I agree with Clement Atlee and Margaret Thatcher, referenda are “a device of dictators and demagogues”. The whole point of representative democracy is that we elect representatives to make decisions on our behalf. If we do not like their decisions, we can elect new representatives. Adding referenda into this mix creates conflicting mandates leading to… Read more
Category:
Brexit
About the decision, background and process of the UK leaving the European Union.
Brexit – Its Going to be a Bumpy Ride
On return from the Christmas break I had a forlorn hope for a moment of Epiphany, but like the Bourbons, the UK political class seems to have “learned nothing and forgotten nothing.” Too much Kool Aid seems to have been drunk. Too much heat and not enough light. Nearly all parties seem to be going… Read more
Travelling to work – and flying away
This is a map of the proportions of people who travel to work on public transport, by walking or by bicycle (click to enlarge) as against those who don’t. (acknowlegement @davidottewell) This shows an extremely small number of ‘good boys’ in a large class – limited to London, Brighton, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Oxford and Cambridge…. Read more
Is This the Chart that Spells Doom for the Brexit Dream? – A Guest Post by Neil Robertson
Figure 1 shows the monthly average of the long-running poll series asking the question “In hindsight, do you think it was right or wrong to vote to leave the EU?” This poll series is interesting for a couple of reasons: the initial results agree approximately with the split in the referendum itself so… Read more
There was an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman…
The cracker joke of the year…… Read more
From being ironical, ‘local currency’ is now of the essence
FT Alphaville (which is generally free) has an article on an Italian bank that has gone bust entitled ‘The curious case of Banca Carige’. It certainly is – the European Central Bank (ECB) is acting as a receiver! It states: The ECB assumed new powers in 2014, through the implementation of the Single Supervisory Mechanism… Read more
2019 forecasts
The FT has started the new year with a bang by asking economists for their forecasts for 2019. The article itself offers more detail but this is is a small selection of the pretty devastating comments: “Given the political shambles . . . the outlook is anything from lacklustre to catastrophic, but who knows?” said Diane Coyle, professor of… Read more
Nasty party government
Bloomberg has a piece headed ‘The Colossal Price of Theresa May’s Immigration Obsession‘. It suggests: [The]control of British borders is probably the most indelible of May’s red lines in the Brexit negotiations. Even though she voted remain, she was always the fiercest champion of the Conservative Party’s promise to cut yearly net migration to the… Read more
Happy New Year
Flip Chart Rick – he of Flip Chart Fairy Tales – and usually well worth reading – is presumably, along with Sajid Javid, even now peering into the the distance somewhere on the South Coast. Fortunately he has a New Year tweet rather appropriate for the times: “Can we swap Grayling, Farage, Redwood and Rees-Mogg for… Read more
The Rule of Law is in jeopardy
We now learn that Nigel Evans, Tory MP, falsely accused of sexual misdemeanors, would have voted against the legal aid reforms that he supported in government. And the ‘Secret Barrister’ says that, without Legal Aid, the Rule of Law collapses. He seeks to suggest that, just that, is occurring. It is nightmarish… This goes to… Read more