Productivity, Capital, Labour and Profits

Productivity is a major concern for the UK economy and we lag behind many of our European and global competitors.

One of the main reasons for this problem is that when profits are generated by many UK businesses they are squirrelled away in tax havens and re-invested in speculative financial markets in order to avoid or evade a proper contribution to UK taxation. This in turn means that the investment in our capital infrastructure and our capital equipment is severely restricted.

There seems to be a belief in some UK business that instead of investing in new and modern capital equipment we can plug the productivity gap by applying ever-increasing amounts of increasingly cheap labour to our industrial base, ignoring the fundamental economic law of diminishing returns. And when this fails to work we get into the situation we have now where increasing productivity places all of its eggs in one basket, that of reducing wages even further and/or trying to maintain the same output with fewer people.

There is a direct connection between the criminal or morally reprehensible behaviour of corporate tax cheats and the falling productivity rate in the UK and it is a problem which governments must deal with, and very soon, because it will only get worse the longer it is left unaddressed.

Reaction Formation and Councillor Terry Kelly

Reaction formation is believed to occur when someone finds an idea in themselves so especially threatening that they deal with it by enthusiastically embracing its opposite, and so it is with the New Labour Party and Socialism.

The stand-out in this field is Councillor Terry (TKMax) Kelly of Renfrewshire District. There is a strong suspicion that Councillor Kelly is a closet Socialist, despite his support for Blair's Government, his support of the selling off of council housing to a private limited company and his latest aberration, the stigmatising of a foodbank user who dared to criticise the policies of the Cameron government. Still, on his blog, he claims to be a socialist. How can this be ?

The councillor runs the most vile, hate-filled blog it has been my misfortune to read. It is filled with spiteful venom and really obnoxious, and often has a special place for the Socialists. But Terry claims to be a socialist and although I do not know him personally, I'm told by those who do that he's 'ok'. So it's difficult to believe that a vile hate-filled, spiteful, venomous, obnoxious person could charm the voters, could they ? Unless they were modelled on Blair. I believe the explanation is that Terry is reacting to his own shame at allowing his own Socialism to be sold down the river for a place at the council table and a pay of around £460 per week. But he says he's a socialist and how could anyone think one of Tony Blair's New Labour people would tell a lie ? I mean, I'm sure that if they live long enough, maybe four or five hundred years, Tony Robinson and the Time Team will find those weapons of mass destruction, right ?

So he embraces all of the Tory policies with enthusiasm, attacking foodbank users, manipulating Renfrewshire's assets for tax avoidance and promoting big business at the Braehead Shopping Development. He gets into bed with Cameron's Tories to fight against independence with more vitriol than the Tories themselves. Nothing is too right wing for Terry, because we believe he has to do it to cover up his embarrassment and shame at having sold his Socialism for a paltry portion of silver and a small sliver of power. Ashamed of his own cowardice he has to try to be a bully, but he's not scary enough. That he has to be obnoxious, and to lose all respect among decent people is a very small price to pay when you have already committed the major act of betrayal of your community and working class heritage, and you can always pass off anger at yourself as strong commitment to principle if you are loud enough.

And as for the real Socialists, he hates us worst, because we are a constant reminder to him of his shame and betrayal. We are the open sore that just wont heal, we wont go away no matter what he does. We haunt him like a bad dream of what he believes but dare not admit because were he to come out of the closet as a socialist by action rather than just words then his leader, Councillor McMillan, would dispense with the services of his court jester as quickly as you can say Gulf War, and then he's off the gravy train.

Sir Sean and Duggie

I see that Sir Sean has called for the resignation of Douglas (Duggie the chosen one and future anointed) Alexander.

Whilst I agree with him on this point, his voice would perhaps have more weight if he were affected by the decisions made in the UK by those he criticises.

We'll leave a light in the window for you Sean, come home and pay your taxes

Scottish Nationalists and the Millionaires' Club Again

Well there we are then. It's out in the open as predicted. We know now what Souter wanted from the Nats and it wasn't a positive favour, it was a negative one. No return to public ownership of buses. I was assured that the policies of the Nats would not change to suit the millionaire backers. This policy was unanimously adopted at their conference but where is it in the manifesto. Posted absent. I was assured that the party members of the Nats would have to approve any change to policy. Where did that consultation go? It was not expedient.

It is a grim reminder of the dark days of the Labour Party when we were told that we could vote for whatever we liked but it would not bind the parliamentary party. That's a bit like caffeine-free diet coke. What's the point? The career politicians are completely cynical , both Labour and SNP, and care only for their personal power and pockets and the smirking fish is a first order user of people. Everyone knows that including the wee lassie, but they will suffer any indignity to be able to keep their jobs and enhance their incomes.

The stink of hypocrisy is palpable, but never mind, we'll be there for the Scottish people when Salmond and Sturgeon let you down and you find that the increase in prosperity which they forecast is their prosperity, not yours or mine
It's good that the disenfranchised millionaires living at home or in tax exile have someone to look after their interests in Parliament. The Millionaires' Club wing of the Nats. But someone has to look after the rest of us and keep on fighting for a fairer society.

Sir Sean and the Nats: Return of the Hero

I see from the Scotsman today that Sir Sean Connery (a rich exile) is set to return from the Bahamas when Scotland is 'granted' independence. This is no more than another 'leader' of the Scottish people prepared to sit it out in another country (ring any bells, Alex ?) until the hard work is done before returning to take advantage of the situation he had no hand in creating, except to run off at the mouth about how Scottish he is.

For your information, Sir Sean, independence is not being granted, it is being fought for while you are tanning your fat arse in the sunshine. If you want to help the fight is here (where were you?) but we don't need you to win it. Stay where you are and annoy somebody else, you and your kind, who think that they can waltz in after the work is done and try to turn Scotland into a tax haven for the rich (because that is why you are not here, you don't want to pay your share of tax) are neither wanted nor needed except by the Tartan Tory friends of the rich.

Scottish Nationalists and the Millionaires Club 3

A bit in the front of the Herald today might throw some light on the attraction of the Nats for the millionaires club.
It reports that a leading financier, one Ben Thomson, chairman of the investment bank Noble Group, backs the Nats because a Nat win would rid the finance sector of 'over-regulation from London'.

He obviously sees an opportunity for the financial sector to benefit from a reduction in regulation, and while I support the independence cause I am not sure that the Nats., who seem to have some unsavoury friends, are the right people to take us there. I hope that this is just a coincidence and not another under the counter deal done in advance of an election (a 'Souter' ? )

Looking back over the recent past it might even appear, when we think about Farepak, illegal bank charges, endowment mis-selling, millions lost in tax avoidance schemes, and the general bolox the financial sector has made of pensions with the assistance of 'the big clunkin fist' that a lot more regulation and scrutiny is required, not a lot less irrespective of whether it comes from London or Edinburgh.