UK Infrastructure - Admission of failure by Omission

So with the Autumn statement now being heavily trailed in the media by the Government, we can see the shape of the current Government thinking. Little in the way of tax incentives to people and instead some more promises of tax cuts to business; and today a huge fanfare about increasing infrastructure spend.

Now call me a cynic, but Government are elected for 5 years so any claims about billions in spending 17 years from now are to be taken with a large pinch of salt. However, a real failure of the UK political system is the inability of Labour and Tories to agree on long-term infrastructure policies on the basis that they should also oppose one another.

Even today the marks can be seen in these announcements. What is missing is more telling than what is discussed. For example there is a small upgrade to Gatwick Airport railway station, but no runway for Gatwick; in fact no extra airport capacity at all.

Even on the railways there is limited support in the sens that HS2 will suck investment to it. Then there are a myriad of promises surrounding the single new nuclear plant - where are the other 6 we need?

Where are the gas fired plants we need to balance the base load against unreliable offshore wind and the closing of old coal stations?

Where are the new motorways we need to connect the fast growing population of the Country?

The Government has managed to persuade Insurance companies to put up £25 billion and this is to be welcomed. But the really big decisions, HS2 apart, are still being ducked, as they have political impacts which are unfavourable and will be exploited by the opposition. It's a great shame they can't ever seem to work together for the good of the Country.

C@W in Ireland

So last year I sent a missive from Singapore, noting how well the local branch of C@W was doing on the back of the ads we run there.  And, yes, this occasioned some banter in the comments ... water off a duck's back, business is business.

Well, I am pleased to tell you that my latest inspection reveals our Irish affiliate is also thriving in these hard times, and that advertising is holding up there, too.

 Though what exactly it is for, is another matter altogether ...

ND

The curse of something must be done

or in this case HS2 - a new railway to Birmingham.

I mean, really, Birmingham. I have been to Birmingham, its um, OK. It is not the heart of British Industry and commerce that it once was. It is a City of less than a million people. In China, it would barely make the map and would not be even in the top 100.

So to spend at least £16 billion (and possibly double given the way these projects go) to reduce the journey time by 30% in 13 years time - seems, well, over-egging it a bit. This is not the stuff of Brunel's dreams is it?

Sure one day oil is going to be dreadfully expensive and flights costly and we will be glad of a rail network  - but this is perhaps over a decade away - especially if we use shale resources properly. It maybe a century.

So where is our new airport to meet the needs of our growing export business and world interconnectedness. Where is the remedy to London's failed mass transit infrastructure? Heaven forfend that 90% of UK journeys are by road (and that road tax / fuel duty pays the transport budget several times over) that we may see some new motorways or A roads upgraded to meet actual demand.

None of this really matters, something must be done about UK infrastructure investment and this is a something. Better still it is not a controversial nuclear plant - the people it upsets are Tories in the shires whom the Government can afford to upset given their political position - in fact it probably even helps.All of the above investment proposals are either politically challenging or lack in vote winning appeal. Birmingham is, of course, full of marginal constituencies.

Here is a big project, lasting forever (i.e. more than one term in Government) that will employ the Polish migrants so short of work today. So let's do it.