Monthly Archives: August 2010

There is a three letter word the BBC and others does not wish to mention – tax. The main reason Mr Rudd, the previous Labour PM lost his job, was higher taxes. Parliament and people disliked his higher taxes and charges in the name of a climate change policy, and voted them down. Then he [...]

Each year the state spends on average £10,000 for every man, woman and child in the country. The idea of public accountability, democracy and more transparency over how public bodies spend your moeny is that you should be more involved in how this money is spent. I would like to hear from you on your [...]

Labour’s big change in transport policy was to increase the amount of subsidy going to the railways substantially, whilst cutting back the amount spent on roads. We received little by way of new railway line or roads during the last thirteen years, other than the completion of the Channel rail link initiated by the previous [...]

In the US the Stock market has been falling because many investors no longer believe printing more money and running up a collosal public deficit is the way to sustained recovery. Mr Obaama continues with more of the same in the hopeless belief this will save him in the mid term elections this autumn. Labour [...]

We have been debating three proposals for better decisions on building and planning. The first is my proposal to pay compensation for loss of amenity, view, and worse quality of life to existing homeowners. This proposal has several advantages. It can be done under the current law. Where I have seen it used it works. [...]

Mr Hughes thinks Lib Dem backbenchers should have a veto on Coalition policies. Some would say only if Conservative backbenchers as well can have one, to be fair. The truth is simple. If all Lib Dem backbenchers vote against a Coaltion government proposal, even with Labour support, the government will still win the vote. If [...]

Today we hear that Mr Clegg will set out his proposals and vision for a more equal and just society. Here are some of the things he could address. The main reason too many people are poor in the UK is they do not have jobs. During the long Labour years around 5 million people [...]

One of the main issues which embitters many a planning dispute is who pockets the large windfall gains from the conversion of cheap land to dear land with building permission? There are three models on offer or regularly debated. The first is that the developer or land owner should claim the gain , because it [...]