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Teena Lyons
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Posts by Teena Lyons
Views on the news: Who is really running Britain?
Mar 5th
It could be the money-men, the Bank of England or Tesco according to some of this week’s comments
Bloggers grappled with the thorny issue of who really is running things around here as they tried to make sense of this week’s mixed bag of business stories.
It all began with the news that the value of the pound was plunging against other major currencies around the world, thanks to fears over the prospect of a hung parliament.
“Heaven forbid we should decide how the country is run and by who without the say of the money-men, who do so much for the average voter of this country, oh no!” fumed lazaroumonkeyterror.
Christopherhawtree agreed: “What I am hearing on the doorsteps is that voters welcome a hung Parliament as a chance for the Commons to become a place of meaningful debate.”
However, the planning battle over whether to allow a new Tesco supermarket in Sheringham, Norfolk, soon left some bloggers in no doubt as to who is in charge.
“Tesco effectively owns Britain,” pronounced MonsieurLeJongleur.
“Tesco are now more powerful than government, who would dare cross them now?” declared hermionegingold. “They will get their way & sadly the people will come.
“Big money ‘democracy’ in action. We are all Americans now.”
But FCAblog was one of many who spoke up for the supermarket giant and pooh poohed the naysayers with the sarcastic riposte: “Damn Tesco. Selling things people want, at great prices, opening at convenient hours that fit in with when people want to shop, providing fuel, groceries, clothes, electrical goods and other sundries all under one roof…
“How dare they!”
Of course, for many commentators there is no need to affect outrage where banking bonuses are concerned. Monday’s revelation that HSBC’s Michael Geoghegan would be handing his £4m bonus to charity prompted an onslaught of incredulous comments on the message boards.
“Ah charidee, the smoke and mirrors of the rich,” mused rainsborowe. “If it wasn’t for the mega rich there wouldn’t be such a need for charity in the first place. Let people have an even playing field and stop with the token handouts.
It’s the whole bonus culture which is at fault, there is systemic problem with casino-style banking and investment – these recent high profile gestures by bankers don’t go anywhere to addressing the real issues.”
“Ah, what a nice guy……” chipped in borris79. “How about giving back some bleedin’ overdraft charges you b*gger?”
“You’ve got to be pretty rich to be that “generous”,” observed scopey. “Nonetheless – still a good gesture.”
By the time Standard Chartered chief executive Peter Sands joined the other ‘big five’ banks bosses in turning down a bonus tomboy32 was clearly becoming a touch cynical, asking: “How much tax break does this heartfelt charitable gesture entitles these people to?”
The Bank of England’s announcement it would be leaving interest rates at 0.5% and continuing to pause quantitative easing fueled the outbreak of cynicism. The news was no surprise to silverman: “The general election will be called for 6 May 2010. Everyone knows this – including the supposedly independent Bank of England. Rates cannot go up until the Election – but they won’t admit to this fact because that gives the lie to their taking decisions without consideration for the fates of politicians.”
Then, the sense of frustration at who is, or isn’t running things, was took a turn for the surreal after a couple of extraordinary comments from political leaders. Amazingly, neither of them was British.
The first was from Republican senator Mike Johanns who suggested banning all Japanese car imports to the US in response to Toyota’s problems with defective accelerators.
PhilipD decided the most appropriate response was to offer some wise words from history: “It’s said that back in the 1980’s the Japanese tried to ban imported French skis on the basis that ‘Japanese snow is different from European snow and so only Japanese skis can be used safely in Japan’. The French, to the surprise of the Japanese, agreed. The French then announced that due to the unique characteristics of French tarmac, Japanese cars skidded too much on French roads so they would have to ban all Japanese cars.
“The Japanese decided French skis were safe after all.”
Then, a bit closer to home, came suggestions from two German politicians that Greece should sell land, historic buildings and art works to cut its debts.
“European UNION,” observed glide. “Yeah, right. When it suits…”
OneManisAnisland couldn’t resist raking over some old coals: “There is another option available to Greece – they could spend 5 years looting the national treasures of Europe whilst engaged in a war of aggression, and then allow the USA to rebuild their shattered economy after being defeated in total war.
“They could get some tips on that from Germany too.”
