Tag Archives: UK

August 28, 2013 · 00:09

I miss the cold war

It is a line from a movie, yet at times that is how I feel. Most of the elderly who served will likely feel the same. We had a common goal and a common enemy. We ‘feared’ the values that would be given to us by the Iron curtain. Then something happened, they seemingly went bankrupt. Not unlike India, Russia now has the fastest growing numbers of billionaires on the planet. Yet, the numbers do not add up. This relates to what happens today in Syria. No matter how the events in Syria began and I will admit, I know not when that premise there changed, but it had. The roughest of estimations would be that somewhere in September 2012 the game changed. I believe that it was before the UNHRC statements of September 28th (now exactly a year ago). Those against were China, Cuba and Russia. China seems to have been ‘sincere’ in their deliberations and Cuba did what Russia asked. Russia changed the game. In their minds this would be the beginning of a new cold war. There is one massive difference. This time we would likely lose!

The factors involved are a nothing less than an incompetent American administration. As the banking issues had hit them, their inability to solve or reacquire anything, with in addition two very expansive and expensive wars in Afghanistan and Iraq had depleted the American coffers to less than nothing. When two parties are not in agreement, then the winner hits when the other party is down for the count, words spoken before by several parties and ignored or silenced by greed driven parties. Edward Snowden was not part of this in any way. I think this is the one lucky break both Russia and China never expected to see. You see, there are ripples connected to that. If the NSA has breaches to this extent, there would be a chance or even nothing less than likely that GCHQ (UK) might have similar flaws. Unlike their building, the donut, which has a hole in the middle, they will have a hole somewhere. If it does exist, then it is in the technology and not likely in the people they have. I reckon that I count myself to that cause where we protect and preserve the monarchy, even if I am just an Australian. The fact is that if technology was unable to stop Snowden, then it is not unrealistic that GCHQ has similar flaws, especially as GCHQ is given a mere fraction of resources the NSA gets on an annual base.

There is supporting evidence to these thoughts. The ALLEGED hacking of the UN building might count. If the alphabet groups were aware that there are issues with any upcoming cold war, then knowing as much as possible is essential. This could have driven the events if the hacking of the UN was a fact. Why the video conferencing? It was not about getting the voice feed, which is not too hard; it is however to find and identify people through the video link(s). If there is a new cold war brewing, knowing where certain people are is an actual must. If we can believe ‘Der Spiegel’ then staff members from the NSA had been tracking their wives. Leave it to some idiotic American to use these resources to keep an eye on his wife instead of giving her the orgasms she was entitled to (at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/30/nsa-spying-europe-claims-us-eu-trade)

Yet back to the Syrian chess pieces. Assad, or as he should be known now as ‘Pinocchio 2’ has been doing the things that Russia wanted them to do. Slowly moving him and whatever reasoning he has (whether valid or not), to instil the safety and security of his current position. Yet that part is actually slowly but surely being forfeit. Russia needs the UK, France and US to intervene. Consider that this intervention will drain troops and costs in excess of 200 billion Euros. After that Pinocchio’s strings can be cut, his role will have been played out. This will not be a quick step and a likely aftermath of no less than 2 additional years. That is all they need to stop economic restoration. It is all they need to ensure an upcoming advantage.

Russia has been handed a massive advantage by several parties involved.

Are we considering suspending humanitarian laws in the UK? In the UK it is Home secretary Theresa May who stated “Britain should consider leaving the European Convention on Human Rights because it interferes with the government’s ability to fight crime and control immigration, Home Secretary Theresa May said on Saturday (9 March)”. Leaving the European Convention on Human Rights does not mean that the UK is abolishing Human rights all together, yet, taking into account the dwindling support for legal aid is a clear second part of this. For Russia it will be the flag they raise to state that Western values are flawed, to be suspended when times get hard. They would be correct. Instead of stopping greed driving consumption and acquisition we enabled it for too long.

Back to Syria!

At present the game has changed. We see carefully phrased denials, the game to postpone. In addition we saw an interview with an Assad loyalist, claiming he was a victim of a chemical attack by the Syrian opposition. Did anyone notice that the video’s from the Syrian opposition were people hardly able to speak and hardly able to breath. The Syrian soldier was in a hospital looking no worse than someone going there for a broken toe. Interesting that this was not that illuminated by the journalist. The fact that one soldier seemed to be in the crossfire whilst dozens of dead civilians, children and Syrian opposing troops on the other side. Let’s call a spade a spade shall we?

The conference by Walid al-Muallim did not help the Syrian cause either. They went one step further by now implying that Israel is now a likely strike point. Now let’s disseminate their ‘statements’. From Fox news we see the statement by Mohammed Javad Zarif: “We are in close contact with the Syrian government and they have reassured us that they had never used such inhumane weapons and would have the fullest cooperation with the U.N. experts to visit the areas affected.” (At http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/08/25/us-naval-forces-move-closer-to-syria-hagel-suggests)

Really? Then why were these investigators stopped for a week? Their promises are hollow for the simple reason that whatever attack the opposition made would be a danger to any chance the opposition has, whatever attack Syria made on these investigators would condemn them. Not reporting anything is in Syria’s interest. The simple truth at present is that both Israel and Jordan prefer to stay out of the way as much as possible. Israel needs to wait whether Hamas or Hezbollah will start attacking Israel first. If Israel is part of the attack to Syria, then both Hamas and Hezbollah will launch strikes on Israel, this is why Walid al-Muallim adds Israel to the mix. In addition, Russians next puppet is about to enter the field. In an age where we thought that the tension between Iran and the west would lighten up, the Iranian news reported the following: “The Iranian ambassador to Russia says the Islamic Republic can play a ‘constructive role’ in the Geneva 2 conference which is expected to be held on the Syrian crisis.” Of course Russians motive is simple, whatever happens they win. If Iran fails, then the tension on Iran versus West lights up again, if they win America looks weak and in addition Russia makes another billion for loads of concrete for a ‘power plant’ (and then some more including a dozen 7 figure bonuses). In addition, these talks will show initial failings and weaknesses for the Americans as the west will not interfere with Syria and the ‘red line’ Syria crossed.

