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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » Infrastructure: the Conservatives’ necessary but misplaced pri
politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » Infrastructure: the Conservatives’ necessary but misplaced priority
The Custard Factory is one of Birmingham’s more striking developments. Its current incarnation is as Birmingham’s answer to Shoreditch (a question that probably did not need asking). Its history, however, stands as a warning to the government, a warning that it almost certainly will not heed.
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Perhaps the nickname of a tuck shop in one of the fine establishments that is pumping out the new paladins of the voiceless and hopeless left behinds of England.
Another example of what you describe is the fashion there used to be a few years ago of building big arts centres in regional towns in the hope that they would regenerate the area. Not all of these were successful. Something more than just building some big project is needed.
Maybe listening to the people living there about what they need would be a start. Lots of small scale improvements which actually make a real positive difference to people’s’ lives might be better.
It does look as if everything is on hold until the 1st February when we leave, subject to the transistion to 31st December
She owns what she says, if she doesn't mean it she shouldn't repeatedly say such things, and people can hardly object if others take notice of the offensive and stupid things she says rather than other bits. There is a very easy way Pidcock could avoid being bashed so easily - stop being silly. Starmer, Nandy, Phillips, even RLB, they get picked up on various things they have said, and sometimes it will be unfair, but none of them face bashing such as you seem upset that Pidock gets, as they are not as silly as her.
So frankly I don't see that the problem is people criticising her. Edit: She's inviting that, and if it is overshadowing useful things she is saying that's her own damn fault. It's like how Trump could come up with a good point on something and we'd not notice because of how odious he is generally - it'd be a shame to miss the good point, but we could hardly be blamed for doing so.
Will they eventually face a proper tv debates with a moderator, or are they all going to be internal hustings with little forensic cross examination
In the same interview he tells business they’ve had three years to prepare for divergence, he declines to give any details of what the divergences resulting from Brexit are going to be...
We should take some lessons from the Germans, who have managed to raise incomes in the East German Laander to levels above many English regions in little more than 20 years.
It required a combination of tax incentives, infrastructure spending, and direct subsidies from the center to local government.
James Hayes, in The Shortest History of Germany gives a excellent overview in the final chapter. And sets it in the context of German/Prussian history where the story of the rise of Prussia is the story of the west subsidising the east. Perhaps nothing changes.
The Sussexes will no longer use their titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family
Very tempted to repeat my view that monarchist-traditionalists are, well, a bit weird. But I won’t.
https://youtu.be/mTFRKyoq3hs
I fully support the Queen's decision and I hope Harry and Megan succeed in their new life in Canada
I really cannot see how anyone can object to this solution
England has a chance of winning etc. I’m not sure he can blame that crime against British usage on his computer?
It's a great deal to keep the brand of the monarchy intact.
An alternative model to more companies outside London is really good train services to London. That's basically how a lot of the Home Counties thrive, and if HS2 does happen (I'm not yet convinced it will or should) then I can see people living in the Midlands and working in London. It's not as attractive a prospect as developing more prosperous centres around the country, but may be more realistic for some time.
Whenever I read about East Germany it's to say they're still in the doldrums regardless of the fact money's been thrown at it for 30 years.
It's far easier to kill a golden goose than create one.
You cannot "level up" the North without "levelling down" the South. This to me is a statement of almost scientific certainty.
So if this Boris Johnson led Conservative government can manage to do it - well it will be an achievement of such magnitude that no other party need bother standing next time. And rightly not.
The savings to be achieved are in the spec. For example, the civils specs for the tunnels demand virtually no leaks.
There's never been a tunnel in history that doesn't leak to some extent somewhere and these idealistic designs are jacking up the cost something silly.
Why would you want to artificially depress Europe’s most successful region?
Or any other royal connection.
Monarchy isn't supposed to be an exciting celebrity fest. It's supposed to exemplify duty, stability and continuity.
Can you explain to me why you think it's unacceptable to critique Meghan but it is fine to insult Kate, other than the fact you've decided to align them as affiliates on opposite sides of the culture wars?
Will it fcuk.
But of course, that's not what you mean. What you mean is that you're irritated people don't agree with you.
Indeed I have been a republican most of my life, but over the years have grown to respect the Queen but would not be surprised if sentiment changes should Charles ever become King
Duty and stability like driving on to a main road without looking and nearly killing a young mum and baby?
