I have just taken part in a surreal discussion with Philip Blond on Radio 2.
He argued for the mutualisation of public services.
He never once said where the capital was coming from.
When Jeremy Vine pointed out that if the state bailed out the contractor it had never been privatised he agreed that the state would have to bail out and indeed it followed these were never privatised services.
But when I said that meant we'd simply be paying more to transfer profit payments for no risk to the private sector he said I was a Marxist (which I'm not and that was a pathetic ad hominem from him) and living in Soviet style Russia 1910 (wobbly history Philip, as wobbly as your economics).
The truth is simple: we cannot afford competition in basic services: as I pointed out that means we have to pay for ex ess wasted capacity instead of the best full capacity. The state is capable of delivering the latter - and it's a fantasy from him, and the result only of politicians who have no courage or faith in what they're doing that that's not what we've got.
Roll on the Courageous State (out September).
But in the meantime as I forecast - and as I'm right to forecast - we'll have failed hospitals, schools, social services and more. All for the sake of dogma. That's callous betrayal of the people of this country.
PS I did sort of find it amusing to be told how wonderful the market is by a minor theologian who has never run anything at all when I'm a chartered accountant who has had years of experience of it and knows just why it is nothing like his fantasy. But I chose not to say that on air.
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The only reason Philip Blond has any profile at all is because he built up an academic profile in public institutions. Even after many years in academia he doesn’t have a single authored book (as far as I can discover) to his name apart from one edited work. As you say Richard this man has no record of achievement that would allow him to pontificate about politics or the economy. Reading about lots of things is no substitute for experience and as far as I can see Blond’s experience is reading lots of things. I guess ‘doing theology’ leaves a lot of time for fantasising about market utopias. I wonder if there is anything in the Bible about the problem of the concentration of power in politics and society? You know what, there is!!! So I guess Philip Blond wasn’t even particularly interested in theology either…Yes we really need to heed the words of this man who has so recently come among us.
Somebody should point out to Mr. Blond that name-calling is no substitute for argument.
BB
Got to say that Mr Blond’s argument sounded like it hadn’t been thought through very well, a bit like the whole current Tory economic policy. It’s a dangerous period we are in at present I’m quite fearful for the future of our services if the government continues down this road. However, I would like to hear more arguments for alternatives, or is everyone who is against these reforms happy to leave things as they are??
Richard as ever your argument was sound and eloquently put, however try to get to a studio next time….
My schedule today just didn’t allow it
I was called by hem just before doing a music exam in Norfolk and slotted the interview in between then and heading for Westminster this afternoon
They now say they’d rather have me than a good line – I can live with that
Cameron slips this out in the middle of the NI fiasco. Pity for him Souther Cross just gone belly up, and will no doubt require a tax safety net for those homes which have no one willing to run them. Just remember, HMG has been following the policy which sunk SC for years – Sell off all the public buildings and rent them back.
Privatise the profit, socialise the debt – 30 years of Thatcherism.