Because you could focus on doing somethings which are high impact and politically consensual. More bang for your buck school of thinking. A minister of getting things sorted that people notice, while you tackle the Really Important Things agenda.
I find the country roads in Wales are superior to England, but that;s only an unscientific observation not a policy comment though 20mph might be helpful in the long run.
It was a semi-serious point to Mark's acute observations but yes I have noticed that when I go to Wales, just how much better the roads are compared to Sussex. West Sussex Council actually messaged recently on the issue (Sussex roads not Welsh ones) The problem is rainfall (increased) and very high traffic volumes. What they did'nt say was most of the taxes are being consumed on (and increasing) supporting aged care and educational special needs. Which Mark identified as an issue. I also live in France and the locale Department/Region also have a problem with road deterioration (rain and budget constraints plus an extensive legacy of badly made rural roads which network the villages) and have stopped supporting road maintenance on some of these and focus on key high traffic routes. Route Nationale and Motorways are unaffected (& are excellent). The result is an increasing scope of effective traffic calming schemes because the abandoned ones are becoming single track in effect and some are impassable after heavy rain. so SOME journey times are now longer as you use 'supported routes'. Just by contrast the French low speed routes limits are now bettering the Welsh - 30 KPH and 20KPH. I now hold up cyclists driving down my village street - 18KPH i.e. 10 miles an hour.......More than you wnated to know but I find it interesting, sadly.
Lower social care costs might help that 'Pride' translate into better transport infrastructure but anyways I head to Wales in July and will benefit from the Welsh 'road pride' along with all those other benfits conferred on the visitor!
The UK must rejoin the EU to be 'at the heart of Europe.Starmer (and his would be successors) know this but remain frightened of speaking the truth to the people. Unfortunately, that is an essential ingredient of good leadership and- until they accept this pre-requisite - they will continue to speak in clichés , using language (as Orwell wrote) to create a miasma akin ti 'the blind leading the blind'.
What does this solve? It’s unlikely to shift the dial on trade. The problems with regards to direct investment are not meaningfully addressed by it; more a sticking plaster over a gunshot wound, and at least the utter decriptitude of our leadership is exposed being out of it as opposed to the continual ‘Europe innit?’ default of our governing class prior to 2016?
Three word statements like your response (& ‘Take Back Control’) will not suffice, Paul. The fact that you read Mark’s Substack would suggest you have reasoned and practical arguments for continuing to ignore our neighbours and a huge market readily accessible to UK citizens and business.
I enjoy reading journalists who write “Off topic” in terms of their special interest, so this is a really interesting read. Would be good to read about your media insight, why is politics so dominant in overall reporting (how / why has that changed in your career). I would have thought a 24/7 news cycle would require more and wider reporting? The list in the middle should be longer!
Dear Mark, many thanks for these thoughts. You stand above and apart from the usual carping defence commentariat by addressing THE MONEY!! at the Chancellor's level. To get that money, for any portfolio, politicians must be able to motivate the electorate to turn taps on and off.. that's really important too.
A very interesting post. I think that you are right in saying that the political elites are avoiding the big challenges and that the media are corralling them into an unsustainable position.
But I would challenge you to consider the big impacts of brexit, peak oil (getting ever closer) and climate change on the economy and whether the politicians have the answers to these as well because you can't fix the wider economy and health of the nation without addressing these fundamentals.
By the way, I would be interested to hear how you would fund a commitment of 5% of GDP for defence.
The only thing that will transform the lives of ordinary people in the UK is first and foremost to transform the system of power at Westminster. That is the problem at its core. This means the rapid introduction of a PR system of voting before the next election and secondly the abolition of the House of Lords to be replaced with a smaller chamber consisting of 50% local councillors from across the entire nation for a fixed term. The other 50% would be drawn by random selection across the population like jury service. Also limiting the duration of tenure of MP’s to 10 years. You might argue you don’t need a second chamber but the need to rebuild trust in the democratic system all around the country from the ground up would suggest it is needed.
Always impressed by Mark’s comments on Newsnight. From the period of good informative BBC journalism which we seem to have mislaid with honourable exceptions particularly in foreign affairs - Lyse, Steve, Jeremy, Katya. By the way where is another excellent Mark - Mark Easton?
Whichever priorities one chooses the way ahead is much more painful without an improvement in economic growth and productivity. What policies would you advocate to improve our economic performance?
Oh and while you are at it - fix the roads!
Because you could focus on doing somethings which are high impact and politically consensual. More bang for your buck school of thinking. A minister of getting things sorted that people notice, while you tackle the Really Important Things agenda.
I find the country roads in Wales are superior to England, but that;s only an unscientific observation not a policy comment though 20mph might be helpful in the long run.
