Tuesday 20 October 2015

'Butcher' Osborne strikes again at No. 10

Arturo is in a right old spin - one minute he's packing his bags - the next he's throwing darts at photos of the 'Wrecker' and the 'Butcher'! In his sleep he mumbled: "Northern powerhouse! What Northern powerhouse?" He woke up in a real strop.

He's right, of course. 'Butcher' Osborne with his elfin-look-a-like hairdo is a veritable Vampire in disguise. Just read this snippet about him from The FT.
What is it about the north? True, Osborne represents the prosperous Cheshire seat of Tatton near Manchester — but it is only recently that he has thrown his energies into pursuing his “northern powerhouse” agenda, intended to link up cities such as Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds (electoral wastelands for the Tories) into a single economic unit, capable of becoming Britain’s second global hub alongside London. The “northern powerhouse” should be a Labour idea; instead, it is perhaps the best example of Osborne grabbing a concept and pursuing it when he can see economics, politics and personal ambition all aligning. “When that happens, he’s on to it in a flash,” says a fellow Tory MP.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/d1d65690-c2ae-11e4-a59c-00144feab7de.html

So what exactly will he be 'linking'? Factories? Furnaces? Steelworks? This is what The Mirror thought about it:
George Osborne’s Northern Poorhouse the reality as nation's steel industry hangs by a thread

That was the headline above an article written by Stephen Hayward and Dan Warburton. No 'powerhouse' but a 'poorhouse'. The article stated about Osborne and his plans:
He boasted of creating a “Northern Powerhouse” and transforming the lives of millions of workers.

But Chancellor Osborne’s plans are in tatters .

In a stinging attack, union leaders, politicians and experts tell the Sunday Mirror how his strategy for boosting economic growth in northern cities has fallen into chaos.

It comes as Indian firm Tata Steel is preparing to announce 1,200 job losses in Scunthorpe, Lincs, and two Scottish sites.

Another 2,200 workers have already been made ­redundant after the Thai-owned SSI plant in Redcar, T­eesside, shut down.

TUC boss Frances O’Grady said: “The North has already paid a huge price in cuts and ­under-investment – and there’s more to come.”

If this was 'Butcher' Osborne's idea of a powerhouse, one has to wonder what future there is for the whole of the UK!

In the same article, Hayward and Warburton quoted Roy Rickhuss, head of the steel union ­Community:
“If David Cameron is serious about building a Northern Powerhouse then let him prove it by taking the action we need to protect steel jobs in Scunthorpe and across the whole region.

“The Government has the tools they need to help, now they just need to find the political will.

“Whether it’s car factories, the construction sector or the defence industry, the whole economy needs a successful steel industry.

“One thing is for sure, without steel, a Northern Powerhouse cannot be built.”
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/george-osbornes-northern-poorhouse-reality-6654242

Isn't it strange that a large proportion of 'Butcher' Osborne's photo opportunities show him down among the workers, wearing a hard hat. It may be white - it may be yellow but it sure is hard! He likes to show himself as marching along with the 'makers' of this country. Remember his 2011 Budget Speech when he talked about 'the march of the makers'? Nice little sound bite! Appeals to the patriots! So - where are these 'makers'? Let's see what the media think has happened:
'March of the Makers' goes into reverse

In July, that was the headline above the Birmingham Post opinion article written by Professor David Bailey who
... asks what happened to the much-heralded plan to rebalance the UK economy and use manufacturing to underpin its growth Whatever happened to the 'March of the Makers' ...?

This year has so far been pretty dire for UK manufacturing. The sector's growth was only a meagre 0.1 per cent in the first three months of the year.

And when the figures come in, we'll probably see that manufacturing declined in the second quarter.

I say that as manufacturing output actually fell in April and May as the strength of sterling - now at a seven-year high - began to bite. Production was down 0.6 per cent in May compared with the previous month, following a 0.3 per cent fall in April.
http://www.birminghampost.co.uk/business/business-opinion/march-makers-goes-reverse-9696685

Now, instead of donning the old hard hat, 'Butcher' Osborne has put on the smooth jacket of international diplomacy to woo the Chinese. Maybe he meant an 'Eastern powerhouse' instead of a Northern powerhouse. Whatever he meant, Carrie Gracie, the BBC's China editor wrote:
Whitehall sources tell me the so-called "Osborne Doctrine" does amount to a strategic shift on China, one in which the prime minister has let the chancellor drive the agenda and where reluctant members of the cabinet are being "dragged along".

The chancellor wants China to become the UK's second-largest trading partner by the end of the decade. He points out that while growth in China has slowed, it is still supplying about a quarter of global growth, enough to add an economy the size of the UK's over five years.

Mr Osborne insists that this is a golden moment, where the interests of the UK and China align. China's maturing economy can absorb more of the services which are British export strengths.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-34539507

So - it's the golden opportunity for the 'Osborne Doctrine', is it? And all this in the context of China dumping cheap steel onto the UK market! So cheap, in fact, that British Steel furnaces are closing with the loss of thousands of jobs. And where are the lost jobs, do I hear you ask? In the North!! Of course.

Arturo was quite sick! He coughed up at least two fur-balls! The image of 'Butcher' Osborne smiling at the Chinese made him feel quite ill. But then so did this item found, in of all places, The FT :
The slightly dishevelled figure in the tracksuit and T-shirt stoops down and carefully scoops up the dog excrement deposited on the Downing Street lawn by Lola, a diminutive bichon frise. It is shortly after 6am on a February morning. The security cameras swivel as the man and his winsome dog complete their morning constitutional, the start of a normal day for George Osborne.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/d1d65690-c2ae-11e4-a59c-00144feab7de.html

As Arturo said; "Anyone who has to shovel sh** for a bichon frise can't be right in the head! And we're trusting the nation's finances to him!!"

Me and Arturo are going to venture to a small Chinese takeaway round the corner to have a taste of the 'golden future' by sneaking a bit of chicken chow mein! Appropriate, don't you think?

Bye