Now we're going back to the 1970s

[Protagoras]

But enough of the theory. What did Thatcher destroy?

Energy strategy. We went from a centrally planned to a pseudo-market led approach.

Then we let people build generation practically anywhere. Now we blame the 'grid' for lack of transmission capacity.

And with renewables subsidies, constrained-off payments and gas mostly setting price we have ridiculously priced electricity.

So she got some things wrong. No one has tried to fix them in the past 30 years though.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Even if something was nailed down the bitch still sold it.

Her fall from grace was wonderful: made my day.

[Snooky]

London can teach us the lesson.
London got Sadiq Khan who made a massive mess of London.

So terrible that Londoners re-elected him twice, and he's a favourite for a fourth term.

The echo chamber in this place is sometimes a little concerning.

[Snooky]

What did Thatcher destroy?

She flogged off a huge number of valuable national assets to enrich her supporters, for a very short term gain to Treasury funds. Privatised utilities have been an utter disaster in many cases, and the dearth of social housing has directly led to the crazy costs of renting so many people face today. The public services she didn't or couldn't sell were starved of funding. We gave up a potentially lucrative oil and gas future for peanuts.

She deliberately decimated some of our industries which, while often not profitable, were the glue that held many communities together; their demise led to unemployment, crime, poorer health and many social issues which have provably cost the nation more than the subsidies they needed to stay afloat.

Under her watch and with her approval we slid rapidly into a "greed is good" mentality where, as long as you were doing well, screw everyone else. A time when personal wealth and status became far more important than our society. "There's no such thing as society". We have never recovered from that.

I could list so much more of the crappy politics she and Reagan espoused, and their adverse long-term effects, but you probably stopped reading after the first sentence anyway.

[malvolio]

She flogged off a huge number of valuable national assets to enrich her supporters, for a very short term gain to Treasury funds. Privatised utilities have been an utter disaster in many cases, and the dearth of social housing has directly led to the crazy costs of renting so many people face today. The public services she didn't or couldn't sell were starved of funding. We gave up a potentially lucrative oil and gas future for peanuts.

She deliberately decimated some of our industries which, while often not profitable, were the glue that held many communities together; their demise led to unemployment, crime, poorer health and many social issues which have provably cost the nation more than the subsidies they needed to stay afloat.

Under her watch and with her approval we slid rapidly into a "greed is good" mentality where, as long as you were doing well, screw everyone else. A time when personal wealth and status became far more important than our society. "There's no such thing as society". We have never recovered from that.

I could list so much more of the crappy politics she and Reagan espoused, and their adverse long-term effects, but you probably stopped reading after the first sentence anyway.

I didn't, but it's nice to see your alternative view...

So what you are saying is that the capitalism that created Britain is wrong and we should have stuck with feudalism?

The failures of the various denationalised industries and services are down to a lack of effective enforceable delivery targets, and that blame can be laid on the several weak and self-serving governments that followed Thatcher.

[NotAllThere]

So what you are saying is that the capitalism that created Britain is wrong and we should have stuck with feudalism?

We should never have abolished absolute monarchy. That King John has a lot to answer for.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I didn't, but it's nice to see your alternative view...

So what you are saying is that the capitalism that created Britain is wrong and we should have stuck with feudalism?

A bit hyperbolic, and not what anyone is saying just because some of us didn't love Thatcher.

The failures of the various denationalised industries and services are down to a lack of effective enforceable delivery targets, and that blame can be laid on the several weak and self-serving governments that followed Thatcher.

Most developed nations have ended up as largely capitalist mixed economies. Not many Countries privatised State Monopolies for purely ideological reasons. Thatcher did create a lot of QUANGOs that were supposed to enforce standards for the private monopolies, of course their failings can't be entirely laid at her door as they continued after she was out of office - but I'd argue they were a bad idea in the first place. A certain amount of stuff is better run by society as a whole because the profit motive creates perverse incentives that work in the direct contravention of the interests of consumers. Water is a great example.

[ladymuck]

So terrible that Londoners re-elected him twice, and he's a favourite for a fourth term.

The echo chamber in this place is sometimes a little concerning.

I never voted for him. Sadly, in the last round, Londoners were given the choice between him and a load of far-right nut jobs. I voted Count Binface.

[milanbenes]

the biggest error or short coming in right to by, is not building a new home for every one sold

1 out 1 in

would solve a lot of problems

in fact the right-2-buyers would be paying for the new builds

for the people who know need homes

who can then become right-2-buyers

and pay for the next homes

which could then be sold to pay for the next ones

to infinity



Milan.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I never voted for him. Sadly, in the last round, Londoners were given the choice between him and a load of far-right nut jobs. I voted Count Binface.

There were 20 candidates (including Khan and Binface) - are you saying the other 18 were all "far-right nut jobs"? I suspect at the very least, the Tories and Lib Dems might quibble with that description.