Safe In their Hands

Now then, my grubby little Englanders, I want to ask you a few pertinent questions.

• Would you (with your family) get into a plane where the pilot was confident but lacked any formal training?
• Would you let a person install a gas boiler in your house when you knew that the installer only had the vaguest notion of what they were doing?
• How about putting your kids onto a school bus where the driver could recite the highway code but had never actually driven a bus before?

Well how about this then. 

Lets look at Energy Policy. You know that boring old subject about keeping the lights on, people in jobs, old folk NOT freezing to death etc. etc.

Particularly let us look at those who have (or aspire to hold) the title of "Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change",

Milliband, Huhne and Davey all studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics.

Sadly it looks like they wouldn't know a Joule from a Seivert.

I should point out there is a rumour that Huhne might now be able to change a light bulb (on a good day). They teach you a lot of new skills in prison these days.

Meanwhile the current Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Caroline Flint, has a BA in American Literature and History combined with Film Studies.

So while she probably could recite the script from the Chine Syndrome she might confuse Spinning Reserve with some sort of pool of political propaganda.

There is not a one engineer on the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee.

But there is some good news.

Luckily there is John Robertson MP. He did a technical apprenticeship for Post Office Telephones and is the sole technically qualified person on the committee. However poor old John tends to be a lone voice as the only informed advocate of nuclear power.

Seriously I'm not making this up.

One of the most urgent and life changing aspects of our society (aka Energy policy) is being decided by a bunch of over confident (dare I say arrogant) buffoons who know little or nothing about the subject they are in charge of.

God help us all.

(Hat tip to commentator "phasing" on this Telegraph Article )

Tim Yeo, Contraception and Energy Policy

It appears the Tory MP Tim Yeo has several nice little earners supplimenting his MP salary. ( See Here ) ( And Here ) He is paid considerable amounts of money for what appear to be nominal work load commitments to a number of renewable energy companies and trade bodies. Bearing in mind how self serving and morally challenged our MP's tend to be, it is unsurprising that he see's no clash of interests in also being the  Chairman of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee as well.

Dear old Tim is also an avid supporter of on-shore wind farms. Avid that is, until one is threatened to be imposed on his own turf, then all of a sudden the thing is "inappropriate". Do I detect the whiff of hypocrisy?

That is perhaps unsurprising as he was also an enthusiastic supporter of John Major's "Back to Basics" speech while also being the father of four children by three women, one of which he was married to.

But never mind. I'm not really interested in the whether Tim Yeo knows how to use a condom or not, and I am quite sure there are much worse examples of sexual proclavity within our noble leaders. But I am quite interested in exploring how technically competent he is. After all this is all about how our country will meet the technical challenges related energy supply for probably the next fifty years.

Now I know I being a little naive here, but I would have thought that someone occupying such a crucial technical position would be - well, an Engineer. Or a numerate scientist. A medic would suffice. But really, it would have to be someone who could claim several years of numerate technical competence. Someone who could see through the bullshit.

So, what qualifications for such a role has our swampie hero got? A Doctorate in Power Engineering? Maybe at least a degree in a numerate discipline. But I'm not obsessed by pieces of paper, has he alternatively got long term design experience in a technical subject?

Tim Yeo went to Cambridge. So far - so good. I know some awsomely capable engineers who went to Cambridge.

So what was it? Physics? Mechanical Engineering maybe? Sadly No. Tim Yeo, the man who is essentially in charge of guiding the technical development of our energy policy has a degree in....

History.

Yes folks, the technical direction of our national energy policy in in the hands of a self serving hypocrite with a degree in history.

God help us all.

Obama:Repay us! Brown:Mumble,Mmmm

The banking excesses of the last few years were (at the very least), aided and abetted by our great good and benevolent leaders. They fully supported the extravaganza of self congratulation and phantom profits that made up the whole sector. This enabled them to spend money like water, without regard to the future. Simultaneously they stoodby as the manufacturing base and real wealth of the nation haemorrhaged away.

If you were to point a finger at any individual for this utter and complete cock-up it can only be pointed at the mighty Emperor Brown (dis)-ably assisted by his pals. Worse than that, at the time, they thought they were financial champions. Today, even a nine year old would find their financial acumen laughable.

The one global politician who comes out of this fairly unsullied is Barack Obama. While he may not the the darling (no pun intended) of some, he, at least, wasn't responsible for this almighty self indulgent feeding frenzy of greed.

Today Obama announced that he wants some of the money back that was used to bale out the American banks. Especially now, as the bankers are back to dishing money out to themselves as if nothing has happened.

Obama is going to implement a special tax regime to make them pay back about $100 billion they owe, over a ten year period.

Howls of outrage have ensued. See some whingeing here

But really, lets turn this around. In the unlikely event of a bank helping out an individual who was in severe financial difficulties, would they not expect to be re-paid? With interest?

When was the last time you ever heard of a bank giving money away (unless it was to its own).

Now the boot is on the other foot they can bloody well pay it back.

Good for Obama.

No sign of our grace and favoured Magnifico following suit yet though. No doubt he will wait to see how Obama gets on.

If it works, then Gordo will quietly implement a copy of Obama's proposal. He will then probably claim the idea as his own. If it fails he will enforce a smile (actually, is it a mask?) and cosy back up to his mates in the banks.

There more whingeing about Obamas plan here