“I suspect this should be taken with the pinch of salt it deserves, however I really wouldn’t want to be a German tourist in Greece anytime soon…the food is going to have some interesting additives,” warned prostheses.
The man (and woman) on the street got the opportunity to show what they could do after the question was thrown out to them about what Britain should sell to cut the national debt. Cue some interesting proposals.
“Sell the Houses of Parliament and move the seat of government to somewhere more in the centre of the UK,” suggested zavaell. “While they are rebuilding we would have a period of no legislation – bliss.”
“Well, sell the bankers obviously,” said modsloveme. “They are so good, so very, very good, that, despite overseeing a loss this year at RBS, we must pay them bonus to keep them. Just imagine how valuable these people are!”
“What about our public utilities, natural resources and heavy industr – ahh, I see…” said lierbag.
Yes, you’ve got to keep up if you want to be in charge. Keep them coming.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Views on the news: Who is really running Britain?
Mar 5th
It could be the money-men, the Bank of England or Tesco according to some of this week’s comments
Bloggers grappled with the thorny issue of who really is running things around here as they tried to make sense of this week’s mixed bag of business stories.
It all began with the news that the value of the pound was plunging against other major currencies around the world, thanks to fears over the prospect of a hung parliament.
“Heaven forbid we should decide how the country is run and by who without the say of the money-men, who do so much for the average voter of this country, oh no!” fumed lazaroumonkeyterror.
Christopherhawtree agreed: “What I am hearing on the doorsteps is that voters welcome a hung Parliament as a chance for the Commons to become a place of meaningful debate.”
However, the planning battle over whether to allow a new Tesco supermarket in Sheringham, Norfolk, soon left some bloggers in no doubt as to who is in charge.
“Tesco effectively owns Britain,” pronounced MonsieurLeJongleur.
“Tesco are now more powerful than government, who would dare cross them now?” declared hermionegingold. “They will get their way & sadly the people will come.
“Big money ‘democracy’ in action. We are all Americans now.”
But FCAblog was one of many who spoke up for the supermarket giant and pooh poohed the naysayers with the sarcastic riposte: “Damn Tesco. Selling things people want, at great prices, opening at convenient hours that fit in with when people want to shop, providing fuel, groceries, clothes, electrical goods and other sundries all under one roof…
“How dare they!”
Of course, for many commentators there is no need to affect outrage where banking bonuses are concerned. Monday’s revelation that HSBC’s Michael Geoghegan would be handing his £4m bonus to charity prompted an onslaught of incredulous comments on the message boards.
“Ah charidee, the smoke and mirrors of the rich,” mused rainsborowe. “If it wasn’t for the mega rich there wouldn’t be such a need for charity in the first place. Let people have an even playing field and stop with the token handouts.
It’s the whole bonus culture which is at fault, there is systemic problem with casino-style banking and investment – these recent high profile gestures by bankers don’t go anywhere to addressing the real issues.”
“Ah, what a nice guy……” chipped in borris79. “How about giving back some bleedin’ overdraft charges you b*gger?”
“You’ve got to be pretty rich to be that “generous”,” observed scopey. “Nonetheless – still a good gesture.”
By the time Standard Chartered chief executive Peter Sands joined the other ‘big five’ banks bosses in turning down a bonus tomboy32 was clearly becoming a touch cynical, asking: “How much tax break does this heartfelt charitable gesture entitles these people to?”
The Bank of England’s announcement it would be leaving interest rates at 0.5% and continuing to pause quantitative easing fueled the outbreak of cynicism. The news was no surprise to silverman: “The general election will be called for 6 May 2010. Everyone knows this – including the supposedly independent Bank of England. Rates cannot go up until the Election – but they won’t admit to this fact because that gives the lie to their taking decisions without consideration for the fates of politicians.”
Then, the sense of frustration at who is, or isn’t running things, was took a turn for the surreal after a couple of extraordinary comments from political leaders. Amazingly, neither of them was British.
The first was from Republican senator Mike Johanns who suggested banning all Japanese car imports to the US in response to Toyota’s problems with defective accelerators.
PhilipD decided the most appropriate response was to offer some wise words from history: “It’s said that back in the 1980’s the Japanese tried to ban imported French skis on the basis that ‘Japanese snow is different from European snow and so only Japanese skis can be used safely in Japan’. The French, to the surprise of the Japanese, agreed. The French then announced that due to the unique characteristics of French tarmac, Japanese cars skidded too much on French roads so they would have to ban all Japanese cars.
