political commentator * author * publisher * bookseller * radio presenter * blogger * Conservative candidate * former lobbyist * Jack Russell owner * West Ham United fanatic * Email iain AT iaindale DOT com
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Peston: Tories Were First to Call for Banking Changes
If Robert Peston says it, it must be true. Listen to THIS piece on the Today Programme, where he says that the Tories were first to call for a change in banking regulation.
"Strikingly, the Conservatives did wake up to the fact that the City had been out of control slightly earlier than Gordon Brown..."
More mobile phones being thrown in Downing Street this morning?
Some people were calling for banking regulatory changes from the moment the effects of the stupid FSMA 2000 became clear. It's just that they were not listened to, especially by a complicit media and a weak opposition.
Peston is a pompous clown. He has a vastly overinflated sense of his own importance and ability.
"Slightly earlier"? Brown was way behind the curve. And many commentators - with rather greater prescience than Peston - were making these points long, long, ago.
The key piece of information is missing here Iain. How much earlier than Labour did the Tories call for changes to banking regulation. 5 hours earlier, 5 days earlier, 5 weeks earlier or 5 years earlier. I think we can guess which one it is not.
The fact remains that both major parties were strong advocates of light touch regulation and that until 2007 the Tories' criticism of Labour in this area was restricted to a plea for less burden on business and at NO stage was there ever a call for any form of restriction on the type of activities that banks might participate in. The only politicians to call for that were the likes of Tony Benn.
As Cameron has admitted, the Tories only called out the government for growing government borrowing which is hardly new and no different to what Labour did in opposition when Norman Lamont ran debt up. There was no great Damascene conversion here.
If the Peston quote is accurate then it's typically ambiguous - personally, I think Brown was probably out of control before the City was out of control...C
There will be plenty more feel their cosy life under Labour is threatened. Nicky boy will re-discover his Tory youth ere long. Principle is a dirty word these days. Another gift from Labour.
I would argue that light touch regulation wasn't the problem, it was the refusal of the FSA and government to use the regulations available already
You can have all the regulation in the world, if the regulator won't use it, and the government are backing - indeed promoting - that stance, it's no use.
The trifecta of the Blair/Brown governments, the spineless FSA and Bourne's compromised NAO all ensured that regardless of regulatory rules, this mess would happen.
Yes, and there's no chance of a 'global' regulator being any more successful.
This is not about ensuring stability and fairness - it's about shifting blame. Brown's intention is to avoid culpability for all past - and all future - misdeeds and misjudgments. It matters not whether global or other new 'controls' are introduced - he can now effectively shift the blame, no matter what the outcome of the meeting.
What the Conservatives should do is emphasise his prolonged and incompetent regime's failings and ask what fiscal guarantees any such innovations may bring with them.
“Are you putting yourself forward for the post of sub-editor?”
Certainly, I could. It’s a job I’ve done before as you no doubt realise. And it’s germane here. I still have no idea who was “first”. I rather suspect it wasn’t the Tories, however. Who knows?
Simon Gardner, "[sub-editing] is a job I’ve done before as you no doubt realise." Well, here's one reader who didn't realise. Have I missed a sequitur?
Iain traduces Robert Peston who appears not to have made the claim that Iain alleges at all. OK I doubt Peston will sue - but still it basically appears to be a lie.
It’s worth remembering the next time Iain lays into TV news, the BBC or a newspaper.
Unless of course he makes a correction as any reputable person would.
This is excellent! So you think Iain is Sloppy, he publishes Untruths and he's Disreputable, too? Are you applying for the position of his sub-editor, then?
Iain Dale said... “Simon, Interesting to see you removed your last comment.”
Merely for a minor grammatical correction; us ex-sub-editors tend to be over fussy. As you can see, it was straight back within half a minute.
I still cannot see how you manage to stand up your headline with your body copy. I readily admit I don’t listen to the Today prog and haven’t for yonks.
Certainly Iain - "Strikingly, the Conservatives did wake up to the fact that the City had been out of control slightly earlier than Gordon Brown..." does not lead to: "Peston: Tories Were First to Call for Banking Changes" (my emphasis).
So "Peston: Tories Were Earlier to Call for Banking Changes" appears to follow from what Peston is quoted as saying. Your headline appears not to - unless you are holding further damning and unpublished quotes?
Sorry, that is lamentable. So what you are saying is that the Tories were first to wake up to banking changes, but decided not to do anything about it. One presumes if they say something wrong they called for changes to be made. A reasonable thing to assume from what Peston said, I'd have thought. Hence the headline.
But when you get an ankle in your teeth, you don't like to let go, do you? I am sure you can find far dodgier headlines on this blog than that one!
I rather suspect that other well-known politicos got there rather before both the Tories and Labour and you are quite right: When I’m right I never let go (as for instance, Tom Harris MP is discovering).
(When I’m wrong I readily ’fess up but I take reasonable care to ensure that’s a suitably rare occurence.)
