I don't think Ed Miliband wants to be Prime Minister!

Dear Reader, I get the impression that Labour Party leader Ed Miliband does not really want to be the prime minister of the United Kingdom. I read (and hopefully it is wrong) that his favourite sports were basketball and American football. Someone should have told him that he should support a football team. Tony Blair did that with Newcastle United and I remember the great play of John Major supporting
Chelsea (which was genuine).

The teams I follow are Man Utd, Spurs, Watford, Leyton Orient, Bristol Rovers and Barnet. I am 51 pct a Man Utd fan, which might oscillate to 100 pct on Europa League
night (what is Man U's favourite perfume? Chanel 5!).

I HAVE GOT A FEW POSTS IN THE PIPELINE!!

Dear Reader, I have got a few posts in the pipeline with subjects such as David Cameron, Ed Miliband, David Lammy, the European single currency and Manchester City. I have added a few bits to my recent obituary of Welsh footballer and manager Gary Speed, who recently committed suicide.

David Lammy is the Labour MP for the troubled area of Tottenham and he is recently said how it is there. He is also the opposition spokesman for higher education but I think he should have resigned when he served in the late Labour government as the administration was trying to force through some barmy policies.

The tragic passing of Welsh footballer/manager Gary Speed.

I remember seeing Gary Speed playing at the end of his career for Bolton Wanderers against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. I think Spurs won 4-1 but for Bolton's consolation goal, Gary Speed put away a penalty for the Greater Manchester team. When he went up to take the penalty, I think probably everybody in the stadium knew that there was only one way it would end up: the ball nestling in the back of net.

I think I also saw Speed score a great header for Everton against Spurs, which helped the Liverpool-based team stay up in the Premier League that year. Teddy Sheringham was leading the attack that day and I don't think Spurs was trying too hard. My memory often plays tricks and if he did not score, Speed played well. Another memory was how welcoming the Everton fans were to a Spurs family in a cafe before the match.
For me visiting Goodison was like going to a Catholic shrine, very emotional, and the same applies to Anfield when I saw Liverpool FC eke out a 0-0 draw against the Spanish club Deportivo de la Coruna (sorry I am not going to bother with the tilde on the n). Listening to the fans
sing "You will never walk alone" was amazing. And perhaps more amazing was that Liverpool won the European Champions League that year.

Speed was such an amazing professional and this showed by him being successful at a range of clubs. He was also doing well at Wales manager. I had never heard before the story that he became the unofficial chauffeur of former Newcastle United manager Sir Bobby Robson, so as to learn from the master's knee. Newcastle is one of my favourite clubs since I have got
Geordie relations (I am probably half Geordie by genes if that is possible).

"ETERNAL REST GRANT UNTO HIM O LORD AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON HIM. MAY HE REST IN PEACE."

The euro could could collapse by the weekend!!

Dear Reader, the European single currency could collapse by the weekend! Or maybe not that soon but maybe by the beginning of 2012. The game is up if the Chinese and Japanese don't want to lend ten year money at very low rates to Germany. In today's Daily Mail an article on the U.S by Max Hastings described German leader Angela Merkel as an adequate city mayor. I think that it is a bit harsh.

While a recent article in the Times by the so-called economics expert Anatole Kaletsky shows him to be a bit deranged. OK it looks like a German takeover of Europe but if national governments want their budgets to be approved first in Berlin (Ireland, Greece etc) then it is up to them. For instance, nobody asked the Irish banks to massively expand their balance sheets and go bust taking the country with it. I read once that a Irish bank took a big group of local property developers to Chicago on a jolly as a way of getting loan business.

Apparently, Ireland wants to review its bail-out package since the country looks stupid trying to pay back its debts with the Greeks getting debt relief (sovereign bond haircut) of at least 50 pct from the commercial banks. If Ireland leaves the euro, I don't think Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Bank would be too impressed!

What can we do in the UK? Cutting personal and business taxes (perhaps slowly) would would help (the Laffer curve). Hope more companies follow the example of European aircraft manufacturer Airbus and Swiss food group Nestle in
announcing new jobs. Sack Chris Huhne and rethink the windpower programme.

To protect social cohesion/integration, if things get really nasty, one idea would be to reintroduce some kind of conscription focusing on green projects, looking after the elderly etc without the military angle. If you are paying benefits to the hoodies, you might as well get them doing something useful.

UK chancellor George Osborne might talk up infrastructure projects but we are where we are. The infrastructure projects are too smaill and they will take too long. Expecting rich sovereign wealth funds to invest in "Boris Island" is just pie in the sky!!

Columnist Peter Oborne opines that the collapse of the euro will completely discredit the European elites. As long as it shuts up that EC idiot Jose Manuel Barroso I would be happy. He has been European Commission president since November 2004, so it is time for a change.

