tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post957935603920070930..comments2024-03-04T17:54:32.559+00:00Comments on Iain Dale's Diary: DD: The Right Need Not be WorriedIain Dalehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-79383980030468836672007-06-24T00:35:00.000+01:002007-06-24T00:35:00.000+01:00This politics of envy thing is stupid and idiotic....This politics of envy thing is stupid and idiotic. Capital gains are taxed at a low level for very good reasons: it helps encourage investment, takes government out of investment decisions, and helps increase the dynamism of the economy. Increasing taxes is just the same as an increase in interest rates, despite the deliberate ignorance of keynesians to actual reactions. <BR/><BR/>What needs to be done is to sell the advantages of being a financial capital. Why it is important that transactions take place in London, that investment houses are based in the City, Canary Wharf, and Mayfair. Deloitte et al provide huge numbers of jobs in London thanks to the presence of all these investors. Non-residents keep up the economy, bring more capital into the country...<BR/><BR/>General Partners are building businesses just like any entrepreneur, but are more tightly aligned to their investor's interests than a regular entrepreneur who has a much different cost basis than his investors. The idea that we should be punishing this concept rather than lauding it is absurd. Eddie Lampert runs a hedge/private equity fund called ESL investments and owns Sears Holdings which incorporates two major high street retailers in the US: Sears and K-Mart. He has rescued these two firms, turned them around, and re-worked their balance sheets for improved stability and focus.<BR/><BR/>These changes will reduce the dynamism of the economy by entrenching management and limiting activists to those who are already phenomenally rich and don't need to raise money. GPs (and their analysts) put in phenomenal hours to evalute investents and then to rework the businesses, something that very few billionaires are willing to do. Letting them get capital gains rates for the carry improves incentives to be in the business, allows for more entrants, and helps improve the returns of insurance companies, pension funds, as well as the general investing public. These partnerships raise money from institutions such as insurance firms, pension funds, universities, hospitals, and foundations and are now going public, giving the general puiblic access to these investments. <BR/><BR/>Conventional, long only mutual funds are short term focused - looking to their status in the quarterly and annual league tables and how they compare to the relevant idices. Private equity, venture capital, and hedge funds provide alternative views on investments and enable riskier, longer term strategies. They also have the political cover to do necessary things such as cleaning up union contracts - the reason why Mercedes couldn't make Chrysler work but why Cerberus should be able to is Germany's horrible concept of union control. <BR/><BR/>The one good thing in the US is taht the Republicans haven't caved into the politics of envy. That Davide Davis has a role focusing on such an idiotic concept as social mobility is liable to kill Baroness Thatcher, not to mentoin the violence he is doing to the country by conceding the field to the bearded socialists. A useful politician of the right would note David Beckham and then MAKE THE CASE for investors, rather than saying that since it is hard, it should not be done. TWADDLE!<BR/><BR/>Bring back "there's no such thing as society", privatisation, de-regulation, and keeping the creeping EU-caused frenchification of the UK at bay. None of this mad rush to the 70s, the heyday of Britain as the sick man of Europe!Heyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08333291654356970407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-1999611107991581072007-06-23T22:43:00.000+01:002007-06-23T22:43:00.000+01:00Indeed Iain - contrasting your recent coverage of ...Indeed Iain - contrasting your recent coverage of DD with Guido's in your own comment space was a tad cheeky! Sorry.<BR/><BR/>I do have, though, personal experience of DD's high-handedness when dealing with lesser beings than himself, quite without any good reason - which taught me volumes about him, and is why I'd never support him for anything even if he turned out to be Winston Churchill reincarnated (which I doubt, given my own experience with DD).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-85025237683214924852007-06-23T19:03:00.000+01:002007-06-23T19:03:00.000+01:00If David Davis is socially liberal, why is his vot...If David Davis is socially liberal, why is his voting pattern in the House of Commons one of social conservatism? Having gay friends does not make a person a social liberal, as I am sure Ann Widdecombe would confirm.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-14541411327274543842007-06-23T18:25:00.000+01:002007-06-23T18:25:00.000+01:00Yes, good stuff from DD today. He obviously doesn'...Yes, good stuff from DD today. He obviously doesn't agree with everything that Cameron does or says, but he's intelligent enough to know that the current leader is our only hope at the next election.<BR/>The Telegraph, however , just hasn't got it. Has anybody seen their leader today?<BR/>"What does Gordon have to do to attract our readers?"<BR/>Dohh!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-57862448355266523482007-06-23T15:23:00.000+01:002007-06-23T15:23:00.000+01:00Dunkin Donuts, you are well aware why I deleted yo...Dunkin Donuts, you are well aware why I deleted your last comment. If you actually put a name to yourself I might have some respect for you.Iain Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-4835320684359676172007-06-23T15:20:00.000+01:002007-06-23T15:20:00.000+01:00"...to an aide, he shouts: "Call X - he'll be at M...<I>"...to an aide, he shouts: "Call X - he'll be at MI5," then tells us: "You didn't hear that. I know lots of spooks."</I><BR/><BR/>You didn't hear, that, except of course you did. Pretentious? Moi?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-25502225541672579872007-06-23T13:58:00.000+01:002007-06-23T13:58:00.000+01:00"The cliche is David Beckham...."Indeed, and it wa...<I>"The cliche is David Beckham...."