is fine but who should be given less? It really isn’t easy to come up with practical solutions.
Ask me what I would like the next Labour Government to do and this is my response.
First, we need to tackle the immediate aftermath of the banking crisis. Reform of the banking system is essential and we do not need lessons from self interested bankers about laissez faire. Thankfully, the government intervened to protect the millions of us who were innocent bystanders in the financial debacle. But that intervention was not costless and we all need to pull together now to share and pay the price of continuity. But is this too much to ask a country that is ripped apart by scepticism and distrust, especially as it will mean both higher taxes and swinging cuts.
We need banking regulation based on Basel II. Banking activities need to be split so that the riskier speculative activities of investment banking cannot impact on retail banking and the security banks are expected to provide for everyday living. A new National Bank based on the remaining Post Offices.
Taxation
Work should be rewarded not taxed. It is unearned income that should be taxed as this represents a cut of somebody else’s efforts. The Tobin tax, a tax on speculative transactions, is but one example. Property taxes should also be taxed far more and capital gains tax on property should be raised. A property tax would raise millions without any impact on inflation. If vendors raise the price they wish to sell, buyers simply move to cheaper properties. Property prices are determined by the buyers not the sellers. Property taxes cannot be passed on. This does not mean property prices never increase. They do but only in response to a shortage of properties not as a result of tax increases.
The swinging cuts
The truth of the matter is that cuts will hit some more than others. Some will even escape any real sacrifice. No cuts are desirable. But they are inevitable. In the short run we cannot afford sacred cows. If Government has to make cuts, then one area is higher education.
Another is health. And another is social benefits. The reason is obvious. These are the main spending departments of government.
Too many students get to university only to treat it like a finishing school. They have not truly earned their place through hard work or talent. They are not interested or curious. They think they simply need a degree to get a job, which in the past did not require a degree to enter and were none the poorer for that.
University student places need to be earned and the number of students and university places could be reduced without any loss of quality. More places need to be provided in apprentice- type courses equipping people with practical skills and self confidence.
Health care and facilities need to be prioritised. Not everything needs to be done on the health service just because it involves the human body. Smoking, drinking and dangerous driving are all known health risks and those who choose to take those risks need to take the consequences instead of expecting others to pay the costs of their reckless behaviour. Gradually they should be made to pay for the health care they receive.
Regional Development Agencies could be abolished. These non-elected bodies duplicate the role of local authorities.
No growth economics
We are entering a new period of no growth economics. How can an economy survive if it does not grow? The answer is that it does different things from the past. More care, more schooling and more sustainable activities. New priorities.
Replacing the target culture
The era of targets is coming to an end as we see how target can be met without achieving what the targets were set to obtain and at great cost. Moreover, inspection processess do not achieve what they set out to monitor. Instead of targets and inspections, a new regime of ombudsmen offices should be tried. No more inspections but instead offices for complaints. Complaints would be investigated and problems resolved. Suing and the blame culture would be removed and people would no longer need to protect their backs. Instead a fair overview of the situation could be considered taking into account misconduct, under funding, lack of resources and systemic failure. These matters could then be put right on an ad hoc basis and gradually standards would improve. We could then return to a situation where individuals had discretion and responsibility for their actions.
A rapid way of getting around
High speed rail travel will connect the country. If all the major conurbations are within 2 hours travel time by train employment could spread across the country more evenly.
A new English government
The time has come to reform local, regional and national government. Regional Development Agencies should be scrapped and taken over by local authorities. England should be ruled by its own government with the same status as that of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with responsibility for policing, health, school education. The national government would still have overall responsibility for law and order, legislation, foreign policy and defence, economic policy and post school education and training.
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