These are the facts behind certain strategies and in addition most of them are public. The parts that are not that visible were those that were brought to light by Wikileaks. We could argue that those illustrated involving Brown Lloyd James were to be investigated, yet, is that an actual truth? If we consider their mission statement which is “BLJ crafts high-impact communication strategies that move diplomacy forward.” then it might not be the pure smell of Lavender, yet, we should not forget that Assad is still the sovereign ruler of Syria, if BLJ keeps diplomatic channels open, then that is not a bad thing.

How are these events linked?

That is part of the issue. Even though the UK wants and could enter the field to intercept Syrian chemical war abilities, PM David Cameron will go via Parliament (even though not officially needed). When the vote is up, consider who will oppose this and how many of them have had dealings with BLJ. It might make for an interesting picture. The other part where BLJ becomes visible through one of its executives (Mike Holtzman) was an article that goes back to 2003. In that part it was the quote “A solid majority of Americans-over fifty percent-believe the U.S. should lift restrictions on Americans’ freedom to travel to Cuba, allow U.S.-produced food and medical products to be sold to Cuba unimpeded and take steps toward normalization with Cuba as a matter of America’s national interest.” At present the Cuban travel embargo still exists. There are more connections that Mike Holtzman had, and many of them in his work serving both Syria and Cuba, so where does he truly stand? Let me be clear! This man broke no laws, is doing his work and chose his customers as he is allowed to choose them (even though many would call the choice questionable). Yet, in the light of Russia-Cuba and the issues at play we must wonder whether a second cold war has started, or is about to start. That evidence can be seen in several places, many of them public newspapers. The issues that the US has in regards Edward Snowden as well as the issues many nations have with Russian’s anti-Gay approach do not help to diminish tensions (its not like the Russians actually cared about them tensions).

They (the Russians) do play this type of chess game well. As they stated “In connection with this, the Russian side calls for [Washington to] refrain from the threat of force on Damascus, to not fall for provocations and to try to help create normal conditions to give the UN chemical experts’ mission, which is already in the country, the possibility of conducting a thorough, objective and impartial investigation” the foreign ministry statement said (as published by the Guardian), we see that the delays from snipers and administration, the only outcome is that the UN inspectors will now be unlikely to uncover evidence to point to a clear transgressor. No matter who wins that part, no action will only show weakness on the American shores, which serves Moscow, Havana and Beijing just fine.

So is there an actual second cold war? I honestly do not know, but plenty of events are there to turn my ‘Do not know‘ into a very strong ‘likely‘.

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August 16, 2013 · 13:16

Political ego and their costs

I recently wrote a little about the Dutch Fyra train, a high speed billion Euro train that is still not functioning. There have been several pointing fingers, yet why is this such a complicated project?

You see, a project is basically a simple thing. It has a goal, it has requirements, it has noted milestones and if the project manager is a clear communicator, then that person has the easiest and best paid job of them all. That is the theory!

The reality is less clear. It becomes an increasing mess, when those in charge make oral promises and not follow them up, or even better, in some commercial corporations where sales executives make so many changes on the fly to wear the project manager down, so when things are asked, those sales executives respond with “where is it written down?” and the problem of it all remains in the clear. This latter example happens in several situations where the Sales department and not the project manager is in charge.

With Fyra there is a third tier, namely the politicians. The NOS reported last night that this group had been putting pressure on the Fyra project. Even though the testers reported massive amounts of events, flaws and even clear malfunctions and design flaws, they seem to have been ignored. These issues add up to a system that should not have been implemented. The political pressure that required ‘high speed train revenues’, in the light of spending was getting louder and louder. So over the heads of those people in charge stating that there are issues, the Fyra was implemented against the technical proven flaws.

I discussed the fyra in a previous blog called ‘Multi billion train ride’ on June 5th.

Now they have a situation where a train was accepted in this light of events and in that same light must be paid for. The Dutch rail roads do not want to pay and AnselmoBreda is telling them to pay. Even though it was never completely a fault by AnselmoBreda, there are more and more clear indicators that political interfering by approving something that was not ready seems to have been a clear interfering factor. So apart from the 7 billion in rails, they are looking at an additional half a billion for 19 additional trains that do not do what they are supposed to do. Basically, they would end up being regarded as VERY expensive non hi-speed trains. Then there are the annual interest and maintenance costs on 7 billion of rails, the list grows on and on. Consider these costs whilst the government needs to push 6 billion in cut-backs. Are you having fun yet?

So basically, a multi-billion Euro push, by politicians, who were guided by ego and a misguided sense of profit, the second factor was never a reality to begin with. If we consider this and see that under current conditions the Hi-Speed trains are not an option, then an additional 7 billion has been wasted. I personally wonder how many people will become non-accountable and in addition will be reason for a massive bill to the tax payer. Considering these events, the upcoming parliamentary committee might take a lot longer than many bargained for, which additional costs to boot.