I don't remember the Tories being ahead of the curve on this - I do recall Vince Cable's many warnings, but Cameron and Osborne? As quiet on the subject as one might expect given their hedge fund backers.
Also of course Peston does not say what you say he said Iain. But we've already seen before that mere facts do not trouble you when writing a blog heading! There's future for you at the Mail.
DespairingLiberal said... “I don't remember the Tories being ahead of the curve on this - I do recall Vince Cable's many warnings, but Cameron and Osborne?”
Aha. The fog begins to clear.
“There's future for you at the Mail.”
Oh dear. Is there a need to be quite so insulting?
yarnesfromhorsham said... “Must think that NuLab has no chance at the nexy election and making sure that he stays in a job.”
DC [16-3-09]: “The BBC is one of our most important institutions. It plays a vital role in bringing us together.”
DC [16-3-09]: “The BBC is an important national institution. I want to see it prosper and succeed and be a fantastic cultural asset. I am a supporter of the BBC. I am a supporter of the licence fee. I think the license fee can go on.”
Brown has woken up to the fact that the City had been out of control?! But it all began in America - nothing to do with the dear leader. Do keep up and on-message, Pesto.
I think Preston is right. It was, was it not, Margaret Thatcher who first called for deregulation thus paving the way for sup prime mortgages and collateralised debt obligations.
Well at least Nokia are doing well in the recession
ReplyDeleteOh dear, al beeb brown boy sensing a change in govt perhaps.Lining himself up to be a cameron boy.
ReplyDeleteSome people were calling for banking regulatory changes from the moment the effects of the stupid FSMA 2000 became clear. It's just that they were not listened to, especially by a complicit media and a weak opposition.
ReplyDeletePeston seems to parrot the words of the last person he spoke to. Sounds like he went out to dinner with some Conservative bankers last night.
ReplyDeletePeston is a pompous clown. He has a vastly overinflated sense of his own importance and ability.
ReplyDelete"Slightly earlier"? Brown was way behind the curve. And many commentators - with rather greater prescience than Peston - were making these points long, long, ago.
The key piece of information is missing here Iain. How much earlier than Labour did the Tories call for changes to banking regulation. 5 hours earlier, 5 days earlier, 5 weeks earlier or 5 years earlier. I think we can guess which one it is not.
ReplyDeleteThe fact remains that both major parties were strong advocates of light touch regulation and that until 2007 the Tories' criticism of Labour in this area was restricted to a plea for less burden on business and at NO stage was there ever a call for any form of restriction on the type of activities that banks might participate in. The only politicians to call for that were the likes of Tony Benn.
As Cameron has admitted, the Tories only called out the government for growing government borrowing which is hardly new and no different to what Labour did in opposition when Norman Lamont ran debt up. There was no great Damascene conversion here.
If the Peston quote is accurate then it's typically ambiguous - personally, I think Brown was probably out of control before the City was out of control...C
ReplyDeleteThey don't like it up 'em! (to judge from some of the comments above, at least).
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteUmm. Your headline is a non sequitur.
ReplyDeleteIf the Tories were before Labour - your quote - it doesn’t at all follow that the Tories were “First”. It just means they were “before Labour”.
A correction perhaps?
Barnsley Bill said......
ReplyDeleteThere will be plenty more feel their cosy life under Labour is threatened. Nicky boy will re-discover his Tory youth ere long. Principle is a dirty word these days. Another gift from Labour.
@p smith
ReplyDeleteI would argue that light touch regulation wasn't the problem, it was the refusal of the FSA and government to use the regulations available already
You can have all the regulation in the world, if the regulator won't use it, and the government are backing - indeed promoting - that stance, it's no use.
The trifecta of the Blair/Brown governments, the spineless FSA and Bourne's compromised NAO all ensured that regardless of regulatory rules, this mess would happen.
@ Simon Gardner
ReplyDeleteTrue, Peston does not say 'first'.
Who was 'first',then - in your opinion?
I don’t have an opinion; I’m just pointing out Iain’s headline is journalistically unsupported by his body copy. (Or by the evidence he has produced.)
ReplyDeleteIt’s sloppy to put it mildly.
@ Obsidian
ReplyDeleteYes, and there's no chance of a 'global' regulator being any more successful.
This is not about ensuring stability and fairness - it's about shifting blame. Brown's intention is to avoid culpability for all past - and all future - misdeeds and misjudgments. It matters not whether global or other new 'controls' are introduced - he can now effectively shift the blame, no matter what the outcome of the meeting.
What the Conservatives should do is emphasise his prolonged and incompetent regime's failings and ask what fiscal guarantees any such innovations may bring with them.
Never mind all the flim-flam, where's the beef?
@ Simon Gardner
ReplyDeletea) So? So what?
b) Are you putting yourself forward for the post of sub-editor?
You think it's 'sloppy'? Do you want to discuss the topic or just how the piece is written? If you can do so much better why not start your own blog?
“Are you putting yourself forward for the post of sub-editor?”
ReplyDeleteCertainly, I could. It’s a job I’ve done before as you no doubt realise. And it’s germane here. I still have no idea who was “first”. I rather suspect it wasn’t the Tories, however. Who knows?
