Wednesday, Apr 14, 2010
Sarkie Starkey
BBC - This week: Historian David Starkey on economic lessons from Canada
Not wholly on-topic, but quite fun..
Posted by uncle tom @ 10:53 AM (487 views) Add Comment
4 Comments
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1. Millaise said...
Strange, I was just wondering what Starkey was saying about the world-wide crash, after all, he claims to have a brain the size of a planet.
The follow-on discussion with him is worth watching, too, at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/this_week/8617222.stm
A few points that are made:
New Labour under Blair was not a political party but an election winning machine that would say anything to please the people.
We the public were complicit in this, as we would rather hear comforting lies, than face horrible truths.
Cameron and the Tories were mesmerized Blair, and are his natural heirs...leaving us with no righteous party to lead us.
The election debates are about small, peripheral issues, such as NI increases/tax breaks for toddlers and married couples...the main parties are content to not discuss the elephant.
Whenever a party mentions cuts, its popularity in opinion polls decreases...so what are they to do?
A hung parliament or even a Tory government with only a small majority will result in inaction.
Canada turned its economy around in the mid-nineties (from debts of 70% GDP, and a 9% deficit) by axing large section of its state machinery---within four years they had the highest rate of growth in the G7.
Low taxation leading to higher income, supply-side economics, and J-curves are mentioned, with the note that our press is too dumbed-down to mention such things.
Efficiency savings are small beer. If the UK were to try to cut public sector employment by 25% as Canada did, there will be large waves of strikes, and a government too weak to fight.
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3. Teeth said...
WHo cares what David Sarkie says?
4. titaniccaptain said...
Thanks UT for giving me another reason for liking David Starkey.