EUROPEAN COMMISSION INTERFERES ONCE MORE.

On a day when the economy of the Eurozone countries has sunk into an even bigger hole, the abomination that is the European Commission has had the temerity to give advice to the UK government supposedly aimed at helping us to achieve long term sustainable growth.

Inflation in the Eurozone has now fallen to its lowest level yet, at 0.5%, indicating that the economy is close to disaster. The European Central Bank will now be expected to try to boost growth and counter the threat of deflation, but evidence from past performance suggests it is unlikely to achieve very much. Meanwhile, The Commission has said that the UK should raise taxes on higher value properties and adjust the 'Help to Buy' scheme in order to address the recent rapid rise in house prices in the London area. They want the UK to revalue the council tax bands, something which would undoubtedly increase the tax for many homes.

While these remarks have caused a degree of anger amongst many Tory MPs, Vince Cable has actually come out of his box and agreed that we can do without the advice of the EC. He's acknowledged that there is an issue with house price inflation but added that "we don't need the EU to tell us what's going on here".

If ever there was clear evidence of the uselessness of much of what comes out of Brussels, surely this is it. While they preside over the mess of the Eurozone, they dare to tell the UK, one of the few European economies currently prospering, what to do. Bring on the referendum and let's leave this appalling, overblown, spendthrift and corrupt organisation as soon as possible.

KNIVES OUT FOR CLEGG.

It seems that Nick Clegg now has a bit of a fight on his hands if he's to remain leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister.

After their catastrophic showing in both the Local and European elections, a few voices have been raised suggesting that it's time for Clegg to depart. Yesterday, one of the more significant Lib Dems, Lord Oakeshott, published polling data which indicates that the meltdown in Liberal support is such that even Clegg is likely to lose his parliamentary seat at next year's general election. That this polling was conducted without the support of the party hierarchy and certainly published without it seems obvious, though Oakeshott has claimed differently. He states that his big buddy, Vince Cable, not only knew but supported his actions wholeheartedly; unsurprisingly, Cable, caught somewhat on the hop, has denied this with some vehemence.

Regardless of the rights and wrongs, truths, lies, half-truths and general dissembling, Oakeshott's intervention has caused a pretty big headache for Clegg. There can be no doubt that he's in trouble within his party and that the likes of Cable would love to replace him. As a former Labour party member, as was Oakeshott, Cable can have little love for many of the policies of the coalition government; he'd surely be much happier in a Lib-Lab coalition. The man behind all the trouble, Oakeshott, is now being painted as a rather irritating figure who has been causing problems for the party for years; he has, of course, resigned his membership and will, presumably, resurface elsewhere before long. He is another who seems unhappy with the marginal rightward movement of the Liberal Democrats in recent years and would almost certainly prefer to return to his more socialist starting point.

In the midst of all of this turmoil, Clegg has carried on apparently oblivious to the storm raging around him. Cable has felt obliged to offer seemingly firm support for his boss and several other leading LibDems have done likewise. However, there can be no doubt that this is a very unhappy party and there's still a long summer and a party conference to get through before the election in May 2015.

Harold Wilson famously said that "a week is a long time in politics"; for Nick Clegg and his party, the next year is going to seem like an eternity.

HBOS THREE CAUSE POLITICAL OUTRAGE FOR CABLE.

Why do our political masters repeatedly react to specific situations by making high-profile noises about shock and outrage ?

 

Today it's being reported that the left-wing Secretary of State in the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (there's an Orwellian bit of newspeak for you !) has been outraged, all of a sudden it would appear, by the findings of a report which was published last Friday. The report focused on the collapse of the banking company 'HBOS' and found that three of the company's senior management were principally to blame; these were its Chairman and the 2 men who occupied the Chief Executive's chair between 2001 and 2008.

 

Although it must have been obvious to everyone who was involved in these matters, and also to anyone who had later knowledge of them, that there were serious failures in the bank's management, it's only now that Vince Cable has decided to become 'outraged'. Not only is he 'outraged' but he wants to find ways of sanctioning the three men and, no doubt, will even look at introducing retrospective legislation if that is the only way that his socialist 'outrage' can be assuaged.

 

The 'HBOS Three' were undoubtedly guilty of managing their bank poorly and are probably rightly blamed for its ultimate failure just as Fred Goodwin was blamed for the collapse of RBS. However, for the Government to engage itself in a witch hunt for individuals is entirely wrong-headed. Government sets the agenda and the environment, it is for others to decide what sanctions should be applied to specific individuals.

 

Andy Hornby, Sir James Crosby and Lord Stevenson have now been branded and, unless it is shown that they broke laws or other specific codes of conduct, it is for others, and not the Government or judiciary, to determine whether and how they might be sanctioned. Fred Goodwin left RBS under circumstances which ensure that he will never find similar employment again, having been hounded out by the prress; he is now facing the prospect of being sued for his failings. Eric Daniels, the American who almost destroyed Lloyds through his failure to impose proper 'due diligence' on his bank's merger with HBOS,  has yet to be seriously pursued by anyone; one wonders why.

 

Cable is an ambitious man who has his eyes on Nick Clegg's job. Positioning himself as the champion of the poor against these evil bankers won't do his case any harm, even if nothing comes of it.