Rt Hon Sir John Redwood (Wokingham) (Con): To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of covid-19 test kits are imported.
Maggie Throup, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department of Health and Social Care: Currently 90% of lateral flow device tests are imported although we expect this to decrease to approximately 70 to 80%.
March 3, 2022
This is an extraordinary comment on British industry. Why cannot fairly simple things like this be made here?
March 3, 2022
Not at all! This is a extraordinary comment on U.K. governments of the last 60 years. During this period, failing in any meaningful or sensible running of the economy, they have relied on consumer (and government) debt to create growth. The endlessly borrowed money finds its way into the housing market and inflates house prices. And, of course, this inflates wages. Even paying the minimum wage, an employee will cost an employer at least ÂŁ600 a week. How can we compete with countries where wages are a fraction of this.
This was always going to happen. The obsession with globalisation and debt was always going to end up with us as a service economy. Now the chickens are home to roost. We are dependent on others for food, energy, lateral flow tests and a host of other things that we cannot afford to make ourselves. It is a damning condemnation of U.K. governments of the last 69 years and the civil service.
March 3, 2022
+1
March 3, 2022
+100 Ain’t it just!
March 3, 2022
They can be made in the UK but it is generally far more expensive to do so. This due to higher wages, higher building costs, excessive employment laws, expensive energy and other red tape plus very high and complex taxes too. Also all the suppliers of plastics, chemicals, packaging and other parts needed are (for similar reasons) not usually in the UK either.
March 3, 2022
LL, have you suddenly turned into a globalisation devotee?
March 3, 2022
Because of Tory socio-economic restructuring.
Manufacturing, especially hi-tech, tends to offer people stable employment.
Once people have those sort of jobs then they want to protect them, and that often involves joining unions, and a political awareness that it is in their interests not to have Tory rule.
That is the main reason why manufacturing has been smashed here, I’d say.
March 3, 2022
No, the main reasons are:
1) Crap management
2) Bolshie Unions
3) The endless creation of credit causing endless inflation making us globally uncompetitive
4) Globalisation – and moronic politicians who seem to think we can survive as a service economy selling each other coffee and cutting each other’s grass.
March 4, 2022
Agree, especially the first two. I can remember back to the 1960’s and 70’s when ‘automation’ was going to give us all a wealthy and time rich life. I clearly remember a car maker (probably British Leyland) saying of automation, ‘when times are good we don’t need it, when times are bad we can’t afford it’. That was the management we had then and Japan jumped all over us, killed the motorbikes and car industry.
March 3, 2022
Not vastly cheaper competition from other countries then NHL
Just that UK staff weren’t in Trades Unions.
Really?
March 4, 2022
Helped along by consumers who did not recognise buying cheaper copies from foreign manufacturing wiped out local manufacturing and then their own jobs.
.. did not, would not, refused to, couldn’t really give a damn as long as they were “entitled” to their shiny new BMW.
March 4, 2022
I totally agree Dixie
I saw at first hand how companies and jobs were ruined by what I thought was unfair competition from abroad.
March 4, 2022
Lateral flow test kits are not high tech Notts chap. This discussion is about making the basics not assembling simple plastic.
On the tech issue, I don’t see Apple or Samsung setting up business here, could it be because of the costs and other reasons Mike mentions below?
March 6, 2022
Did you know that Apple were a founding shareholder of ARM so they did invest in setting up a major UK business.
Shame the lawyer and journalist glee club in government bolluxed things up.
March 3, 2022
Any idea how much they cost JR, surely not a trade secret is it.
My guess less than 10 pence each.
March 3, 2022
My local test centre is still fully equipped and manned, but no one attends to get tested….its taking up the space of our library car park with large power generators running, 4 temp office containers, tenting, lighting and 2 security guards….at what cost
March 3, 2022
What do they care? As not their money after all.
March 3, 2022
I see that Which has reported that:- Electric cars are less reliable than petrols, diesels and hybrids with nearly a third of EV owners reporting faults that take longer to fix – and Tesla is rated worst overall.
So they cost far more, cost more to insure, are less reliable, need large tax payer subsidies and tax breaks, depreciate rapidly, have short lived batteries, raise far less (or no) tax for the government, need chargers installing at you home(s), have limited range, mining the battery materials in environmentally damaging, they take hours to recharge fully and create more C02 than keeping your old ICU car for a few more years.
So why government are rigging the market to push EVs again?
March 3, 2022
Car servicing- I was considering an EV, and tried one for a week or so, but decided against when I found the servicing cost was at least double an average petrol and every year rather than bi-annually for my petrol making servicing four times the cost. So, no contest as far as I am concerned on that point. Add the fact that after the battery will be degraded beyond economical use the car will be worth nowt. This will need even more energy to make a replacement not forgetting the personal finance.
OK the relative cost per mile EV to petrol will change over time, cost per mile charging etc, which we already pay in the tax on fuel and I suspect when EV’s are in the majority the advantage will diminish also via taxes.