“The Japanese decided French skis were safe after all.”
Then, a bit closer to home, came suggestions from two German politicians that Greece should sell land, historic buildings and art works to cut its debts.
“European UNION,” observed glide. “Yeah, right. When it suits…”
OneManisAnisland couldn’t resist raking over some old coals: “There is another option available to Greece – they could spend 5 years looting the national treasures of Europe whilst engaged in a war of aggression, and then allow the USA to rebuild their shattered economy after being defeated in total war.
“They could get some tips on that from Germany too.”
“I suspect this should be taken with the pinch of salt it deserves, however I really wouldn’t want to be a German tourist in Greece anytime soon…the food is going to have some interesting additives,” warned prostheses.
The man (and woman) on the street got the opportunity to show what they could do after the question was thrown out to them about what Britain should sell to cut the national debt. Cue some interesting proposals.
“Sell the Houses of Parliament and move the seat of government to somewhere more in the centre of the UK,” suggested zavaell. “While they are rebuilding we would have a period of no legislation – bliss.”
“Well, sell the bankers obviously,” said modsloveme. “They are so good, so very, very good, that, despite overseeing a loss this year at RBS, we must pay them bonus to keep them. Just imagine how valuable these people are!”
“What about our public utilities, natural resources and heavy industr – ahh, I see…” said lierbag.
Yes, you’ve got to keep up if you want to be in charge. Keep them coming.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Views on the news: Bankers’s bonuses, BA strikes and Bob Geldof moments
Feb 26th
Handing out cash to bankers and printing it to save the economy got our readers in the mood for Sir Bob-style outbursts this week
Themes of fair play and revenge loomed large this week, as bloggers became increasingly exasperated that no one was listening to the man, or woman, on the street.
“Wanted – one band of merry men for mythical position righting wrongs,” appealed ukche, following Royal Bank of Scotland’s decision to pay 22,000 investment bankers £1.3bn in bonuses, after announcing a £3.6bn loss.
“Paying bonuses at ANY bank right now is reinforcing systemic failure, let alone paying bonuses at a bank that only exists through a public bailout,” said MaggieT. “Go on, keep adding insult to injury, you’ll have gen pub reaching for the pitchforks. Get smart before it’s too late …”
“Interesting isn’t it that the RBS bonus pool exceeds the value of the university cuts that are likely to lead to several hundred job losses and leave thousands of young people without degree places?” observed Oldpedant. “Politicians assume that scientists and engineers who find themselves in cash-starved departments won’t look for a better deal in rival countries; it seems that it is only the bankers who will flee overseas without their bonuses.”
“Am I missing something?” asked Rivvy. “Why am I supposed to tolerate cuts in public services which, as I heard a Tory describe them the other day, are supposedly ‘the medicine the country has to take’, when the banks can hand out money on a grand scale? We’re not ill: we were mugged by the banks and ended up in A&E.
“The banks got us into this mess: they should do as much as they can to bale us out of it.”
Krumb felt a ‘Bob Geldof moment coming on: “Give us back our fockin’ money.”
Elsewhere, people felt that just retribution was not far off following the vote by British Airways cabin crew for strike action. “I still recall the last pilots’ strike at Sabena a few years back,” said rollmop “When they decided to come back to work the airline had gone bust. Now watch these guys roll off their socks and pull out the 12-gauge … “
“BA cabin crew may have serious grievances with BA management, but does that really give them the right to use BA’s customers as hostages?” asked Rustigjongens.
However, there was some sympathy for the cause from many, such as VinoNoir, who wrote: “What kind of idiotically run company pisses its staff off so much, that despite them knowing the risks, 81% vote for a strike?”
Back in banking, there was applause and a healthy dollop of irony for Lloyds chief Eric Daniels, who announced he would not be taking his £2.3m bonus.
“To pass up on a £2.3m bonus is admirable,” said monopolygood. “To be able to pass up on a £2.3m bonus is aspirational.”
“I turned down my 0% pay rise last year, but they still gave it to me anyway,” said Halo572.
