Monthly Archives: May 2009

Part of the surveillance culture and the oppressive style of some public authorities is the trigger happy approach to prosecution. Locally I receive many complaints about heavy handed parking enforcement, leading to large fines and clamping fees where honest mistakes have been made because the rules are complex. I hear this week that someone is [...]

I have been spending Saturday mornings walking and talking in support of European Parliament candidates. Today was a particularly pleasant sunny walk. I found the usual mixture of local and national issues. Many voters are confused by the voting system. They want to vote for their own local Euro MEP, and dislike the regional list [...]

The takeover of Opel – which includes Vauxhall – by Magna (Canada) and Sberbank (Russia) relies on E1.5 billion of bridge loans from the German state. We learn that the four German plants are to be kept open. We await detailed information on the futures of Ellesmere Port and Luton. At current exchange rates the [...]

I have been asked to mention the snub to the Queen from France, who failed to invite her in time to attend the D Day Remembrance this year. Apparently the French also delayed and were less than fulsome with their invitations to Uk veterans from that heroic liberation of France. The French President may well [...]

There are huge quantities of oil in store and afloat. Russia is pumping more as OPEC tries to throttle back production. Western and Eastern demand has been hit by the collapse of manufacturing output.Yet the oil price climbs and climbs, now almost double the low point reached earlier this year. There is plenty of investment [...]

The surveillance society is in full flood. We are more watched than ever. We have to live under an ever larger array of regulations and laws, governing how we park, where we drive, what rubbish we throw away, how much tax we pay, and what we think and say. Even the most law abiding find [...]

The UK government has spent more money than it should on supporting some banks. Now it comes to the car industry the cupboard is bare, and competition rules are applied. Meanwhile, the German government is in the drving seat on the General Motors discussions, apparently willing and able to assist. If there are fair rules [...]

It is good news that David Cameron wants to tackle the feeling of alienation from politics and government that so many people share. He is right to say we need power back from Brussels, we need to transfer more power to people away from bureaucracies, and need a stronger Parliament to challenge and influence government. [...]

Yesterday there was good news for Wall Street with better consumer confidence numbers, and bad news with further falls in house prices. Some pundits used to tell us the government had to find a way of stabilising home prices before the banks could be steadied and the markets coaxed back to life. That does not [...]