Duty and stability like driving a stake between people who love each other?
Duty and stability like sleeping with underage girls?
Whatever.
I just think that Kate is boring. Full stop.
Meghan was the best thing to happen to the monarchy for years.
I loved her wedding, and I’m a republican.
That must be a temporary arrangement as I cannot see that surviving his transition to reigning monarch.
EDIT: either that or Charles will funnel them the money through a back channel and they’ll simply “pay it off” that way.
It takes all the condescension of someone who flogged enough collateral debt obligations to bankrupt the world's financial system, landed all of us with billions of debt, while making sure he continued to pocket his bonus, to berate business for not being prepared for adverse effects that his government is introducing but refuses to tell them about .
Megan and Harry certainly could have made a great contribution to the monarchy and perhaps got non-committed observers to take another look at its next generation both in the UK and throughout the Commonwealth.
However, they decided it was too much like hard work and too constraining for them.
Those who have sympathy with that point of view are those who lack sympathy with the institution of the monarchy as a whole.
So here we are.
If you're going to just resort to abuse in your posts then I'm more than happy to let your posts speak for themselves.
Son, read a lot, practice, and work bloody hard.
Or shag a princess and get her pregnant.
Almost all European countries face the same problem as the UK in so far as successful young people want to be married to other SYP, to reap the proven gains of changing from employer to employer, and to go on business travel and nice holidays to other countries. But only Paris matches London, in the measure of how many of the best people in the world in their fields work near London.
The problem is anyone who gains from proximity to law, finance, venture capital, aviation, or media and publicity, gains from being near London. The only level-up solution I see is a general increase in corporation tax, plus tax-free zones far from the home counties, so that the firms which gain less from London's scale benefits are outside the capital and are taxed less.
Alastair's post is excellent. But he misses a crucial point.
Where did Bird's relocate to 50 years ago?
To that awful example of a collapsing economy, Banbury. Which sits on the edge of beautiful countryside slap bang in the middle of what - until Brexit came along - turned out to be one of Britain's most successful regions (with the most overpriced housing relative to income) in the second half of the 20th century.
So the Bird's turned GF turned Kraft factory has succeeded in adding to the pressure on housing in Oxfordshire, while impoverishing Birmingham
We often say governments can't pick winners. They're pretty crap at spotting failures as well.
It is a fair resolution
Basically, a week ago they wanted to be half in/half out and the inevitable result is, as was pretty obvious, that it’s in or out and if you’re out, you’re fully out.
Comprehension issues?
The "Cultural Quarter" centred around the Curve Theatre, has worked, including the renovation of the Athena into a party venue, suitable for even large Asian weddings. The relocated Arts cinema is thriving. The improvements in the De Montfort Campus and linking into the city via the reworked Greyfriars area, and Highcross development that keeps retail in the city centre rather than out of town mall have also worked.
Gradually the cities clothing factories have converted to apartments, and the city has become a destination for retail and the night time economy. Unquestionably the transition has been helped by the expansion of the two universities, as is true of many provincial cities.
How much of this is reproducible elsewhere is uncertain, but Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool and Sheffield have all become hipster, cosmopolitan cities in a similar vein. Others too that I am less familiar with, no doubt.
do wonder how sustainable such a transformation based upon student loans on the never never is, and Leicester has not completely lost its gritty urban edge, but is a much more liveable place.
Maybe not the transformation that Beexiteers nostalgically long for, but it has worked.
Hope she hasn't upset Kate too much.
But I agree your general point.
I don’t buy the zero sum game argument. Economies don’t work like that.
This week I posted by far my most successful tweet by stats. Here it is:
https://twitter.com/alastairmeeks/status/1217845058378047488?s=21
Hmm. Not quite the image I want to leave behind on my deathbed.
I partially agree. Middle and back office is in trouble (but much of that has relocated from the U.K. already). On the law side, there has always been commoditisation (and AI is an aspect of that) but the number of lawyers continues to increase. The past is a dubious guide to the future but the question is one of value. I’d say, and I’ve sat on both sides of the curtain, private practice and in-house, that there is much value still there and much of the inefficiencies are client led.
What we also are inclined to forget is that the US alone is about 50% of the global legal market and they work in a very different way to many legal services consumers,