So the response of Labour to Sir Philip Green's appointment to lead a review of government spending is to say he's not fit for the role because his wife lives in Monaco. What a joke they have become. It seems not only was Labour not fit to govern, they haven't a clue how to be in opposition either.
Sir Philip Green is one of our most successful business leaders. Just the sort who Labour used to try to tap for the odd donation or two. I doubt whether his wife's domicile status would have bothered them then.
indeed. it was them who knighted him!!!
ReplyDeleteSo which one of the Labour candidates will be the first to publish documents showing clearly how much tax THEY pay, then?
ReplyDeleteOr does transparency only apply when it's someone who isn't funnelling money into their party?
The coalition want to work with Sir Philip, not his wife. Her status shouldn't matter at all. I totally agree with you. Labour aren't making any sense.
ReplyDeleteWhere have they said this? I haven't seen any response from Labour. Do you have a link pls, thanks!
ReplyDeleteFor the first time I seriously disagree with you, and in particular with the headline of your post. This appointment strikes me as a real blunder. Firstly it will antagonise a lot of people on a basic level (yes, people like me who pay a hell of a lot of tax but not quite enough to afford the whole Monaco thing. Or indeed any sort of holiday at all this year). Secondly it clearly has the potential to go horribly wrong PR-wise given Sir Phil's shall we say forceful character. Having said that the Alan Sugar business was quite successful for Gordon Brown wasn't it. Oh, hang on ...
ReplyDeleteThis will be the same Labour party that reommended Sir Philip Green for a knighthood?
ReplyDeletePot kettle and black
Tim, it was a news headline on Radio 2 this afternoon.
ReplyDeleteAre you sure you're right about this, Iain? Reading onine reports in the national papers, the BBC and Sky, I can find criticism from the GMB and the PCSU, but not from Labour. Indeed, given how close to Labour Green was, it would be qite odd for the party to criticise him now.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, at least one member of the current Government has criticised the appointment of Monaco-based advisers to the Government. http://bit.ly/d8aHbA
I wonder what Vince is thinking now?
If only we had more people like Phillip Green! Left school at 15 and worked his way to the top, not a University Degree in sight. Good luck to him in sorting out the waste created by the last govt., a million new jobs - how many of them were Pub lic sector non-jobs!
ReplyDeleteBunch of useless spoonheaded tossers, dont they realise they've been kicked out and do not matter anymore? Not surprised it was the BBC that gave them airtime.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of opposition is to oppose the government's choices so that at least the worst are stopped in their tracks. You know that. You're being silly.
ReplyDeleteHaving non-Dom and non-Resident people and their connections doing big jobs for the country is controversial at best. No opposition worth the name would let this past without grizzling about it.
Apart from the Monaco home it must be hard for someone this rich to assess the impact of expenditure options on the broad population. Don't you think?
And does the man have any training in public finance or economics? We know he can run rag trade supermarkets .. but does that make him a good choice for this role?
Labour didn't pick very poor non economists to review spending. It is the Tories who have rather lost the plot. Green's an amateur.
PS Good point from Tim 3:52 on whether Labour have actually officially complained about this twaddle.
ReplyDeletePPS and Iain Dale .. who exactly embodied Labour in this radio 2 headline? Green's just not particularly suitable and the non-res non-dom thing is just a provocation.
ReplyDeleteIt was odd on Wednesday was it when Cam was on talking about building on what Labour had done and being rather collegial only for the Warsi and Huhne double act to go all stupid partisan on us.
To reply to David Morris:
ReplyDeleteHer status does matter, as you can transfer almost anything between husband and wife without incurring tax. My understanding is that she technically owns Arcadia and thus dividends from the company to Philip Green and his wife will not be taxed.
For once, I think this government is acting as a government. It's obviously going to be unpopular to get a billionaire to scrutinise which cuts will hurt the general population least, but I think they are right to bring him on board.
As IDS has already said, cuts are being made without any reference to efficiency. Moreover, they're being made in a slapdash manner without proper planning or consideration. No private company in the land would make cuts in this manner as it is a sure fire way to try and make sure the company fails. Cuts should be extensively planned and thought through, and as many possible consequences understood, before cuts start to be made, and that just isn't happening currently.
Hopefully this appointment will go some way to rectifying this.
Soz, Iain, OT - but I had a fantastic argument with my Labour oppo about 4 months ago when I said 'nah, man, the audit commission is going as it's crap' at which he scoffed, nay, he poo pooed me. (Boring alert) but the Place surveys they did were utterly pathetic - Go Eric, good lad.
ReplyDeleteHave a grand weekend, Iain. Boys from college coming over from various European toilets so, err..yippee! Chin chin.
According to the BBC version of the story it was the GMB who said this - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-10961240.
ReplyDeleteWhich Labour politician did Radio 2 report as having said it?
The very same Philip Green who has masterminded many close family members paying as little tax as possible? Hmm, I thought we were all in this together?
ReplyDeleteIs that so!.When the Tories were in opposition they seemed to look like bitter loosers Labour seems to be ok in opposition at least is not called the 'Nasty Party' like the Tories were in 1997-Andrew 4rom Streatham
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of childish typically labour prescott type tweets doing the rounds - Campbell is the latest.
ReplyDeleteI reckon that Labour being an unfit opposition is a distinct improvement. Remember, not long ago they were an unfit government.
ReplyDeleteThe BBC first raised that slur on the Today program this morning, so maybe Labour are still feeding them the bullets (or is it the other way around).