So why are incompetent politicians getting in the way of sound business?

This claim is in this instance not about the present group, it was the previous groups interfering with this process, yet overall when we read some of the current statements on capping banking incomes, and then when it is decided that the new head of Robeco must get 30 million a year, nothing can apparently be done. Ah, the joy of claim versus reality!

There are several indicators that the UK’s version the HS2 is on similar tracks. As reported by the Guardian in July, there have been voices that the high speed North-South line, which will cost to the scope of 40 billion Euro is going in a not dissimilar direction. Even though the UK government is claiming a 20% nett return, the additional factors might have not been weighted enough. Consider that the current issues involving price hikes for train rides are growing between 4% and 9%, the group that can no longer afford these kinds of prices is growing fast. More important, these price hikes are now pushing people away from rail and towards buses for the sheer cost of it. This is an entirely opposing reaction to what the UK government needs it to be.

Those in favour of HS2 claim in the quote “This is a massively misleading oversimplification because it doesn’t take into account the significant financial returns that will be generated from an investment in high-speed rail.”

Even though it is given that unlike the Netherlands, the distances in the UK make for a much more viable need, we should not negate that this is about connecting London to Birmingham. I agree that it is too simple to state that this line is for all those Ashton Villa fans in London, yet the same flaw is shown, when we consider the actual issue. If the distance is 119 miles, then a normal train at 125Mph does it in just under an hour, then why add 40 billion to install a train doing 155 Mph? Getting there 10-15 minutes faster does not warrant such expenses, more important, considering the economic charges, the group willing to pay such an extra amount to get so little extra time would be dwindling a lot faster than some might think, which beckons the question “What significant financial returns?” it is not until the train goes beyond 200Mph that this all becomes a more interesting issue, which means a 20-25 minute saving on that part alone. Here I agree that some (not all) will consider it. The question becomes how much extra will people have to pay until the 50 billion returns is begotten? In my mind that requires a commuting population a lot higher then it seems to have, or the tickets will become extremely pricey to say the least. In my mind, the wisdom is in the middle, it takes a massive amount of traveller, all paying top pound a day. Considering that the economy is nowhere near that strong in the UK until past 2016, the costs involved might be way too high. This all in the end gives weight to the statement made by the Institute of Economic Affairs calling it a “political vanity project“.

So which cheques are underwritten by a political ego and can people afford the consequences of such amounts?

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July 30, 2013 · 14:21

A call centre heart attack

The news has been visible and intense. For the last month the news, to some extent internationally is growing stronger and stronger into the crashed and clashed NHS. The National Health Service is as seems to be described, as a system that has buckled. It is an infrastructure that can no longer deal with the population size of the UK, where more people and less money are two direct causes of collapse to a system that cannot sustain itself.

In this regard I will only look at the 111 helpline. I am not an MD or a member of the Medici family; I do however have the knowledge of call centres and technology. So, I will go with my strengths.

If you want to read some additional material (quality information), then take a look at http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/jul/29/nhs-direct-pullout-111-helpline, where most information is available. There was additional information on TV; however as Channel 4 chose not to transmit their service to Sydney, I cannot tell the content of that special.

When we look at another Guardian article we read “Channel 4’s Dispatches programme, NHS Undercover, found the non-emergency 111 system had staff shortages, long waits for callers, and in some cases ambulances were being called out unnecessarily.”

The second quoted from the initial mentioned article is “NHS Direct had worked on the assumption that it would cost on average £13 per call to cover salaries and other expenses for employees, but then found the actual payment it was receiving for its services was closer to £8, leaving it far short.”

The last quote comes from the NHS site itself (at http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/Emergencyandurgentcareservices/Pages/NHS-111.aspx)

You should use the NHS 111 service if you urgently need medical help or advice but it’s not a life-threatening situation.
Call 111 if:
you need medical help fast but it’s not a 999 emergency
you think you need to go to A&E or need another NHS urgent care service
you don’t know who to call or you don’t have a GP to call
you need health information or reassurance about what to do next
For less urgent health needs, contact your GP or local pharmacist in the usual way.

When we look at this in a clinical way, then we should look at this with the cold IT heart we need to have when running a call centre.

1. Staff shortages.
This is plain and simple a management issue. How many calls were expected, how many came, what staff is available and what needs to be added. This in the best of terms is nothing less than a mere exercise in Excel. Even if there was a shortage, then we see there are two sides. On one side we need more people which mean there is a budget part; on the other side we see the expectation of quicker times, again all part of a budget.

2. Long waiting time.
When you go to the hospital, when you are NOT in a life threatening situation, then how long until you receive medical assistance? Would more staff solve this (would that actually solve it)?

There is a Dutch expression which boils down to mopping the floor next to a running tap. Basically it means that the floor will never get dry. That seems to apply to the situation people face with the 111 helpline.

In addition, this quote “its reporters found many patients were left waiting for longer than the 10-minute target for a call-back from a clinician”. Is that truly a bad thing? Let us not forget that this line was not for REAL emergencies. I have been to a hospital after a heart attack, and even though I got excellent care and they saved my life, the doctor was more than 10 minutes away. It happens! I am not the only one in need, and the hospital has excellent nurses. I wonder whether some expectations, as set for the 111 helpline, really are realistic.

3. Time and money.
When looking at the second quote earlier, we see that between £13 and £8, there is a definite discrepancy. When you get the needed and actual target wrong by 40%, management either did not do their homework, or they have not ample dealt with all the elements in play.

