Origin North West

A week since the Emergency Budget was announced and the Coalition is getting on with its business.  Around it the media and the opposition are combing the details and creating nightmare scenario’s and rumours of discontent to create a wedge in the coalition.

Yet the main effects won’t be felt for around a year which is putting off the changes, similar to what the opposition want.

Some of the changes are uncomfortable like freezing public sector pay, but in the end that is certain to save some jobs.  Pensions will rise in accordance with earnings which has broad support.

The LibDem’s have got some of their policies such as a large tax threshold increase, significant capital gains tax increase while swallowing a moderate VAT increase, which they didn’t want.

The main beneficiary of the budget is business with decreases in corporation tax and employee insurance.

In October and next March the full changes will be announced and from the overall figures announced, these are likely to result in cuts that no-one will be happy about. Further amendments might occur caused by circumstances either good or bad but for now the announcement has taken some of the risk that the economy will destabilise and the financial markets have improved.

The Defence Review, Poverty Review, Pensions Review will be undertaken and provide evidence for the measures to be taken.

Overall the budget comes over as well balanced; clearly taking from the wealthy and giving more than taking from the poor.  It is recommended to the house.

Won 1, Drawn 2, Lost 1. Millions of pounds spent for little result and only 4 matches.

Six hours of football and under an hour of it was on the fringes of world class.  Probably an hour of it was Blue Square level and the rest mundane.

At the end of the day the players should be able to trap, pass, shoot, tackle, mark and think.  In South Africa it seemed they couldn’t. Blaming others and the set up of English football is only part of the answer.

Instead of root – branch let’s find out what Fabio wants and let him have what is possible. Continually sacking managers isn’t the answer.

A month ago we thought the British economy depended on the banks but now we’re learning it also depends on dividends from BP.

Is Barack Obama correct in ramping up the criticism and penalties on BP?  The spill is big, the company has taken several imaginative engineering measures and had some success with more to follow, it is also offering to clear up the mess. How much more does Mr Obama want? 

The US  is now saying that it is going to intervene in BP’s business by dictating its dividend policy, and expecting it to compensate other companies who can’t now set up drilling in the Caribbean.  Both of these seem to be excessive measures.

From what I have read the US is trying to be independant in oil supply and that means taking bigger risks drilling deeper oil.  That one of these risks occurred should be something the US is prepared for. How much a company can do seems quite limited compared to a government and perhaps also relates to how much people are willing to pay for their fuel. It’s becoming a bit like a witch-hunt on BP and the UK should be looking at what it can do both to assist and to put pressure on the US to ease up on BP.

It is fair to comment that BP has been involved in two other major incidents in the US and it would be interesting to know how that stacks up with other companies. For example the Total fuel dump that exploded near London was huge but I don’t recall a government campaign against Total.

The jury has been out on the UK / US relationship over the last couple of years despite Mr Obama using the ’special’ word recently, the appropriateness of the action on BP  can be seen as another piece of that jigsaw.

Worrying signs from South Africa. Wayne Rooney booked for dissent in the opening friendly. Will the team come good, they might.  Then suddenly they’ll be expected to win it before being cruelly defeated.

After winning all their Group C matches they play Australia on June 26th and win on penalties.  In the Quarter Finals they face Argentina and win on penalties. Brazil play sweet football in the semi-finals but in the last minute an own goal deflection gives England a ticket to the final to play Nigeria.  The government then announces that it is cutting the England team and Brazil step in and win the World Cup. Wayne Rooney says he’s awfully disappointed but it’s one of those things.

The terrible events in Cumbria last week are now entering a phase where people are asking questions. Within a day of the shootings people were asking if Cumbria police were up to the task obviously to the irritation of the police chief.

Now it has come to light that 3 policemen saw Mr Bird early in the sequence.

Yet what is a force in a small town in an isolated area supposed to be capable of. How quickly do you realise that someone who shot one person is going to shoot more or if you as an unprotected and unarmed policeman might be a target.

Most of the commentators have travelled from London and imagine that there are police sharpshooting squads on hand in high powered cars covered by helicopters 24hrs a day with an instant reaction time like they’re used to. Yet, even with all this in London criminals aren’t caught. So let’s leave Cumbria police to do a job as appropriate for their area and not get carried away with notions of a big city force.

BP, BA, Prudential are three names synonymous with Britain and all three are going through strong turbulance. Prudential may have lowered the angst by backing out of their deal but they’ve still got to pay some large bills and decide what their future strategy is. BA is in a tussle with the unions trying to bring some realism into the business. BP has an un-controlled oil leak that is making all the wrong headlines yet might be fixed at any time.

Quite often these periods of bad news create quite a storm at the time but within weeks of it being resolved things seem to carry on as normal as far as the public is concerned. Of the three BA stand to gain the most by winning their battle although their pension deficit seems like it will always be a weight round the companies neck. BP can only keep its head down and hope that no major US cases are brought against it, but it seems like some upheaval in its US business is inevitable. Prudential has several options with changes to the board and breaking up being two mentioned in the press.

Of the three BP should be protected in some way by the government in a similar way that the French protect their strategic assets. BA and Prudential are renowned British names but not strategic.

Publishing the names of those who earn more than the Prime Minister might sound a populist measure and perhaps when the fuss ends it will be.  The PM takes around £150k although he’s entitled to around £200k, not including board, lodgings, second houses and transport. Seems a bit wrong way round really as the PM should be worth more than £200k and should take his full salary. An ordinary manager in a large company can earn £50k and in London no doubt higher. The salary below £250k is a bit light, surely the PM is worth £400k. The Civil Servants earning large salaries have large organisations with massive budgets that  need detailed and visionary leadership. Surely they are worth their salaries it’s just that the PM is paid too little.

How long is the expenses saga going to continue. It’s time the press switched off and gave it fair commentary. The constant sniping with blown up headlines is making a mockery out of politics. Few people in the whole population could have all their dealings examined and not have an item pulled out and questioned especially when it comes to business expenses. So someone claimed for a room they were actually living in!

All purchases made from public expenditure are to be published if they are above £25,000. This sounds a good idea and ideal for those rakers of data who might turn up a few less justifiable items that crept through.  Then again there might be a sudden increase in items costing £24,999.  It will probably be a long list and should be successful in bringing government activity into public scrutiny. Might we find out how much a building actually costs or will it be a building with a full stock of furniture and 5 years of maintenance so letting through a mass of purchases.