Accepted exciting tyre scrubbing acceleration and quieter but transferring the pollution elsewhere. Massive efficiency losses in electricity generation, transmission and the large heavy fire risk lithium battery etc. Presumably the greatest fire risk is when charging while garaged needing to plug direct to a wall socket which gets quite warm being warned not to use an extension lead.
March 4, 2022
Would be interested to know what EV and servicing outfit you looked at and costs- my Nissan Leaf servicing cost is a fifth of what my Merc was and insurance is at most half the cost.
Traction batteries are typically warrantied for 8-10 years/80-100k miles after which they still have value to be repurposed or recycled.
Fire risk?! do you worry about that when you use your oven/hob or when charging your laptop or phone or vacuum cleaner? Seriously?
Many EV users have solar panels or take grid power from renewables based provider so the Lifelogic gospel on blackcrap is out of date and plain wrong in many cases.
March 3, 2022
I don’t care if rich people want an Electric Vehicle as a second car….what I care about is my freedom of choice in this so called capitalist democratic country and this government banning of the internal combustion engine, nor government subsidy
Only yesterday it was reported that Mazda had developed a super-efficient new design two stroke engine…this government wants to halt any innovation & invention
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/technology/under-skin-mazda-makes-super-efficient-two-stroke-engine
March 3, 2022
If you do an internet search for ‘China bus fires’ you will find another interesting failure mode. Or look for ‘cargo ship car fire’ .
JF
March 3, 2022
Too bad you didn’t get a supplementary – then you could have asked from where are those tests being imported.
Updating one of my many spreadsheets this morning, I saw that Austria has now tested its citizens seventeen times over. Despite that rate – over twice ours – the death rate isn’t appreciably better than the UK’s (which is overstated, anyway). Testing here has been overdone, at enormous expense; I am pleased that the profligate government has finally seen some sense.
March 3, 2022
From some factory in China perhaps somewhere near Wuhan perhaps?
March 3, 2022
Hangzhou, China
March 3, 2022
Did JR then ask her why she expected the reduction?
What happened to the two Diagnostic firms that were supposed to be producing 2 million “tests” a week?
March 3, 2022
Wow!,,,,,
March 3, 2022
Good afternoon – again
‘ . . . we expect . . .
Sir John, why do you bother ?
March 3, 2022
I think JR’s energy would be better spent getting rid of Johnson instead of creating narratives and propaganda for him.
March 3, 2022
What a disgusting waste of money
March 3, 2022
One could also ask what proportion of the £2200 pay rise the MP’s are getting is actually needed. Not forgetting that 3.1% of nothing is nothing. That’s how the pensioners feel.
March 3, 2022
Don’t forget the extra £10k covid allowance
March 3, 2022
So what is the government plan to re-establish broad industrial and commercial capabilities here?
It’s no good demanding test kits must be produced here, you have to ensure the wider set of manufacturing capabilities are re-established that enable the necessary plastics production, chemical processing and fabrication etc.
But it will all be in vain because shouty consumers demand they are charged next to nothing for goods and services are paid the most and taxed the least.
March 3, 2022
The sacked ex education secretary Gavin Williamson to receive a knighthood…..WHAT !!!
March 3, 2022
It’s only important if you take this ‘honours’ nonsense seriously. It will be a cold day in hell before I call anyone Sir this or Sir that. Mr. is fine.
March 4, 2022
Exactly. It devalues and dilutes the significance of rightly-deserved honours.
March 3, 2022
Gavin Williamson getting a knighthood? What idiot decided that? Twice sacked and incompetent but given a big fat reward. Disgusting but no less or more than we’ve come to expect from the dummies in charge.
March 4, 2022
Olly Robbins, T. B-liar, now Williamson. If it wern’t disrespectful to HM I’d give it back… NOT a club of which I’d want to be a member.
But of course Bunter cannot see any of that, he’s in his own ego world of parties, cheese and prosecco. The May local elections will be a rude intrusion I hope.
March 3, 2022
The Telegraph is reporting that Boris Johnson has ruled out invoking article 16 of the Northern Ireland protocol because of the Ukraine situation. This shows what an incompetent he is. Would the EU respond now with a trade war against the U.K. when they have never needed U.K. security more? Boris should invoke article 16 immediately. Incompetence like this will be punished at the ballot box.
March 4, 2022
FJ
Posted on this the other day, agree with you entirely, unfortunately it seems our Government can only tackle one policy/problem at a time.
Covid was the excuse for a couple of years, now its Ukraine, another excuse will follow in due course.
March 4, 2022
That’s convenient and as the Ukraine is going to turn into another Afghanistan lasting donkey’s years, that will safely see him to his pension and after dinner speaking career. As I have said several times, this government does not want Brexit and is preparing the ground for re-entry on subservient terms.
March 4, 2022
Test kits- more than likely manufactured in China but why do we need them? Cancel the order.
March 4, 2022
To link to your post this morning about Covid accounting – are the tests being bought from abroad so that the carbon charge is offshored or because they are cheaper from abroad and they have the capacity?
What was the decision making process?
March 4, 2022
I received a LFT kit yesterday. Like Covid itself, it came from China.