David Cameron did not have to go begging to Berlin!!

Dear Readers, I thought the recent trip by British premier David Cameron was degrading. I do not see any point in begging the Germans for anything. If Angela Merkel wants to see the Euro collapse, then it is up to her. I can understand the German electorate not wanting to underwrite the crazy economics in countries such as Italy and Greece, where the local populations can retire a lot earlier than in Germany. However, expecting Greece, Italy and Spain to reform at breakneck speed is pointless.

For instance, Mariano Rajoy has won the general election in Spain for the centrist-right Partido Popular. He does not strike me as a Spanish Maggie Thatcher in the making prepared to reform the labour market (taking on the unions, ending collective bargaining etc), reducing the 17 regional governments to just two (the Catalans and Basques) or reforming the university sector, where lots of Spanish students spend years learning rubbish subjects.

However, I would be loath to give Sr Rajoy advice on these areas since the United Kingdom has exactly the same problems (politically motivated public sector unions),
the expensive Welsh and Scots and a non-performing university system. However, some British universities are the best in the world while Spanish business schools featured very strongly in a recent Economist survey. Spain has a great tourism sector
winning back business with the collapse of places like Tunisia and Egypt. What the country needs is time to get back on his feet after the mismanagement of Zapatero.

As for Italy, its banks did not buy many Greek government bonds, its citizens are wealthier than Germans and the country has some great companies and top managerial talent. However, Italy will never really pay off its debt mountain. One common problem for Italy and Spain is the level of corruption, especially siphoning off cash to fund political parties.

http://www.expatica.com/es/news/spanish-rss-news/spanish-corruption-probe-finds-millions-in-swiss-accounts---report_31311.html

I am sorry about the dilatory nature of posts!!

Dear Reader, I am sorry about the dilatory nature of posts. I used to like moaning a bit about former UK premier Gordon Brown but I could not get the same enthusiasm in complaining about David Cameron et al. However, I am getting a little irritated about
the incompetence of the Tory/Liberal administration. The main example of ths was the lack of protection for citizens during the summer riots. Given the amount of money we pay in tax and the amount of intrusion we face from the authorities, the UK population deserve a better deal.

So hopefully I will be back on the blog trail!!

Today, the press has been reporting George Osborne's negative comments about the French economy. I thought the British chancellor would have enough on his plate with
problems such as youth unemployment rather than worry about our neighbours. France has higher productivity per employee than us and some amazing world-class companies such as L'Oreal. The French also make pots of money from the design of the European Union (EU), which enable the country to survive its bonkers employment legislation, which restricts the hours people worked. This explains why you can be in France and not get a meal after 9pm.

Are there really opportunities in Tottenham?

I was a bit surprised when British Prime Minister David Cameron said there were opportunities in Tottenham on television last night. Whenever I go there, I am surprised how little the place has changed over the years. Let's hope Spurs will be able to build its new stadium at White Hart Lane, which might give the area a bit of pep.

Education minister Michael Gove is still with us!!

With the United Kingdom falling foul of Murdochmania, the education minister Michael Gove is still trundling along. I suppose his reforms might work but they could take a long time to make the normal, bog-standard comprehensive any different. The move to
academy status and giving head teachers more independence might help but there are not enough inspirational head teachers to go round.

In an interesting article former Education minister Estelle Morris says there is no
big picture strategy just quite a few minor changes based on a narrow political focus.

It looks like Michael Gove is sinking without trace.

It looks like the UK Coalition Government's schools minister Michael Gove is sinking without trace. His "free schools" policy seems to be hitting the buffers while each major decision has to be followed by a U-turn. I have to accept that it is not easy stepping up from a job of newspaper columnist to running a major government department and certainly not easy dealing with the educational establishment in England. Apparently, Mr Gove is a good friend of Prime Minister David Cameron, but perhaps that will not save him from the axe.

I don't think the Department of Education expected to clamp down on the possible teaching of creationism by potential free schools and it is difficult to argue against the assertion from "Labour at the Chalkface" that Gove is incompetent.

The wheels are already falling off the coalition's policy for universities.

The wheels are already falling off the coalition government's policy for English universities. I don't think the powers-that-be expected universities such as Exeter,
Manchester and Essex to start charging £9000 a year. We can thank two brain
David Willetts for that.
Last week's Sunday Times was a bit depressing. James Dyson said it was madness educating our competitors and complained that some Chinese students were spies while there was a story that Oxford University was not taking cheating and plagiarism seriously.

I went to a polytechnic and we had quite a few lessons during the week and we were expected to go them. The common refrain from students is that they have acres of free time and the experience is not quite as portrayed in the prospectus. I do feel sorry for university lecturers trying to teach the increase in student numbers and do research. However, it was unfair for some lecturers to go on strike recently in defence of their pensions. That is an issue, which should be negotiated.