One of the clear signs as was mentioned by Sky News is that calls took much longer. When we consider call centre etiquette, not unlike what physicians do, we need to get to the crux of things. We need structured questions and we need to keep control of the conversation. This all leads to reduced times. Letting the patient (or customer) ‘waffle on’ is just a waste of time for all parties. So it boiled down to asking the right open and then closed questions to get the show on the high speed road. Here there is a slight problem. Nurses (Doctors too) rely on what they see and what they smell, these factors are now lost to them. This means that any assessment will take longer then they think, yet call centre protocol approach would limit these losses to some extent. This is a skill that nurses might not have. They can get trained in this and over time they will get good at it, but are they given the time needed? In the end this could also reduce the amount of ambulances getting called out unnecessarily.

The last part in this matter comes from the 111 site itself. “You don’t know who to call or you don’t have a GP to call” & “you need health information or reassurance about what to do next“.

Are those truly the right expressions? In that regard the 17 year old girl dealing with the statements to tell her dad “I had sex” and “you’re going to be a grandfather“. They fit the description, yet, let us be fair whether this is an emergency? (To the girl it really is!)

The generic description gives way that all in need of more than a band aid might call. This even includes mental health issues. Is that what the 111 number is for? If so, was the budget aim correct? These are all raised issues that I could have told them before the service launched. So the question becomes were they raised at all? Perhaps they were which takes us right back to the issue of 40% budget offset. What was missed?

In addition the following quote gives way to another question in the Guardian article “was replaced by a new system in which private providers and NHS Direct bid against each other to win regional contracts“. Really? So the cheapest won? Perhaps the indication is there on how the 40% difference of income is set. How is that a solution? I get the idea behind it. The NHS must find a cheaper solution to get part of their pressure removed and as such the solution of a call-centre makes sense. However, as the human element will remain in the system, we see the need that the problem could be managerial not systematic. In addition, we need to realise that coaching the health care teams is a necessity that usually takes 20% longer than most expect. That is not bad expectations, but when those in their field move to other mediums, they need to reset the scope of their skills. (Like the loss of information by not being face to face with the patient in person). That is just a reality.

This all is visible before additional factors are added. If you think work in a hospital is intense, wait until these people get to the patients who will scream into a phone because they feel that the connection is too un personal. It will happen. Take a person under pressure and a situation where that person cannot vent, then your goose is cooked. This will result in burnouts and spiking stress levels. Were these factors included in the costs of this project? If not, then you will see further escalations of costs and shortages.

The Chief Operations Officer Dame Barbara Hakin has her work cut out for her. I reckon that this is a system that could work. I personally belief that it has a future, yet, a system that is spread over a large area, with 45-50 contractors involved means that there are additional issues to content with. Is it true that this is just about taking over and restoring confidence (as Sky News reported)? I think it needs to be about communicating realistic goals (not the golden cost reduction some politicians claimed it might be) and attending to these needs and fighting towards those goals.

It is also about looking at all of the contractors and aligning views, requirements and systems. There is for example the NHS phone App. (or website), which could help a person in determining where they need to go to, or who to call. It could be that they need to call 111, yet these few seconds of going through that path, if that is an option, might even reduce pressure to the 111 service for up to 10%. That would be a big relief for both patient and service!

 

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July 21, 2013 · 23:12

The law to hunt them down

Both Sky News and the Guardian come this Sunday with stories on how Prime Minister David Cameron is calling on web companies to block certain sexual child abuse searches.

That sounds nice in theory and I am all for hunting down these groups. Yet, that request is at least 10 years late and in all honesty, I reckon it is a massive waste of time and resources. How long until these perverts come up with ‘other’ search terms? We would even be allowing for some to get away scot free as they searched for “yummier candy” or whatever other code they would be using. The Judge would have to let these people go as they were truly looking for a place to dunk their bagels in jelly?

As stated, I am all for hunting these people down. Yet perhaps other means should be (should have been is a lot better) employed. Google had been so innovative in avoiding corporate taxation, are they not aiding the police (not just in the UK) hunting down these people? They have the hardware, the software, the expertise and more options on their shelves. In addition the PM should actually stop that gap which allows Google to only pay 0.0025% in taxation (but that is a story for another time).

No matter how quick we stop this gap of non-taxation. Google has in my view and strong belief a moral duty to train the police and other units in search and track knowledge (perhaps they are). They have no issues in teaching/aiding bosses to track their employees. Yet, hunting down criminals is not in their scope? (At http://business.time.com/2012/06/27/google-maps-now-helping-your-boss-track-your-every-move/). It was stated in the article that “the cost to workplace privacy would be serious“. Is that true? If you get paid by the hour, should you not be working? In the office, one is supposed to sit at their desk. There are always reasons why we need to go somewhere, yet we should be at our desks for a certain time. So it is easy and perfectly OK to track employees and we cannot track criminals? I get the issue that there might be some level of privacy in play for an employee (for example, his lunch break is his and his alone), but finding those hurting children are allowed protection so that they can hurt children? Such methods could aid the authorities in actually getting some protection to the children that needed it for a long time.

If we relate the options to track these child abusers to the boss tracking actions, we definitely have the technology to find these people, so what Is stopping us?

In addition, the legal side is also in play. If we consider the “Protection of Children Act 1978”

If we consider: “Section 1 (c) to have in his possession such indecent photographs [or pseudo-photographs], with a view to their being distributed or transferred digitally or shown by himself or others; or”

By adding three words we now let the issue no longer fall into the issue where the responsibility was, we now give pressure on the ISP to report this immediately. If not, they become part of the chain. Now, if we look at the defamation act, then we know there are issues, especially when we consider operators of content.