Unfortunately, the message didn’t get through to America because, despite calls for bonus restraint, Wall Street bonuses jumped by 17% to $20.3bn (£13bn) in 2009.
“What would this money do if it were distributed FAIRLY throughout the economy of the US?” asked stevetyphoon. “How do they sleep at night?”
“Very comfortably, with silken sheets,” fired back mReality.
If hotkee gets his or her way, Bank of England governor Mervyn King will have plenty of time to relax in his boudoir. After King said that the quantitative easing programme might have to restart if the economy continued to deteriorate, he/she wrote: “Listen Merv ole boy, printing monopoly money is not the cure. Real people creating real-life money is, and at the moment you and Gordy have not a clue on how to do that. Admit it and resign.”
GolemXIV added: “The short version of this story is: “They had a plan which cost you your future. It failed. Their new plan? Do it all again.”
The International Monetary Fund’s backing to the government’s wait-and-see approach to cutting public spending got short shrift from joseph1832: “This is the same IMF who’s approach to indebted countries is to force them to slash, burn and generally crucify themselves with austerity packages? Well, this recession is certainly making strange bedfellows. The trouble is that all this presupposes that there is a recovery occurring which will ride to our rescue. Our national income will rise and meet the debts, and all this extra borrowing was just one monumental bridging loan – hurrah!! Except that nothing is really being put right in our world … I fear we are just digging ourselves into a very big hole. Then the IMF will be able to take over – and they won’t come offering to lend us enough to [keep] us in the style to which we have become accustomed.”
ONS figures showing UK economic growth up 0.3% in the final three months of the year cheered Commem: “Gosh! I feel better already. That really makes a difference. Think I’ll go and buy a house !”
While Choller21 was brimming with positive thoughts, writing after economics editor Larry Elliott commented that the UK may not actually have emerged from recession at all (although it later transpired that it had): “I don’t see what the problem with being a mid-table country is. Maybe we can just quietly exist. Our football players will leave and take their wives with them, so that’s good. The bankers will go too. Good again. Perhaps al-Qaida will ignore us (what’s the point of blowing up a country that no one pays any attention to?). We can plead poverty and bring our boys back form Iraq and Afghanistan. We won’t have to pretend we’re important anymore. Come on, let’s join Greece and just giggle at the big boys being all serious about stuff.”
Not quite the happy ending everyone was hoping for, but keep them coming.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Views on the news: Bankers’s bonuses, BA strikes and Bob Geldof moments
Feb 26th
Handing out cash to bankers and printing it to save the economy got our readers in the mood for Sir Bob-style outbursts this week
Themes of fair play and revenge loomed large this week, as bloggers became increasingly exasperated that no one was listening to the man, or woman, on the street.
“Wanted – one band of merry men for mythical position righting wrongs,” appealed ukche, following Royal Bank of Scotland’s decision to pay 22,000 investment bankers £1.3bn in bonuses, after announcing a £3.6bn loss.
“Paying bonuses at ANY bank right now is reinforcing systemic failure, let alone paying bonuses at a bank that only exists through a public bailout,” said MaggieT. “Go on, keep adding insult to injury, you’ll have gen pub reaching for the pitchforks. Get smart before it’s too late …”
“Interesting isn’t it that the RBS bonus pool exceeds the value of the university cuts that are likely to lead to several hundred job losses and leave thousands of young people without degree places?” observed Oldpedant. “Politicians assume that scientists and engineers who find themselves in cash-starved departments won’t look for a better deal in rival countries; it seems that it is only the bankers who will flee overseas without their bonuses.”
“Am I missing something?” asked Rivvy. “Why am I supposed to tolerate cuts in public services which, as I heard a Tory describe them the other day, are supposedly ‘the medicine the country has to take’, when the banks can hand out money on a grand scale? We’re not ill: we were mugged by the banks and ended up in A&E.
“The banks got us into this mess: they should do as much as they can to bale us out of it.”
Krumb felt a ‘Bob Geldof moment coming on: “Give us back our fockin’ money.”
Elsewhere, people felt that just retribution was not far off following the vote by British Airways cabin crew for strike action. “I still recall the last pilots’ strike at Sabena a few years back,” said rollmop “When they decided to come back to work the airline had gone bust. Now watch these guys roll off their socks and pull out the 12-gauge … “
“BA cabin crew may have serious grievances with BA management, but does that really give them the right to use BA’s customers as hostages?” asked Rustigjongens.
