Saturday 31 May 2008

Fuel taxes

Lord Turner has a point: putting a price on carbon is a crucial instrument to cut emissions. He rightly says that the emphasis should be on encouraging people to cut their fuel use, rather than easing price pressures: “There are huge opportunities for energy efficiency.”

Absolutely. One problem, however, lies in our splendid British tradition of unilateral action. Although our striking truckers earlier this week were being a little economical with the truth about relative diesel prices across the EU, it is clear that they face higher fuel costs than their continental peers. Further increasing the cost of fuel for British truckers will make it hard for them to remain competitive. Does this mean, as Lord Turner suggests, that emissions will be reduced? Not at all. In place of British truckers, who pay tax and spend their earnings in the UK, will be foreign-based drivers. There is no environmental justification for UK diesel to be taxed at 75% while in France and Germany it's taxed at 65%.

What really tickles me, though, is this comment:

“If you are worried about the impact on low-income groups of fuel prices, the response should be to intensify support for them to improve their energy efficiency, rather than say you have to give up on climate change objectives.”

So while Lord Turner can happily spend his king's ransom on private jets to exotic locations, the man on the Clapham omnibus - traditionally a Labour-voter - can stick out the next winter without heating.

Just a thought.
Lord Goring

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Thursday 29 May 2008

Knife Crime Campaign

So the Government has wasted another £3million pounds on a viral campaign to stop slap-happy puppies carrying blades. The idea: 'grisly' images of real-life wounds to shock youngsters. Imagine for a moment that you are one of these lads. You're chatting on Bebo with your pond-life mates, when one of your fish-brained friends comes across a picture of some guy with his intestines spilling out. Does he:

1. say "Yuk! that's gross!! gotta stop slicing up these muthas"; or
2. suggest you all go cut up some punk?

You can see I have no idea how these people talk. But my intuition tells me that the answer isn't number 1. You're showing "shocking" 2-D images to kids who've done the deed, sliced up some granny and filmed the whole show to prove how hard they really are.

On the other hand, you have Home Office minister Vernon Coaker saying:

"We know many young people carry a knife because they are fearful and these adverts tell powerful stories about the dangers of going down that path."

No they don't. If you're scared of getting your skin flayed by your classmates and you happen to feel safer with a butcher's cleaver up your sleave (it's a big sleave), my guess is that you're not going to see these pictures, come over all Christian and turn your other cheek for a matching gash.

Just a thought.
Lord Arthur Goring

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