In Australia the Defamation Act 2005 (NSW) states:

32 Defence of innocent dissemination
(1) It is a defence to the publication of defamatory matter if the defendant proves that:
(a) the defendant published the matter merely in the capacity, or as an employee or agent, of a subordinate distributor, or a facilitator [or ISP] and
(b) the defendant neither knew, nor ought reasonably to have known, that the matter was defamatory, and
(c) the defendant’s lack of knowledge was not due to any negligence on the part of the defendant.

Here I added 5 words (those in bold), which could give additional levels of options to the claimants. It is nice to give certain services out for free, yet in that case, the facilitators will need to adjust their ‘terms of service’ to protect themselves and give aid in finding those using their services to further certain criminal goals. The reason to mention this is because when we look at the UK “Defamation Act 2013“, as narrated by Forbes we see the following (please read Forbes article as linked below).

The next part was in progress, when I detected this Forbes article (who had pretty much done what I was trying, at http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericgoldman/2013/05/09/uks-new-defamation-law-may-accelerate-the-death-of-anonymous-user-generated-content-internationally/)

It seems that the known issues of the ISP had been avoided here as well (an issue that had been in play for at least 8 years). There is a valid defence that  an ISP cannot monitor the massive flow of content, which is indeed a valid defence in my book, yet the cooperation required by the police to do their jobs is too often too slow or at times likely even completely lacking.

When we add ISP in the Australian case, then their lack of negligence would overturn their defence in court. So when we consider 32.1.d, then they will need to get active, creative and corrective really fast.

This translates to the UK defamation act by changing “5 Operators and/or facilitators of websites and/or virtual locations“; this would change the game immediately. Of course, prosecuting an ISP is not productive in the end, yet this part will give them the ‘negligence‘ label and as such, serious headway might be made in hunting down these child abusing criminals as the ISP is now seriously motivated to aid the police and find these criminals. The change would go further than those seeking materials. It would also give way to look at providers and mapping out these people far beyond the UK national borders. So as the map, with names, locations and acts will visibly grow, we might actually get the information the police needs.

I personally believe that law changes will get us a lot further then just blocking a search term.

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June 28, 2013 · 13:02

Exploitation fears for tax-payers

The Dutch NOS reported another go with banks in the view of business. Bernhard Wientjes has been voicing the opinion that some of the banks (ABN/AMRO and SNS Reaal) should be sold. It was brought in the air of ‘when you have no more money you start selling the silver cutlery’ would be the next step. As the Dutch government needs to cut 6 billion, the cutting spree could be a lot less. Well, in this matter I personally stand with Finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem who is not that eager to do that. There is logic for not doing this, as this relief would be for one year only and after that the cuttings would still need to be found next year. I am worried that certain business men are now in a state to strong hand certain political decisions. I leave it up to the reader whether those decisions are purely for the need of greed.

If business is linked to greed (often called ‘enterprising solutions’) then that would clearly fit in the views of Bernhard Wientjes. As chairman of the VNO-NCW it would be an enterprising solution that is right up his alley. The VNO-NCW is a fusion of the VNO (League of Dutch Commercial Enterprises) and the NCW (Dutch Christian Business Society). Their mission is to support and further the needs of Dutch corporations both on a National and international level. In this he is doing exactly what he is expected to do.

Yet, in this light, at a point where two banks would be sold far below value and at the expense of the tax-payers, one should clearly ask and look at the possible windfall for Bernhard Wientjes and his friends should this work out in that way.

There is a clear valid question whether the Dutch Silver cutlery is currently in a safe position. The reality of 6 billion of cutbacks will start to show a strangling result, yet, this was the danger all along when previous political alliances (2006-2010) were clearly pushing the outstanding invoice forward. Now that there are no more options, the consequences are likely to be dire, and as such in his position Bernhard Wientjes is clearly trying to look forward for Dutch corporations. I see this specific step as a dangerous one and until Dutch banks are clearly on a minimum set standard nothing should change. In addition, I am all in favour at present to keep these institutions nationalised to prevent their boards to just seek additional high risk gains at anyone’s expense to meet personal commission goals, whilst ignoring local needs (mortgages and such).

Even seeing these banks as possible training steps for younger jobseekers on the dole, to give them short term jobs whilst staying on the dole, would give them additional food for job experience. The answers that some view that this is not how it is supposed to be, I would counter, with ‘what solutions do you have?’. We need to change the way we think and operate. Instead of trying to balance which pocket the money is coming from, we should accept that the money is coming from the suit the government wears and see how far we can walk with this suit. Instead of staying on principle of keeping tabs what pocket it comes from, use the principle of it comes from us anyway and focus on instilling knowledge and experience. That will strengthen the young to get a good shot in getting something better with a decent chance. If you have any doubt, then consider that the Netherlands is only one of 3 countries where youth unemployment rates are below 10%. Many of the Southern European countries are way over 40%. If the future of youth employment is about experience, then make sure that the youth are getting a running start now is going to be important down the line. If their future could be a decent job in Germany, then giving them an edge as they compete with desperate youthful jobseekers from Spain, Italy or Greece is essential. Do not think that those kids are any less. Those who graduated from Universidad Complutense de Madrid are more than top Notch. 7 of their graduates ended up with a Nobel price and graduates from there ended up with 2 dozen of other internationally acclaimed awards. So, if we are looking at future events, getting the youth ready NOW will be an essential step.