However, there was some sympathy for the cause from many, such as VinoNoir, who wrote: “What kind of idiotically run company pisses its staff off so much, that despite them knowing the risks, 81% vote for a strike?”
Back in banking, there was applause and a healthy dollop of irony for Lloyds chief Eric Daniels, who announced he would not be taking his £2.3m bonus.
“To pass up on a £2.3m bonus is admirable,” said monopolygood. “To be able to pass up on a £2.3m bonus is aspirational.”
“I turned down my 0% pay rise last year, but they still gave it to me anyway,” said Halo572.
Unfortunately, the message didn’t get through to America because, despite calls for bonus restraint, Wall Street bonuses jumped by 17% to $20.3bn (£13bn) in 2009.
“What would this money do if it were distributed FAIRLY throughout the economy of the US?” asked stevetyphoon. “How do they sleep at night?”
“Very comfortably, with silken sheets,” fired back mReality.
If hotkee gets his or her way, Bank of England governor Mervyn King will have plenty of time to relax in his boudoir. After King said that the quantitative easing programme might have to restart if the economy continued to deteriorate, he/she wrote: “Listen Merv ole boy, printing monopoly money is not the cure. Real people creating real-life money is, and at the moment you and Gordy have not a clue on how to do that. Admit it and resign.”
GolemXIV added: “The short version of this story is: “They had a plan which cost you your future. It failed. Their new plan? Do it all again.”
The International Monetary Fund’s backing to the government’s wait-and-see approach to cutting public spending got short shrift from joseph1832: “This is the same IMF who’s approach to indebted countries is to force them to slash, burn and generally crucify themselves with austerity packages? Well, this recession is certainly making strange bedfellows. The trouble is that all this presupposes that there is a recovery occurring which will ride to our rescue. Our national income will rise and meet the debts, and all this extra borrowing was just one monumental bridging loan – hurrah!! Except that nothing is really being put right in our world … I fear we are just digging ourselves into a very big hole. Then the IMF will be able to take over – and they won’t come offering to lend us enough to [keep] us in the style to which we have become accustomed.”
ONS figures showing UK economic growth up 0.3% in the final three months of the year cheered Commem: “Gosh! I feel better already. That really makes a difference. Think I’ll go and buy a house !”
While Choller21 was brimming with positive thoughts, writing after economics editor Larry Elliott commented that the UK may not actually have emerged from recession at all (although it later transpired that it had): “I don’t see what the problem with being a mid-table country is. Maybe we can just quietly exist. Our football players will leave and take their wives with them, so that’s good. The bankers will go too. Good again. Perhaps al-Qaida will ignore us (what’s the point of blowing up a country that no one pays any attention to?). We can plead poverty and bring our boys back form Iraq and Afghanistan. We won’t have to pretend we’re important anymore. Come on, let’s join Greece and just giggle at the big boys being all serious about stuff.”
Not quite the happy ending everyone was hoping for, but keep them coming.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Views on the news: Bankers’ pay, praise for budget airlines and other strange phenomena
Feb 19th
A full and frank debate about the merits of high remuneration levels in the banking industry kicked off an interesting week. Guy Fawkes ended it
Sometimes, when the odds are stacked against you, playing in defence is a thankless task, and this week bloggers were in no mood for excuses.
Banker Arnold Philips got things going with his comments that not all bankers are fat cats, and are in fact ordinary people who sacrifice any semblance of life outside work for their hard-earned rewards.
“Wow!” leapt in scubadoc: “I traded in any semblance of a life outside of work as a trainee hospital doctor for several years. I am now, as a consultant, being asked to work from 7am to 7pm and provide cover overnight, probably living in the hospital, once a week. I’m held responsible for the team beneath me and we deal in life and death. If anything even seems to go wrong I face both the General Medical Council and the police.
“I’m not badly paid: £80,000 before tax, but I still can’t get my head around the rewards that senior bankers think that they’re worth, and, indeed, the apparent contempt they have for their support staff.”
“My boss told me today that he will be laying off another three staff at the end of this month,” added MaggieT. “Since the start of the banking-led recession, that will mean half our staff have lost their jobs as a direct result of the bankers greed and hubris.”