I was impressed by Jack Wilshere last Saturday.

I was impressed by Jack Wilshere playing for England v Wales last Saturday. Perhaps it represents a change of policy for his Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger to try and develop local talent. I read in the Sunday Times that Arsenal is the team, which has employed the most foreigners in the last few years and Arsene always complains about the alleged rough-house tactics of lesser teams such as Stoke, something never stated by Man Utd's Fergie, who usually treats the opposition with
respect. However, Arsenal have a good chance of winning the league this year and it will be interesting to see if they take it.

It must be hard for Wilshere playing with the least-talented Brazilian (Denilson) in the Premier League, although there are reports that a host of Brazilian youngsters will be joining Man Utd soon like Fabio and Rafael with the scam of getting Portuguese passports. Personally, I don't think Fabio and Rafael will make it as full backs since they are too small and you just lob the ball over their heads. Denilson is apparently a home-grown player but if that is true I am a banana.

Dave looks a bit weak about the Big Society

British prime minister David Cameron did not look too convincing about his promotion of the "Big Society" yesterday. Anyway that is my view. In most areas the local council is the main player because it holds the purse strings and thereby has the resources to carry out projects.
Although councils can be much maligned in many locations they do have the expertise to help run schools and look after the elderly. Perhaps these activities can be outsourced to private providers to save money but look at the problems of the private care home operator Southern Cross loaded up with debt by private equity
purchasers.

In addition, it is a sad state of affairs that most English people do not want to volunteer for anything. Most don't want to know their neighbours and perhaps we have a duplication of charities (too many of them). Existing volunteers are perhaps dismayed by the lack of a new generation of people coming through.

Also, the British government has no shown no sign of working with civil institutions such as trade unions, churches, mosques, temples etc, which already do their best in helping people participate in society.

It looks like Dave and Gideon are feeling the heat.

Dear Reader, it looks like the Old Etonian mafia are feeling the heat. The Royal British Legion has accused the government of breaking the military covenant while increased job losses in the pipeline are not going to help stimulate economic confidence. Some public sector workers (and I say this with a heavy heart) will not find private sector conditions very conducive. Lower holidays, can't go on sickies and no pension plan (although we will have this stuff and nonsense called NEST coming your way soon)are not particularly attractive to some people in the UK public sector (especially amongst Catholic public sector people in Northern Ireland, I suppose it is part of a Gandhi-style disobedience campaign).

I am sure disaffected public sector voters will vote for Labour at the next election but if this is four years away then it would be simply too late for them. New Labour had already initiated cutbacks in the National Health Service (NHS)such as the planned closure of A&E departments like Enfield Chase Farm. (See Note***)

Changing the subject it is a shame NEST was not up and running a few years ago and we would still have some more British companies, which have been since swallowed up by foreigners, to invest in. The roll-call includes Cadburys, Smith & Nephew, Wellstream and British Oxygen (BOC). Here, everything is up for sale. The City is like Wimbledon. We host the tournament but don't win it. Even the Spanish bought up Bristol Water, Luton Aiport, BAA and O2. While our major investment was the massive amount of money wasted on the Vodafone acquisition of the German company Mannesmann Telecom.
Makes you glad to be English!!

Gawd knows why the London Stock Exchange (LSE) wants to merge with Toronto Stock Exchange. I suppose it is to get rid of the threats from the French and Germans.


Note*** Chase Farm was originally a profitable hospital then it was shunted into a joint operation with Barnet General. Now it is threatened with closure because greedy w***ers see a nice little earner selling off the site for houses

Are we going for the double dip recession?

I don't think David Cameron and George Osborne will be happy bunnies with today's
disappointing quarterly GDP's figures. I suppose blaming the bad weather is a pretty lame excuse. With a limited manufacturing sector it would always be a big ask. The 0.5 pct fall in GDP joins the shocking inflation figures with economic commentators saying the Bank of England has lost the plot. The British central bank is certainly behind the curve and can only keep its fingers crossed.

Sorry for the long New Year/Xmas break!!

Dear Readers, sorry for the long New Year/Xmas break!! I have been having problems with things such as the black dog and with how many promises the Coalition government can break. Today's unemployment figures are disappointing and it was naive of the Cameron-Clegg administration to think that the private sector in the UK would take up the jobs lost in the public sector.

Over the Xmas period I was in Spain and we share similar problems such as very high youth unemployment. Our relatively flexible labour market has not been able to sort out this problem either.

Apparently, the Spanish economy is so troubled that the number of non-European Union workers has actually gone down. On the Easyjet plane back it was 95 pct full of Spanish passengers, who looked like they were coming back to study or to work. It is going to be tough going for our own youngsters (English ones), who are discriminated against in terms of university fees and job opportunities.