Yet, this week has even more issues involving banks. A report that is due to be released tomorrow on advised banking changes. The ‘advice’ is to change the mortgage market. In the Netherlands it is currently possible to get a 105% mortgage so that the house and the notary costs and change of owner registration can all be covered. The commission chaired by Herman Wijfels is now advocating that the mortgage cannot be any higher than 80%. This is to prevent that the debt of selling a house at loss would end up hitting the banks. It seems that the banks are all over their need for ‘securing’ for the little man (read the average consumer). Taking into account that the average house in the Netherlands is around $350,000 the question, especially in this era of lack of funds is where on earth will a person get $70,000 in savings when the Dutch taxation system makes it almost impossible to get that kind of money saved up. They also mentioned that this should not be done until the housing market is stronger and prices are on the rise. Like that will help people to get the money. It is interesting that there is no mention of the much more reliable and fair Swedish system. Perhaps the report due out tomorrow will mention it, but I have not been privy to the full report. In the Swedish system a house often has a two tiered mortgage. You have the bottom part which envisions the gross off it (let’s say 80% for argument sake) at a low base percentage. The rest goes into the top part. Now that part (in my case) was almost 2.5% interest higher, but the mortgage was 105% covered. So instead of the unaffordable savings needs, we have a slightly higher mortgage. So, even if we have to accept a slightly cheaper house, we at least can get a house and not be looking at houses, never being able to afford any of it. The question becomes on what it was about. The fact that a report leaks is no news, but that the report leaks just around the same time Bernhard Wientjes is making a play to sell banks is a rather convenient coincidence.

These events are important to consider. This is because the same issues are playing in the UK. Consider that Lloyds is in need of an extension as they are selling 631 branches. This and the issues around the Royal Bank of Scotland do have links, as the UK government needs to cut cost by a lot more than 6 billion (having a Trillion in deficit makes that an awkward necessity). So will we see the same play as some are now seeing if they can sell banking interests at no more than tuppence on the pound? There is absolutely no known plans at present (in case you got scared or overly enthusiastic), but the issues remain, and the solution as such would be there in equal measure. To allow the young unemployed to become part of the bank on internships and training places, so that we can offer a solution where those seeking jobs will have actual work experience in their CV. These measures might seem small, yet the confidence boost that the younger jobseekers gain, could be the winning factor. In addition, extra hands, helping to boost the value of these banks would mean that when sold, they will go for a much better and more realistic value then they are currently set at. All this in a combined effort to strengthen commonwealth economy and their assets, for the simple reason that the European Economic outlook remains grim at best and relying on overly confident reports of economic prospects, that get downgraded quarter after quarter is not doing anyone any good.

 

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June 26, 2013 · 11:01

Are banks now too much in control?

I mentioned some of this yesterday, some people are just too unwilling to learn and they are very willing to sell you a too pretty a picture. This is what is now starting to become clear and in a dangerous way. Again, not unlike previous events, this blog was inspired by the Dutch NOS (www.nos.nl).

Political parties are now starting to ‘panic’ and are quickly grabbing to solution wherever they can. The issue is that the Dutch economy is apparently even worse then was initially predicted by the Central Bureau of Statistics (www.CBS.nl). Their initial prediction of -0.1% is now -0.4%. Interesting fact is that I predicted something like this in my blog ‘A noun of non-profit‘ on May 15th, just over a month ago. So is this bad news management? To me it seems to be more and more the case.

Diederik Samson of the PVDA (Dutch labour party) is now trying to kick-start the economy by offering alternative sources to spend from. Well, Mr Samson, there are two issues with that idea. The first one, most people do not trust bankers and politicians, now they are seemingly joining hands many have reason to trust both of them even less. The second reason is that the unreliability of the current economy is stopping people to spend anything as long as they are in debt.

The basic issue is that there is too much uncertainty for the next two years. As such people pay their mortgage and essential bills as much as possible. The people are paying off their debts as banks cannot be trusted to play nice. This is the consequence of not containing the massive wave of simply put insane investment sprees. Perhaps some will remember how SNS Reaal needed to be nationalised?

So as the Dutch need to cut 6 billion in expenses, they now seek other way to find spending options to raise the economy and next on their list is the attempt to use pension funds to do this.

Basically, quoting Arjan Noorlander from yesterday’s NOS newscast “The people managing these funds are often investing abroad to get their dividends. This does not help the Dutch economy” He then further states “These funds should invest tens of billions by taking over mortgages from banks, so that they can offer new mortgage investments“.

How is this anywhere near a good idea? Banks, remember them? They are not to be trusted at present, or anywhere in the near future for that matter!

As we have all these bad bank mortgages out and floating, relieving banks from these burdens by losing upcoming retirement funds is more than just a bad idea. Arjan Noorlander did continue and did end with the fact that this is dangerous and retirement funds might get lost in this way, and that it might be an option if the government underwrites these loans so that they will pay the losses if those occur. To me it reads that in the end that another bill will be given to the taxpayers one way or another.

The issues of keeping the retirement funds safe was also mentioned by Alexander Pechtold (D66 = Democrats 1966), he continues by saying that first and foremost there should be clarity on how and if this should proceed.