Of course, it didn’t help that the defence of bankers came on the back of Barclays’s announcement of its “remarkable” comeback and the possibly tactless invitation by the bank’s president Bob Diamond for people to “celebrate” this success.
“Celebrate?” asked radicalpete. “His jobs are disappearing like the pink champagne these greedy bankers guzzle when they pay themselves a bonus they stole from the rest of this poxed-up world. This is taking the piss big time and who the Donald Duck is going to stop them robbing us blind? GREED RULES THIS WORLD.”
“This is great news,” said wooablackbetty. “So, having been made redundant by Barclays in September, can I now have my job back?”
On Tuesday it was time for Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, to square things with the chancellor after it emerged that inflation had soared to 3.5%.
“Well if you print money to bail out the financial system then that’s what happens. Duh!” said RightWingZealot. “They tried a lot of “quantitative easing” in Zimbabwe and lo and behold it didn’t make them more prosperous. It destroyed their society.
“Unfortunately this government is full of financial illiterates who don’t know that: 1) You cannot print your way to prosperity, and 2) Printing money is a direct act of THEFT from people with savings.”
“Yay, it’s so heartening to know that I’ll get a 0% pay rise this year and watch my savings be eroded by inflation – all to ensure that house prices won’t fall and that I’ll never be able to afford a home,” cheered afcone. “Great news!”
Frankly, pondered chrish in the wake of a row amongst economists about the right course of action for the next year, there was little point listening to anyone: “What we really know is that there is no consensus. Except of course that the economy is buggered.”
Amazingly, in a complete about-turn from usual form, airline arch-baddie Ryanair had some bloggers leaping to its defence this week, following a story highlighting the budget airline’s hidden costs from currency conversion.
“I don’t like Ryanair, but at least their staff don’t cost you thousands by threatening to strike over Christmas and forcing an expensive rebook,” said rollmop.
It must be hug an airline week, because Southwest Airlines got a reprieve too. The airline was forced into a hasty public apology at the beginning of the week after renowned film director Kevin Smith was thrown off a plane for being to big for his seat.
“You are fat,” thismuchiknow1 wrote to Smith. “Excessively fat. Therefore it makes sense to plan ahead when travelling. Don’t expect to be able to fit into a ‘normal’ seat … Don’t expect your fellow passengers to jeopardise their access to emergency exits by having a physically obstructive, less mobile person in its path.
“This poor airline even had a quite polite and sensitive policy in place. It’s just that this XXXL prima donna obviously thought he was too famous to have to tick the fat box.”
However, for most bloggers, there are no excuses for the government’s position, which was laid bare this week by a succession of gloomy figures. Official statistics which showed the number of Britons claiming unemployment benefit have risen to the highest level since Labour came to power prompted harmonyfuture to ask: “As many, many posters predicted, the Christmas boom is over, the shelf-stackers, box-packers and all those taken on to deal with the re-stock run-up to Christmas are finished with, why could the experts not see this scenario?”
Thursday’s news that the British government had posted its worst borrowing figures for January since records began, got a similarly despairing reaction.
“Is there any point in me getting up every morning and slogging my arse off at work, or should I just expire?” asked Kolin. “At least then the government can say unemployment has gone down (by one), as someone fills my position.”
“For all those that supported the New Labour reverse-Robin Hood bailouts (steal from the poor to give to the rich) this is what you bought – a long, drawn out, grinding period of stagflation, unemployment, wage cuts and lower living standards,” warned teganjovanka. “None of the underlying problems have been tackled, all we did was bury them under a massive pile of borrowed cash, which we’ll be paying for a generation.”
“Bring back Guy Fawkes,” urged Wolfold. “Show him the front bench.”
It is always easier to defend a person with honest intentions, after all. Keep them coming.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Statistics, snow and sterling stir up a blizzard of vitriol
Mar 12th
Posted by Teena Lyons in Business
No comments
Readers were riled by everything from the Office for National Statistics to the price of Chateau Petrus
An unusually high count of reports and statistics dominated the week but, while facts and figures are always helpful, bloggers say it is the interpretation that counts.
