Eurozone will need more than just QE if it is ever to recover June 5, 2014 SHORT of embracing quantitative easing, the European Central Bank has now done everything it can to try to loosen conditions in the Eurozone. But by no stretch of the imagination could yesterday’s actions be deemed radical. If the aim was to prevent the decline of Eurozone inflation, now down to 0.5 per cent, and to [...]
We should always heed the law of unintended consequences June 4, 2014 THERE were two reactions to yesterday’s Queen Speech: critics dismissed it as lightweight in the extreme, a collection of reheated policies seasoned with a little trivia; supporters celebrated a government that understands that passing fewer laws is often better than frenetic legislating. Both sides were wrong. For a start, there are revolutionary pension bills in [...]
It is high time voters were given the right to recall their MPs June 3, 2014 WE SHALL soon find out whether the coalition is serious about introducing a right of recall for Members of Parliament. The whole concept is revolutionary; embracing it in a proper way would transform British politics forever and help re-establish the bond between voters and those they elect to represent them. The basic idea is simple: [...]
After years of political vandalism, UK pensions are on the mend June 2, 2014 BRITONS don’t save enough. The fact that we don’t put enough money aside for a rainy day, for our retirement or to finance long-term care, is one of our great weaknesses. There was a time when the UK was able to boast that we had the best pensions system in Europe; those days are long [...]
The fallout from the Scottish referendum will affect all of us June 2, 2014 REGARDLESS of how Scotland votes on 18 September, change is in the air. Even if the Scots vote no to independence, the status quo is no longer sustainable. All the political parties are promising significantly greater devolution for Scotland within the UK – and in particular, the Scottish parliament would gain greater tax raising powers. [...]
The global economic recovery remains on track – for now at least May 29, 2014 WHAT is going on in America? The US economy collapsed in the first quarter – and true to form, Wall Street’s reaction was to send share prices surging. The reason was neither callousness nor even a short-termist, self-interested calculation that bad news means looser money – much more positively, it was that everybody can see [...]
France’s tax hikes are a case study in how not to run a country May 28, 2014 MORE evidence that high and punitive tax rates are bad for tax receipts. An official report from the French audit office makes damning reading for all those who believe in hammering taxpayers to pay for their pet projects. While French tax receipts went up for the fourth year in a row, they have dramatically underperformed [...]
We can all agree on one thing: No more bailouts for bankers May 27, 2014 MUDDLED thinking is the enemy of sound judgement and sensible decision-making. Sadly, the current discussion about inequality is especially confused, with terms and concepts used loosely, making it impossible to conduct a sensible debate. Those who claim to dislike inequality often don’t mean what they say – or at least, most of them don’t. Some, [...]
Why it’s hard to be optimistic about the future of UK politics May 27, 2014 COMPARE and contrast: when Nigel Farage balanced a pint of beer on his head yesterday, the stunt was seen as another PR triumph reinforcing his carefully constructed image as a happy go lucky, popular hero thumbing his nose at establishment convention. But when William Hague, then Tory leader, infamously claimed in 2000 that he used [...]
Shale will turbocharge UK Plc – but losers must be compensated May 22, 2014 QUESTION: What’s the diff-erence between the Home Counties and Texas? ANSWER: Nothing, if the predictions from the British Geological Survey that there are billions of barrels of oil in shale rocks in Sussex, Hampshire and Kent turn out to be true. It is obvious that this astonishing supply needs to be tapped; it could [...]