Frank Field Gets Government Job

[TheBlueCat]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/david-cameron/7728859/David-Cameron-lines-up-Labours-Frank-Field-as-poverty-tsar.html

Good idea - clever guy, if a bit creepy:

Mr Field, a long-time champion of welfare reform, has been asked to lead a major review into levels of poverty across Britain. He is also expected to study how poverty should be measured in the future.

Bad idea - nothing like as clever as he would like you to think:

Mr Cameron has asked Will Hutton, the Labour-supporting economist and former newspaper editor, to head a separate review into pay inequality.

[Si1]

http://www.telegraph...verty-tsar.html

Good idea - clever guy, if a bit creepy:

Bad idea - nothing like as clever as he would like you to think:

I'm guessing that this is in order to neutralise the left wing of the lib-dems from bringing the coalition down

[TheBlueCat]

I'm guessing that this is in order to neutralise the left wing of the lib-dems from bringing the coalition down

Yes, possibly, alhough Field is to the right of many of the Lib Dems I'd say. It might have as much to do with trying to wrong-foot the Labour party as anything else or maybe Field and IDS have already worked together and got on well? I can't see why anyone on any side would want Hutton around though, that really is a surprise.

[CrashedOutAndBurned]

What next? Polly Toynbee signed up as Minister for Daft Bints?

Will Hutton is a chump who wasted miles of newsprint bigging up the new labour property/debt doom miracle while his wife Jane Atkinson made big wonga from property development. He's famously called the Bilderberg group the 'high priests of Globalisation' - but this wasn't a criticism but a boast, as he has attending the yearly meetings. A prize cockola of the first order.

Frank Field became a Tory years ago, it's just that he posed as a 'Labour maverick' rather than jump ship, wedded to the gravy train of his safe seat.

The new government, like, sucks ass, dude.

[Si1]

Yes, possibly, alhough Field is to the right of many of the Lib Dems I'd say. It might have as much to do with trying to wrong-foot the Labour party as anything else or maybe Field and IDS have already worked together and got on well? I can't see why anyone on any side would want Hutton around though, that really is a surprise.

Field seems to be universally respected - at least from my right-wing perspective - a rigourous and independent intellect

Hutton - that is interesting - keep your friends close, your enemies even closer? Having said that, ths subject, a very touchy feely leftist one, but nevertheless one that probably needs consideration, would suit a left-leaning economist than a right-leaning one, who might not even consider it a subject worthy of effort

[1929crash]

Congratulations to Will.

[porca misèria]

Hasn't the collective wisdom of HPC long seen IDS+Field as kind-of a dream ticket in terms of reforming the welfare state?

Looks like we're getting it!

[Ologhai Jones]

(From 'Frank Field Tells It Like It Is' thread on here from February this year.)

If you want to remind yourself of a nice bit of Frank, here's a link to an item on BBC Radio 4's Today programme in which he features:

BBC Radio 4 Today item featuring Frank Field.

Frank Field quotes from that interview:

"Mega debt crisis that threatens our very existence."

"Schools producing people who are unemployable."

"We are educating people for a life of unemployment."

"Some young people openly say they've no intention of working unless it offers 3 times their benefit. And I'm talking about people who can barely read and write."

"The Government has been forcing banks to buy government debt and has been printing money to buy government debt."

"We do not know whether the rest of world will lend us the money to maintain our debt to allow us to slowly readjust to a lower standard of living -- which is what this crisis really means."

"We have to say that the welfare rules are changing; there will be a job guarantee, but after four weeks if you don't take the job, there'll be no more benefits."