SeanThorp, for example, vented forth with a heavy dose of sarcasm following the publication of a report into Lehman Brothers that criticised accounting “gimmicks”: “In all my born days I never thought a bank would try and pull a scam. Imagine if all along they’ve been offering to look after our savings and pensions and we’ve been giving them the money and instead of them keeping it safe they’ve been lending it out at huge risk and making obscenely vast amounts of money for themselves.”
While tomedinburgh, thought that the bank’s figures were not the only ones that deserved scrutiny: “I wonder what would be found if the forensic accountants and prosecutors were let loose on the millions of pages of documents at RBS, Bank of Scotland, Northern Rock from the bubble years?
“The bailout made sure we will never know – if they had been allowed to fail those records would have been gone through with a fine tooth comb just like at Lehman and Enron. This way they are in the safe hands of people who have no interest in stirring up trouble.”
Other reports, such as the OECD one which declared children from poor families in Britain were more likely to struggling on low incomes than their counterparts in the west’s other rich countries, got a massive cyber-shrug of the shoulders.
So sharkfinn responded: “And? No matter how many of these reports come out no one seems to care and nothing changes. Britons live, die and swear by the motto: If I am OK, all is good.”
Likewise iranda took figures from the Office for National Statistics with a large pinch of salt. The ONS said that Britain’s manufacturers suffered their biggest fall in production in January when snowfall brought parts of the country to a standstill.
“That snow must have been pretty potent stuff – reducing consumer spending, house prices and now industrial production! I presume it never snowed during 1998-2007 when we had continual economic growth? Perhaps we should do away with economic forecasters and extend the remit of the met office.”
And don’t get anyone started on the Forbes magazine rich list: independencia, like others, did not see a reason to celebrate the fact that Mexican telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim had edged Bill Gates off the top slot. In fact, this reader thought there shouldn’t such a list at all: “Obscene, every penny gained from either shafting the poor or ripping them off. Not so much a rich list, as a failure to tax list.”
And, talking of failed policies, notacommie, like many, was not convinced by European commission moves to shore up the euro by considering a ban on complex derivatives: “Erm, so speculators are driving Greece towards national bankruptcy? Stupid me! So nothing to do with the government running a 13% of GDP deficit or having government debt at 120% of GDP? Or fiddling their economic figures for years to get into a completely unsuitable fixed currency system.
“Banning CDS trades is the equivalent of putting your fingers in the air and singing ‘la la la’. It’s year-zero stuff from politicians who are looking to scapegoat others for their own failings.”
Chrish thought it was “treating the symptom not the disease.
Sadly for those flocking to the moral high ground, there was not much to crow about closer to home. Figures showed the UK’s trade deficit with the rest of the world widened in January to its highest level since August 2008, as exports suffered their sharpest drop in three years.
“A weak pound is supposed to be good for exports, if you have something to export to take advantage of that fact,” mused ChrisWoods. “And that also your largest trade partner, namely Europe, is buying anything from you, which they aren’t.
“To rebalance the economy will take decades. All this talk about getting industry to take the lead to pull the economy from recession is a pipe dream. Maybe now someone, somewhere in political power will see that you can’t drive the economy any more on asset bubbles: namely, housing and the stock market. A few make a lot of money, the rest get screwed and are asked to pay for it.”
“My company is an exporter and would like to take advantage of the 30% devaluation of sterling, but we can’t get the credit from the banks to invest to drive the gearing up we’d need to produce more,” said mugclass. “The staff are willing to work hard, the business wants to expand, the demand is there.”
CrimpleneAl was another reader moved to describe the human cost of the current economic dire straits, commenting in response to Simon Jenkins’s argument that the government had meekly and mistakenly accepted false promises from the financial industry when it gave the green light for the banking bailout. “Despite serious contributions over the years, my pension is worthless, my wife’s pension is worthless and I now face the possibility that inflation will destroy our remaining savings.
“But then, my friend Joe, a financial journalist, consoled me with the news that those City restaurants where Chateau Petrus sells for £5,000 a bottle are as full and raucous as ever, with the City boys living high on the billions that Brown and Darling has stuffed into their pockets. My money. The money that should have funded my endowment and pension.”
Perhaps we could all learn something from edgeofdrabness who quipped following the Lehman report: “Client to accountant: What’s two plus two? Accountant to client: Who wants to know?”
It’s the way you tell ‘em.