 

You see, there are two sides to that part. In the first part the Dutch officials shot themselves in the foot for a long time by keeping housing too expensive for way too long a time. It was left to certain groups to keep the prices artificially too high. I myself viewed it as an artificial push to keep housing prices beyond acceptable as it increases the capital position of banks. Then there was the issue of preferential treatment for some places, as there were ways that the ‘right’ people got into those places. I myself experienced these events first-hand. Too many issues played and in a time when incomes were good, people got what they could and as such they are now stuck in a solid position, where moving away will cost any person a fortune. To illustrate this, my former, small, 2-bedroom apartment in Rotterdam would buy me an apartment almost twice that size in Stockholm, Sweden. So considering these facts, moving is not an option for many, which means that people are paying of their mortgage as much as possible.

The second part is that up to 2005, it was way too easy to get all kinds of credits and payment deferrals. These options all come at some percentage expense and as incomes were good, no one really cared too much. Now, to not end up in a situation where these people will have to eat their mortgage, or sell their house (making them destitute), they are now all paying off their debts as much and as fast as they can.

These two factors add to the fact that people will not spend money. Not unlike the government, too much money was taken in advance, and unlike the government, they are not getting to push it forward, so there is no spending. These factors had been known for a long time (at least 3-5 years), so when politicians are all so amazed that economic infusion plans are not working, then that amazement seems somewhat disingenuous to me. The fact that the Dutch are so about housing corporations, to be given the funds to grow is tying the cat to the bacon in more than one way.

This is not allowed to become an ‘opportunity knocks’ situation, especially when they are playing with retirement funds. If they really want to do something that adds up, then give people the option to use their retirement plan to pay of a mortgage of a new house. Those young enough will then have a building future. And it should be managed by a banking branch of those who keep those funds at present. Yet, I reckon that it will raise voices that this is not opening the economy enough. So is this about the banks, the people or the economy? I wonder how quick objections will loudly rise when banks are kept out of the equation. It would give rise to my suspicions that the banks are in more control then people realise.

Again, that risk is very real in the UK as well. Instead of keeping a decent flow of affordable housing, we see an economy in neutral whilst the hill it is up against seems to be rising more and more.

This was discussed in the Guardian, April 27th (http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/blog/2013/apr/27/pensions-system-failed-what-answer) When we look at this in regards to a failing amount of retirement savings as the predicted cost of living has been incorrect for at least a decade, likely closer to 2 decades, we now see a dangerous development. This is a market where over 40% of those approaching their elderly need will have to sell their residence to afford future care.

Suddenly ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel‘ doesn’t sound like the worst idea for people to consider.

This again brings me to the idea of solutions. It is always nice to kick a parliamentarian (a therapeutic form of soul food), but we should consider options and opportunities for solutions.

There was an idea in South Australia several years ago that was quite remarkable. To solve housing, the government gave away land on loan. So basically, you got to buy a plot for $1. The conditions were that you had to place a house on it, and the value of the land was payable when you sold the house. So basically you had a house on free land as long as you lived on it. This solved two parts. One, the housing issues fell away for some, second a house needed to be build, so that was good for jobs and economy. I always thought that was a good idea to get people into their first house. The second part is the retirement issue. Now many prefer to remain where they are. This is fair enough. Yet, consider that instead of eating your house, you are leasing it away or renting it out. Consider that live in places like Greece, Spain and even India could be more rewarding (and warmer) as you live in a place where the cost of living is a lot lower. Lower cost means a better quality of life. I am not stating that this is an option for all, but perhaps it could be an option for a decent amount, giving breathing space to create new ideas and options. Whatever people choose, I hope it is one people will be able to live with in a comfortable way.

 

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June 25, 2013 · 14:49

Repeating lack of retirement insight

We have seen many plays in the past and present, where some are so short sighted on getting their own margins set, that they seem to be in short supply of common sense. Where is this coming from?

I remember issues evolving in 1997 that politicians did not heed the words of people in the know when it comes to the issues of retirement. It was stated within the corridors of those who work there that the retirement funds were not getting enough money to build the buffers needed for that generation to enter retirement. Those words were ignored by those who could do something about that.

It was not until the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics warned of the upcoming dangers of shortages in retirement funds a year later. (Source: http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/themas/arbeid-sociale-zekerheid/publicaties/artikelen/archief/1998/1998-0129-wm1.htm ) This specific article warns the reader that the amount of people going into retirement up to 2015 will drastically increase as this will be the time frame where the baby boomers will go into retirement. Other documents gave the same warning. There was even additional warning that the group that follows was a lot smaller, as such the then current non-retiring population would not be growing the retirement funds to the degree it needs to grow. The consequence would be that the funds would grow dry really fast.

In addition, this was all before the crashes of 2004, so the reality was even grimmer then most thought it to be. That reality became truth as the retirement funds started to pay less in 2011. Whatever the reason that got voiced by those involved, in the end it was about an increasing lack of retirement buffers.  Now, today (OK, yesterday), advertisements by groups like the FNV (Dutch Union of workers) is warning people about the dangers to retirements. Why?

Political parties are now in the mindset to lower retirement payments by people. They are hoping that fewer costs mean more income into the streets. Also, as retirement payments are not taxable, lowering the tax deductibility will result in more taxation entering the coffers of government. So, there is now a clear impression that certain people in government are really willing to betray those who need retirement later on and base that risk on the ‘I need to look good now’ option.

Am I exaggerating? Is it about their view, their look? That is a fair question, yet messing around with long term pension building, not just the basic fear that people might end up with no more than 55% of their retirement funds is a dangerous act. This is not even taking into consideration dangers of additional future bank and investment failings where the buffers are currently still way too small and too much danger is placed upon funds that needs to feed a generation is just short sighted and completely unwarranted and therefor unacceptable.