</I><BR/><BR/>Indeed, and it was a cliche that was employed by none other than David Cameron in a recent interview on the Today Programme. A sly dig by DD, perhaps?Paul Linfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01977920120772282561noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-60291341182914070252007-06-23T13:00:00.000+01:002007-06-23T13:00:00.000+01:00""My hunch on the ground is that they would agree ...""My hunch on the ground is that they would agree this is a tax break too far. They care about fairness ... You need a morally stable society which is why it is important to look at their worth and to sit up when some of their own people are saying this is not right."<BR/>Good interview, and I say that as someone who has never been a fan of DD, especially in the period between 2001-2005.<BR/>I think that he is onto something with the tax break to far argument, it is becoming obscene that they get a tax break taking away from lower income earners.<BR/>Just looking at friends and family in varying financial brackets and a conversation we all had after the last budget. None of us could believe that Brown had in effect shafted not the poorest, middle classes or the wealthiest but in fact that group of working singles and families in between the poor and middle classes.<BR/>They are working, being screwed by a tax credit system which ends up hurting them more than it helps. It has made many too scared to claim what he has taken away from them in the tax system in the budget, and cynically he know this and is actually gambling his figures on them finding it too difficult to claim what he took away from them in the tax system.<BR/>I hope DD, Osborne and Co will realise that what they need is not endless forms but a simple and fairer system of tax.<BR/>This hard-working group in full employment earning between £10-20,00 are really suffering now under Brown's stewardship of the treasury, he is just making it harder for them to cling to the bottom of the ladder rather than lifting them up it.<BR/>I think that there is now a real resentment building up and some one needs to fight their cause, I hope its the Conservative party which takes up the baton.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-47480561450812319852007-06-23T12:12:00.000+01:002007-06-23T12:12:00.000+01:00Agreed Iain, but DD was making claims for Hague an...Agreed Iain, but DD was making claims for Hague and himself in combination, and I was rightly stating that there was the need for something to be said re the Merkel Con Trick.<BR/><BR/>I will now detach DD and Hague back to their respective departments, and forget the idea of a two in one.Tapestryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17267094484651413428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-67595118235223726332007-06-23T11:56:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:56:00.000+01:00"some private equity millionaires pay only 10 per ..."some private equity millionaires pay only 10 per cent tax" - can I hear the familiar rumble of another opportunistic Tory bandwagon rolling? DD playing the politics of envy eh? How times change...<BR/><BR/>Btw 'some' in this case equals only about forty according to Anatole Kaletsky -Hughes Viewshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01192390547169979749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-84756659512336125592007-06-23T11:55:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:55:00.000+01:00A great interview where DD hits all the right note...A great interview where DD hits all the right notes in terms of supporting Cameron and the party's agenda without seeming to be selling his soul for office.Tedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15932284926532855700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-80657862250842721792007-06-23T11:28:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:28:00.000+01:00"It's useful having William and I sitting either s..."It's useful having William and I sitting either side" Ouch!<BR/><BR/>I like DD but think he's wrong when he says he'd lose another leadership contest with Cameron by a similar margin; it would be far closer...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-47625891928451030622007-06-23T11:23:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:23:00.000+01:00Tapestry, Hague as made the statement at shadow fo...Tapestry, Hague as made the statement at shadow foreign secretary. It would be a bit odd for DD to comment all the time on issues outside his portfolio. But you can take it as read that he would agree with what Hague has said.Iain Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-8245451175869631102007-06-23T11:20:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:20:00.000+01:00Hague's made a good statement. Maybe David Davis ...Hague's made a good statement. Maybe David Davis can add his voice soon, but obviously it is Cameron that we will need to lead the opposition to Merkel's deception.Tapestryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17267094484651413428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-86494518065020878532007-06-23T11:09:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:09:00.000+01:00http://conservativehome.blogs.com/torydiary/2007/0...http://conservativehome.blogs.com/torydiary/2007/06/a-great-opportu.html<BR/><BR/>I'm wrong againTapestryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17267094484651413428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-11079176365437771282007-06-23T11:02:00.000+01:002007-06-23T11:02:00.000+01:00Hague and Davis will not reassure the 'Right' for ...Hague and Davis will not reassure the 'Right' for Cameron, if they continue not mentioning the key issue which concerns most Conservative activists.<BR/><BR/>I wonder what that might be.<BR/><BR/>Cameron spoke to the 'right' most recently over the Con-treaty - demanding a referendum for any transfer of powers. It just happens that 85% of the British people agree with him.<BR/><BR/>Hague and Davis are both a bit light on this topic. I'm not sure that left and right works any more. Can David Davis and William Hague explain their positions of Europe, in the light of the Merkel plan to deceive, now being carried out? I thought not.Tapestryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17267094484651413428noreply@blogger.com