The headline is sloppy and probably untrue.
Simon Gardner,
ReplyDelete"[sub-editing] is a job I’ve done before as you no doubt realise."
Well, here's one reader who didn't realise.
Have I missed a sequitur?
@ Simon Gardner
ReplyDeleteBut who might want to employ you? Is it really very wise to publicly criticise any putative employer? Is it 'Sloppy' to do that?
You assert that you have been a sub-editor before. Is that 'Untrue', perhaps? If not, how long the job last?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSimon, Interesting to see you removed your last comment. Pity. Because you made yourself look a prize idiot with it.
ReplyDeleteI've included the quote from Peston and a link to the interview.
Happy to leave it to others to decide who's the one who is trying to make a mountain out of a molehill here. And it isn't me.
Iain traduces Robert Peston who appears not to have made the claim that Iain alleges at all. OK I doubt Peston will sue - but still it basically appears to be a lie.
ReplyDeleteIt’s worth remembering the next time Iain lays into TV news, the BBC or a newspaper.
Unless of course he makes a correction as any reputable person would.
Ah, you've have reposted it. Good. What part of the actual quote or extract from the interview are you questioning. Did he not say those words?
ReplyDeleteStop trying to insinuate something, Just come out and say it. Any reputable person would.
@ Simon Gardner
ReplyDeleteThis is excellent! So you think Iain is Sloppy, he publishes Untruths and he's Disreputable, too? Are you applying for the position of his sub-editor, then?
Iain Dale said... “Simon, Interesting to see you removed your last comment.”
ReplyDeleteMerely for a minor grammatical correction; us ex-sub-editors tend to be over fussy. As you can see, it was straight back within half a minute.
I still cannot see how you manage to stand up your headline with your body copy. I readily admit I don’t listen to the Today prog and haven’t for yonks.
Certainly Iain -
ReplyDelete"Strikingly, the Conservatives did wake up to the fact that the City had been out of control slightly earlier than Gordon Brown..."
does not lead to:
"Peston: Tories Were First to Call for Banking Changes" (my emphasis).
So "Peston: Tories Were Earlier to Call for Banking Changes" appears to follow from what Peston is quoted as saying. Your headline appears not to - unless you are holding further damning and unpublished quotes?
Sorry, that is lamentable. So what you are saying is that the Tories were first to wake up to banking changes, but decided not to do anything about it. One presumes if they say something wrong they called for changes to be made. A reasonable thing to assume from what Peston said, I'd have thought. Hence the headline.
ReplyDeleteBut when you get an ankle in your teeth, you don't like to let go, do you? I am sure you can find far dodgier headlines on this blog than that one!
No.
ReplyDeleteI rather suspect that other well-known politicos got there rather before both the Tories and Labour and you are quite right: When I’m right I never let go (as for instance, Tom Harris MP is discovering).
(When I’m wrong I readily ’fess up but I take reasonable care to ensure that’s a suitably rare occurence.)
@ Simon Gardner
ReplyDelete"I rather suspect"?
So weak.
You 'don't have an opinion', but you 'rather suspect'?
'Ex-sub-editor', indeed.
And still one wonders who was “first to call for banking changes” and still one is none the wiser...
ReplyDeleteI don't remember the Tories being ahead of the curve on this - I do recall Vince Cable's many warnings, but Cameron and Osborne? As quiet on the subject as one might expect given their hedge fund backers.
ReplyDeleteAlso of course Peston does not say what you say he said Iain. But we've already seen before that mere facts do not trouble you when writing a blog heading! There's future for you at the Mail.
DespairingLiberal said... “I don't remember the Tories being ahead of the curve on this - I do recall Vince Cable's many warnings, but Cameron and Osborne?”
ReplyDeleteAha. The fog begins to clear.
“There's future for you at the Mail.”
Oh dear. Is there a need to be quite so insulting?
Must think that NuLab has no chance at the nexy election and making sure that he stays in a job. Marginal
ReplyDeleteyarnesfromhorsham said... “Must think that NuLab has no chance at the nexy election and making sure that he stays in a job.”
ReplyDeleteDC [16-3-09]: “The BBC is one of our most important institutions. It plays a vital role in bringing us together.”
DC [16-3-09]: “The BBC is an important national institution. I want to see it prosper and succeed and be a fantastic cultural asset. I am a supporter of the BBC. I am a supporter of the licence fee. I think the license fee can go on.”
Actually, it says they beat Labour to it, not the Lib Dems.
ReplyDeleteBrown has woken up to the fact that the City had been out of control?! But it all began in America - nothing to do with the dear leader. Do keep up and on-message, Pesto.
ReplyDeleteI think Preston is right. It was, was it not, Margaret Thatcher who first called for deregulation thus paving the way for sup prime mortgages and collateralised debt obligations.
ReplyDeleteQE, the panel game about Quantitave Easing with Stephen Fry
I bet he's chewed some nails and eaten some bogies today.
ReplyDelete