It was a semi-serious point to Mark's acute observations but yes I have noticed that when I go to Wales, just how much better the roads are compared to Sussex. West Sussex Council actually messaged recently on the issue (Sussex roads not Welsh ones) The problem is rainfall (increased) and very high traffic volumes. What they did'nt say was most of the taxes are being consumed on (and increasing) supporting aged care and educational special needs. Which Mark identified as an issue. I also live in France and the locale Department/Region also have a problem with road deterioration (rain and budget constraints plus an extensive legacy of badly made rural roads which network the villages) and have stopped supporting road maintenance on some of these and focus on key high traffic routes. Route Nationale and Motorways are unaffected (& are excellent). The result is an increasing scope of effective traffic calming schemes because the abandoned ones are becoming single track in effect and some are impassable after heavy rain. so SOME journey times are now longer as you use 'supported routes'. Just by contrast the French low speed routes limits are now bettering the Welsh - 30 KPH and 20KPH. I now hold up cyclists driving down my village street - 18KPH i.e. 10 miles an hour.......More than you wnated to know but I find it interesting, sadly.
I put it down to Pride of place in Wales. Likewise the bi lingual requirement which may mean they need to keep things up to scratch.
Lower social care costs might help that 'Pride' translate into better transport infrastructure but anyways I head to Wales in July and will benefit from the Welsh 'road pride' along with all those other benfits conferred on the visitor!
The UK must rejoin the EU to be 'at the heart of Europe.Starmer (and his would be successors) know this but remain frightened of speaking the truth to the people. Unfortunately, that is an essential ingredient of good leadership and- until they accept this pre-requisite - they will continue to speak in clichés , using language (as Orwell wrote) to create a miasma akin ti 'the blind leading the blind'.
What does this solve? It’s unlikely to shift the dial on trade. The problems with regards to direct investment are not meaningfully addressed by it; more a sticking plaster over a gunshot wound, and at least the utter decriptitude of our leadership is exposed being out of it as opposed to the continual ‘Europe innit?’ default of our governing class prior to 2016?
It must not.
Three word statements like your response (& ‘Take Back Control’) will not suffice, Paul. The fact that you read Mark’s Substack would suggest you have reasoned and practical arguments for continuing to ignore our neighbours and a huge market readily accessible to UK citizens and business.
Cheers.
The eu is so petulant and pathetic to punish a neighbour for daring to defy its greater euro supra state.
What’s the punishment?
You lost the vote. Im not recalling any vote to join. Either we are a democracy or not. If your case is so strong, vote.
Indeed. Time for a new vote.
Nobody wants to pay tax, but everybody wants what tax pays for. Once we've squared that circle (or circled that square) we'll be fine.
I enjoy reading journalists who write “Off topic” in terms of their special interest, so this is a really interesting read. Would be good to read about your media insight, why is politics so dominant in overall reporting (how / why has that changed in your career). I would have thought a 24/7 news cycle would require more and wider reporting? The list in the middle should be longer!
A depressingly accurate picture.
Not depressing , just realistic. There can also be upsides if implemented.
Dear Mark, many thanks for these thoughts. You stand above and apart from the usual carping defence commentariat by addressing THE MONEY!! at the Chancellor's level. To get that money, for any portfolio, politicians must be able to motivate the electorate to turn taps on and off.. that's really important too.
A very interesting post. I think that you are right in saying that the political elites are avoiding the big challenges and that the media are corralling them into an unsustainable position.
But I would challenge you to consider the big impacts of brexit, peak oil (getting ever closer) and climate change on the economy and whether the politicians have the answers to these as well because you can't fix the wider economy and health of the nation without addressing these fundamentals.
By the way, I would be interested to hear how you would fund a commitment of 5% of GDP for defence.
Spot on Mark.
The only thing that will transform the lives of ordinary people in the UK is first and foremost to transform the system of power at Westminster. That is the problem at its core. This means the rapid introduction of a PR system of voting before the next election and secondly the abolition of the House of Lords to be replaced with a smaller chamber consisting of 50% local councillors from across the entire nation for a fixed term. The other 50% would be drawn by random selection across the population like jury service. Also limiting the duration of tenure of MP’s to 10 years. You might argue you don’t need a second chamber but the need to rebuild trust in the democratic system all around the country from the ground up would suggest it is needed.
Always impressed by Mark’s comments on Newsnight. From the period of good informative BBC journalism which we seem to have mislaid with honourable exceptions particularly in foreign affairs - Lyse, Steve, Jeremy, Katya. By the way where is another excellent Mark - Mark Easton?
An insightful yet truly depressing analysis
Realism not depressing.
I agree with all that Mark. Seems like we're heading for the Coneline zone.
Whichever priorities one chooses the way ahead is much more painful without an improvement in economic growth and productivity. What policies would you advocate to improve our economic performance?