ReplyDeleteAnyway, if we can get government spending under control, maybe people will stop leaving for Monaco!
Neil Kinnock's son claims to be tax exiled in Switzerland - surely the whole of the socialist party should resign!
ReplyDeleteYet another juvenile post iain !
ReplyDeleteThis Condem government is proposing 25 percent cuts and all you can muster is a post about Labour taking a dislike to Green's wife.
This blog has gone to the dogs since the election. we all knew you'd step back and concentrate on your proper job but sheeesh why not hang up your boots and call it a day.
btw excellent podcast with Ken and Oona King.
If Dominic Grieve, Norman Baker and Ken Clarke collectively get the David Kelly affair re-examined, along with overturning the astonishing ruling of 2003 to keep medical reports and photographs closed for 70 years, Labour's current doldrums will be as a gnat bite.
ReplyDeleteIf, and it is a big if, it becomes clear that Kelly's death has a sinister aspect, as at least one government minister believes, it will bring down the whole house of cards, and Blair with it. His appointment in the Hague on charges of War Crimes will not seem such a fantasy after all.
And in spite of the accusing WV,
"imaloopa"
I am not really a conspiracy theorist at heart.
Iain, as other commenters have pointed out, such criticism as there has been seems to have come from Paul Kenny of the GMB, who does not speak in any capacity for the Labour Party. Unless you can come up with a front bench spokesperson who's made this criticism, I don't think your headline can be justified.
ReplyDeleteJudging by what E Pickles has found about the waste of money in his Dept when Labour were in charge perhaps the leaderless, rudderless People's Party thought they'd get their revenge in first. Wasn't porky Prescott in charge of Pickles' dept once?
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see Bliar on trial over the Kelly affair. Something smells vile about that and the buck stops with B;iar.
What really sticks in my craw is the sudden discovery of lavish government expenditure by a certain Labour MP.
ReplyDeleteThe Government "whine" cellar was all well and good as long as the "champions of the poor" had the key. Now, it seems, it's a matter of the greatest possible concern, and a driver for a career.
While the Labour party were in power he sat sheep-like and raised his hand as required. Now it seems he wants all costs published and, more importantly, wants the credit for pointing it out.
Chris Paul: We know he can run rag trade supermarkets
ReplyDeleteWith this rather vacuous sentence, Chris Paul negates all his other comments.
It was a silly thing to say, wasn't it?
Chris Paul: "Apart from the Monaco home it must be hard for someone this rich to assess the impact of expenditure options on the broad population. Don't you think?"
ReplyDeleteYou're right, with almost GBP 1.9 billion of retail sales reported last year he clearly has no idea what the public want.
Its strange we only hear from labour MPs when in opposition. They are like frightened sheep when in power.
ReplyDeleteLabour has this narrative of the cuts and yet they were proposing cuts of at least 20% themselves. Selective amnesia.......
ReplyDeleteAgree that Labour are not fit for opposition (or even to collect my garbage), agree that Sir Phil is probably well qualified for the job, but his tax status absolutely stinks when poor sods like me get taxed to buggery on everything we make. Very much a question of the rich milk the system to get richer and the rest of us foot the bill. It will end in tears - possibly mine!
ReplyDeleteLabour not fit for opposition? They weren't fit to govern, either.
ReplyDelete@Chris Paul,
You are being irrational. Surely someone who does NOT pay taxes is ideal to dispassionately seek out inefficiencies and root them out.
If he was a massive taxpayer in the UK I suspect you would be right on here moaning about how he is selfishly trying to cut his own tax bill.
Contrariness is not the same as Opposition.
Dear Golden Balls ... 'This Condem government is proposing 25 percent cuts' ... huh?
ReplyDeleteLabours last budget proposed at least 20% cuts.
Whatever cuts we face are as a result of vast overspending by Brown, Like the defence plans being underfunded by £37 billion.
Indeed much of what is happening is not cuts in actual spending at all. Its cutting back on spending promises which were totally underfunded - well actually totally UNfunded.
So cut the crap Golden Balls.
PS 'ConDem ...' yeah you really are amazingly funny. Actually of course its your posts that have gone to the dogs.
Labour are a load of rubbish, I don't know why the media fawned over them for so long!
ReplyDelete@Matt - Chris Paul's good value. Seriously, he had me at 'the idea of opposition' - if you've heard his rants when they had government, well, it's almost comedic tragedy. Labour run Manchester though, and that's a fucking problem.
ReplyDeleteNice to see the Labour Party have gone back to student politics, they are so useless it is joke.
ReplyDeleteCan anybody confirm the actual Tax status of one Tony Blair?
Does he actually pay UK Tax on his vast overseas earnings?
Can anyone explain why he has so many private companies?
I truly hope the coalition has some balls and declares political parties in the red need to be abolished. The labour party is bankrupt morally and financially.
Nothing will change Green will recommend and we shall still be waffling on about savings well into the next century.
ReplyDeleteOffer staff sabaticals across Whitehall/local gov't and cut taxes to reflate the private sector.
Break the coalition and let's have a general election next spring and then elect a real government that doesn't have to worry about Clegg and Co...
I just posted a blog entry about this matter and would appreciate any comments (http://www.lifedownloaded.com/blog/should-sir-philip-green-lead-a-spending-review/)
ReplyDeleteTwo days later and stil waiting to hear what Labour politician sad this. Anyone any idea?
ReplyDelete