Thursday, June 29, 2017

The EU justification for expenditure, a decade long story in the making.

Brexit is forcing not only a re-budgeting exercise but a new level of accountability, all 27 will be asking questions of Brussels and the men in charge:

https://www.ft.com/content/222b7d4c-5b59-11e7-9bc8-8055f264aa8b

Brexit set to blow hole in common EU budget, Brussels warns

Paper suggests ways to fill gap, including taxes and overhaul of farm spending



They flag the challenge of recruitment, odd?


".........
    While Brussels will present more detailed proposals next year, the paper sets out five broad reform “scenarios”, including scaling back the budget, establishing a system where groups of member states would establish common pots of money for particular projects, and a “radical redesign”.

........."

How the narrative and discourse goes will be interesting, of course they blame has to be anywhere but Brussels.

Billionaire moonshots for the future world we need!

A good read http://www.pbs.org/newshour/making-sense/column-like-not-billionaires-shaping-direction-discovery/

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Hong Kong 20yrs on, a kind of Brexit of its day. Chris Patten essay

Should be worth a read:

https://www.ft.com/content/da30586a-5b25-11e7-b553-e2df1b0c3220


Monday, June 26, 2017

From Greece to Italian banks to LuxLeaks there is much to the EU

We will watch this unfold on the road to 2020,

LukLeaks https://www.ft.com/content/de228b90-3632-11e7-99bd-13beb0903fa3

and Junker especially but Greece and Italian banks for others and the ECB
https://www.ft.com/content/71ece778-5a53-11e7-9bc8-8055f264aa8b

#LuxLeak

Parliamentary democracy vs referendums, the route for the UK

A good read on how we got her, why we need to stick to current path but think about future choices and future process:

https://www.ft.com/content/74d42df2-da1b-3c43-938d-e3b6c93a50ca

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Shining new lights on the EU

Well not so new, but more in focus is what they will become through brexit and beyond

https://www.ft.com/content/5e64e96c-55bc-11e7-9fed-c19e2700005f

Angela Merkel says she is open to the idea of giving the eurozone a single finance minister and a common budget, offering conditional support to one of French President Emmanuel Macron’s signature policies.


Ms Merkel’s caution reflects suspicion in Germany that French-led eurozone deepening could lead to German taxpayers having to shoulder common debts. She knows she is taking a political risk, especially with parliamentary elections in September.


Exports to the UK, Germany’s biggest market after the US and France, fell last year by 3.5 per cent, with much of the decline coming after the June 23 Brexit referendum.
However, with global exports booming Mr Kempf said the German economy was in a “very good” condition with industrial orders at their highest level in six years.
Ifo, the economic think-tank, on Wednesday predicted economic growth of 1.8 per cent this year and 2 per cent for 2018. 

Monday, June 19, 2017

Grexit

Greece on hold still!

https://www.ft.com/content/bf7db18a-5278-11e7-bfb8-997009366969

The muted reaction made clear that no magic solution has been found. Euclid Tsakalotos, Greece’s finance minister, said he had not wanted “to make the perfect the enemy of the good”. Poul Thomsen, director of the IMF’s European Department, said: “This is not the first best solution.”

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Post Election2017 well well well!?!

a good read, so many vectors, age, demographic, brexit and political vectors!

Older voters less reliable, the young turned out, and Remainers get their revenge

https://www.ft.com/content/a2c3980a-502c-11e7-a1f2-db19572361bb

Monday, June 12, 2017

Election2017 own goals and more!

https://www.ft.com/content/283dd902-4f59-11e7-a1f2-db19572361bb

From Brexit to Youth to who won and the SNP what a mixed bag.

In short the public vot to punish as much as praise or prop up. If you invite the nation to vote on your narrow issue you can bet they will vote on everything else.

I sensed, have no data for it, but the media and BBC in particular as I watch that the most, thought a landslide was likely and did their best to present everything they could to reduce that but even they wouldnt have expected what happened, nor caused it.

The young, housing and NHS along with Brexit makes it a time for a govt or national unity and reconsiliation, without it anyone could win next time!

Six myths of the UK election

Was the result a vote for a ‘soft’ Brexit and did the young make the difference?

A true TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE play!

Good for peoples health, good for people pocket and good for the planet.


https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25795-going-vegetarian-halves-co2-emissions-from-your-food/

http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-environ-020411-130608

Cut your carbon footprint, eat less meat or even no meat and think of the sentient beings, the ethic especially of industrial animal farming. 25% of emissions come from food production.

Thursday, June 08, 2017

UK and France, the common and the difference

The charts in here will be interesting to revisit, the closing comment is especially interesting:

"With higher unemployment, France has more potential to maintain its recovery than has the UK."

https://www.ft.com/content/f372cbb8-4a96-11e7-a3f4-c742b9791d43

Polling day 2017

Seems like only yesterday since the UK GE of 2010 and 2015 and today will be yesterday tomorrow.

https://www.ft.com/content/54650cfe-4bac-11e7-919a-1e14ce4af89b
https://www.ft.com/content/54650cfe-4bac-11e7-919a-1e14ce4af89b

Everyone seems nervous to call it but the truth is the public just want progress and the majority want the govt to get on with it. Labour fixing themselves is unlikely to happen before 2022 so I'm not sure we will see a labour govt before 2030 now.

Whats for sure the Conservatives are going to be held to account on Brexit and on the deficit, regardless of any improvement in the global economy or not. I'm not holding my breath!

Monday, June 05, 2017

Election2017 last 4 days

Lots of spectulation after an overly bold poll at the start and perhaps overly bold change towards the end. The question is do labout get smashed or just pasted and how do then fight among themselves for the next election.

The re-leavers my be the releaf for some

"According to a YouGov survey published earlier this month, 23% of people questioned were classed as "Re-Leavers" - those who voted to Remain in the EU but think that the government has a duty to leave, and 45% were "Hard Leavers" who want out."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2017-40092210

But there are bold claims all around:

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/comrade-corbyns-palace-coup-53j5wvvrs?shareToken=00429c067a8f318560e691765ddefb84

http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21722886-labour-would-do-little-reverse-tories-regressive-plans-britains-poor-face-another-round

http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21722886-labour-would-do-little-reverse-tories-regressive-plans-britains-poor-face-another-round?fsrc=scn%2Ffb%2Fte%2Fbl%2Fed%2Fmoneywhereyourmouthisbritainspoorfaceanotherroundofpainfulbenefitcuts

https://cdn.static-economist.com/sites/default/files/images/print-edition/20170603_BRC809_0.png

https://www.ft.com/content/304cc976-47ae-11e7-8d27-59b4dd6296b8

If the re-leavers %age is right and they vote it will be 360 seats and massive majority, if those who voted brexit just to get rid of cameron vote the other way then it will be marginal. I suspect the former!