UK News

from The Great Debate UK:

David Willetts on the Anglo-Saxon finance model

Demography is the most powerful single structural explanation of changes in the economy in society around us, David Willetts, Conservative Shadow Minister for Universities and Skills told Reuters ahead of a talk about European policy options on Wednesday at the London School of Economics.

Population changes in Europe and Britain will contribute to the UK becoming Europe's largest economy in the 2040s, he said.

"So when I read that the Anglo-Saxon model is dead, and that somehow we've fallen way behind the continent of Europe I do think that a society capable of generating quite substantial economic growth -- if we can emerge from this crisis -- has still got some things going for it," Willetts said in reaction to comments made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, which suggested that continental economic ideals will prevail over the Anglo-Saxon model.

Walking the risk-reward tightrope in Iraq

It’s fair to say that investing in Iraq is not for the faint-hearted.

Just last week more than 200 people were killed in suicide bombings across the country, while kidnapping and armed assault remain commonplace.

That said, more than 600 delegates still turned up to the Invest Iraq 2009 conference held in London this week, eager to find out what opportunities there might be in the oil, construction, petrochemicals, engineering, agriculture, transport and tourism industries, to name a few.

From City of London bankers to executives from Shell and Chevron, bosses from energy service companies and airport construction firms, management training specialists and security advisers, they were all there, milling around a west London hotel in their smartest suits, seeing what business they might be able to do.

There were plenty of Iraqis too. Mostly businessmen with operations outside the country — in Lebanon, Jordan or Dubai — and now looking to step up investment in their homeland.

Some of them, perhaps feeling more familiar with the lay of the land than Western investors, had already made sizeable moves into Iraq, but judging from the questions they were putting to the Iraqi officials speaking at the conference, they were concerned about a lack of legal direction from the government.

One Iraqi was particularly illustrative of the potential pitfalls that can befall investors.

Punters cash in on Darling’s budget tie choice

Smokers and top earners were clear losers in Britain’s budget this year, as the government hiked taxes on cigarettes and the highest incomes.

But a lucky few must have been cheering in front of their televisions during the 51-minute speech.

Budget-watchers who bet hard cash that the chancellor of the exchequer, Alistair Darling, would wear a grey or blue tie to his address got a welcome bit of stimulus from the budget.

Betting firm Ladbrokes was giving odds of 3/1 and 16/a for a blue and grey, respectively. Perhaps aware of the odds, Darling put on a blue-gray striped one, and Ladbrokes paid out for both colours.

In for a penny, in for £175 billion

It may not be tax and spend exactly, but it’s definitely tax and borrow.

For the best part of 12 years, Labour has pursued essentially conservative (with a small ‘c’) economic policies, steadily underburdening itself of the ‘fiscally unreliable’ tag that some earlier Labour administrations were (wrongly or rightly) saddled with.

And for most of the past 12 years, as the global economy steadily expanded and Britain’s along with it, with aggregate wealth rising smoothly, Labour looked strong at the helm each time the budget came around.

But since the global economic crisis hit in late 2007,  it has become much harder for the government to keep a tight rein on the fiscal strings as growth has taken a hit, unemployment has risen sharply, and tax receipts have declined. 

Last April’s budget was a tough one for Labour, but Wednesday’s budget may well go down as the one that really showed the government reeling as it tries to keep a grip on the purse strings in some of the most challenging economic circumstances imaginable.

The numbers tell the story and are in some cases eye-bogglingly huge.

Finance minister Alistair Darling says the government will have to borrow 175 billion pounds this year and almost as much next year (173 billion) as it tries to plug a widening gap in its finances. WIth the Debt Management Office already struggling to raise funds (if one recent debt auction is anything to go by), the borrowing requirement could be a very big ask.

Can MV=PT solve credit crisis for BoE?

Britain could begin a telling exercise in classical monetary theory on Thursday as the central bank gets set to test a newly minted policy of “quantitative easing”.

In an effort to pump more money into the financial system and encourage banks to get lending again, the Bank of England has been given the green light to basically create more money.

 It will use the electronic funds to buy short- and long-dated gilts and a host of commercial debt in the hope that that will free up other capital to the banks, allowing them to lend more.

At root, the exercise is based on MV=PT, known as the Fisher equation of exchange and a mainstay of Keynesian monetary theory.

In the equation, M is the quantity of money and V is the velocity at which it travels around the economy. P stands for the general level of prices and T equals the number of transactions performed over a given accounting period.

In theory, V and T are more or less stable, meaning that all other things being equal, the amount of money in circulation has a direct impact on prices and/or the number of transactions.

By pumping more M into the economy (or at least making more M available), the central bank is hoping that economic activity will pick up (T will increase) and the economy will be reflated (P will pick up). In theory.

Are women better with money than men?

A major survey has found that women are more responsible with money than men. They’re less likely to get into debt and they work hard to become financially independent.

The global Reuters Synovate survey polled some 4,500 women in 12 countries about money matters. An equal number of men were also asked several questions related to finances.

It’s true enough that the rogues’ gallery of bankers now being pilloried in the media for personal greed and financial failure is almost exclusively male.

But who melts all the plastic in the High Street? Surely Sophie Kinsella’s book “Confessions of a Shopaholic” was such a success because it struck a chord with so many women.

Do you think women are more intelligent than men when it comes to money matters?

Brown needs Darling in these troubled times

    One thing looks certain after Alistair Darling’s speech to***the Labour Party conference on Monday — he’ll be Chancellor of***the Exchequer for a while yet.******    Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to reshuffle his***ministerial team next week and there’s been a lot of speculation***that Darling could lose his job and be moved to another***department.******    The silver-haired finance minister has had a rough ride***lately. The economy is on the brink of recession and his***comments in a magazine interview saying the economic challenges***were the greatest in 60 years caused a furore and were blamed***for sinking the pound.******    But delegates at the Labour conference today just loved him.***They stood and clapped and then they clapped some more after***Darling hit out at unfettered capitalism and the huge payouts***given to bankers that he said helped cause the credit crunch.******    Darling looked genuinely embarrassed. He called for them to***stop but the delegates just went on. Besides modesty, the***finance minister had another reason for wanting them to stop.******    He had another type of conference call to attend to. A G7***one. The finance ministers and central bankers of the rich***nations club were having a hastily-arranged telephone chat at***1230 London time to discuss the latest bout of market turmoil.******    Given London’s position as one of the world’s top financial***centres, Darling could hardly miss out and he rushed off the***stage to get on with his G7 buddies.******    The crisis also looks to have cemented Darling’s position.***It would seem odd to remove the finance minister when the whole***world financial system is in the middle of the biggest upheaval***in a generation.******    With Brown making his economic experience a key selling***point, he needs Darling on side.

Tuesday’s headlines

Here is a round-up of Tuesday’s headlines:

DAILY MAIL: Father of Four Taken to Court and Fined…Because he Overfilled his Wheelie-Bin by Just Four Inches

Bus driver Gareth Corkhill collected a conviction and a 210 pound fine after he declined to pay a council on-the-spot fine for leaving the lid of his wheelie bin ajar four inches. Story here.

THE TIMES: Judges Set to Deliver Fresh Blow on Terror

Gordon Brown was facing a new battle over key anti-terrorism laws this week with the High Court set to rule against powers to freeze suspects’ bank accounts, the paper said. Story here.

The Sun: Harry Meets His Hero

Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, is pictured smiling and relaxing with wounded soldiers recovering in the Forces rehab centre in Surrey. Story here.