What is the opposite side? Well, if we pay a little too much now, then we do get into a field where pensions will be a true safety net, especially in ages where all costs keep on rising and rising. The AOW (Government paid pensions) will remain a true safety net and could be a future foundation of safety. All that should not now or ever be endangered by unproven and assumed options for revitalising the economy. This looks like an upcoming excuse where the statistics of a better economy in 2014 (a claim that is nowhere near any level of certainty) should not be fed with long term securities. I personally see that any politician signing of on this one is to be held liable. There is the crux; they will not care as it is all about the now! Can we allow politicians to remain in office as they overspend for such a long time, not being able to balance their accounts and now are willing to endanger the next generation?

This is not just about the Dutch system. We should investigate these issues as they are likely to emerge in the UK, Canada, Australia, France, Italy and other nations. These nations are all in a state of deficit and as such, politicians in those nations would also seek a way to look good. Playing poker with the retirement funds of a next generation is an unacceptable gamble which should publicly be stated as null and void.

It is very tempting for the young, restless and party generation to not care about those issues now, but those who are not in a field where they are assured of long above average paying employment will soon thereafter learn the hard way that they are looking towards working another 15 years just to make the bare minimum.

If a politician has one clear responsibility, then it is not about getting by now, but to create safety, stability and security for the future. We are used to the short-sightedness of ‘Excel managers’ managing the needs to their next commission with a lack of long term vision, we should not allow politicians to do the same to the future of so many.

 

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June 22, 2013 · 16:57

What is an economy?

Yesterday we saw all kinds of movement in the markets. The start of this was a violent sell off in almost direct answer to a message be Ben Bernanke (Source:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/jun/20/stock-markets-violent-sell-off ). It is a name that ‘shines’ to some extent when we watch the movie ‘Inside Job’. Mr Bernanke has been involved with the Federal Reserve for over a decade and has been the chairman of the Federal Reserve since 2006. Bernanke’s message that started a whole lot was to end QE (Quantitative Easing). Is it wrong? That is the debate that many want to start, yet we are currently in a phase where this approach to bond buying must stop, the question is not just why, it is also current to ask why not sooner, or why would this have such a strong effect on global markets to this effect.

Does this event show that the US is actually getting stronger, or is the rest of Europe’s so much weaker? My initial voice goes to the second part and I will explain why. If we consider the outstanding debts then we must agree that the US remains now and for some time to come on the utter brink of bankruptcy. The total US debts are well over 120 trillion (almost 17 trillion national debt), which is so much outside of the reach of repaying for a long time to come. There is the valid question why the US should support Europe to the extent it is doing at present. Europe is so not getting a handle on their spending and many nations are showing more and more delay to getting it all under control. This is not just fuelling UKIP and the reason that the UK population is more and more intent on leaving the European Community, parties within the US are validly asking, why are we paying for all this? As the US pays the IMF and they keep on pouring money into bottomless pits like Greece, more and more are asking questions as to why this should continue.

It gets even better. If we add the sums of payments by the different parties into getting the economy going (jump starting was the label they used) , we end up with an amount well over the sum of all outstanding mortgages in US and Europe. So if we consider that amount, then consider the option of paying of the mortgage of EVERY household making less than $70K. That amount would be less than the amounts paid to get the economy started. In effect, no mortgage means that people would be spending money everywhere and the US (and also the European Community) would have an economy that is up and running.

So as Ben Bernanke stops QE and as the US is buying back the outstanding bonds the markets will not suffer, but they will reflect the poor position everyone is in.

If we see the past of Rothschild we see: “Amschel Rothschild’s (1773–1855) definition of economy saw this as financing national projects such as wars, goods and infrastructure”. Economy would be defined as a national economy as a classification for the economic activities of the citizens of a state. So our view of economy (you and me in general) sees this in relation to the citizens. As such, the US economy is seen as extremely poor as one out of six lost their house; one in ten had no job. This has now improved to one in 12 (which is really not that good yet), yet the overall considering healthcare (or lack thereof) and other topics mean that the economy is not yet in a state of health. It is only barely starting to be on a road to recovery. The Federal Reserve is considering that dropping QE would enable a stronger wave of recovery. Is that wrong? When we read about the economy in many places, and how much better the economy is doing, we feel we are being lied to, yet, is that true?

that point of view only hangs on what the definition of economy is. In a global market where we look on how corporations are doing in their markets we see a definition devoid of citizens as they only consider the consumers. I think that their definition is wrong, yet it is not incorrect. Many of us seem to look with at the same picture with wrong (different) standards and values.

If the market drops (as it did yesterday) because these sellable items are no longer there, then this is another matter. If a shop loses one item and it drops to such an extent, then we see evidence that are (or have been) living for the most of the ROI of one successful item. Today’s message on the Guardian (source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/global/2013/jun/21/global-markets-stablise-crisis-euro) only gives strength to my views. It shows on how Greece needs another 3 Billion, how can this continue?

The article shows the following quotes that are important for the next part: “EU leaders in Luxembourg are holding a day (and probably night) of talks to create rules that force losses onto large savers when banks fail.”

So like Cyprus, those who saved money for their retirement will see it dwindle? Because in Cyprus those over 100K Euro lost a bundle. After working up to 45 years, their retirement all based on joy of working hard is getting cut because no one has either the guts or the insight to actually deal with the banks and the governments behind these events?

Sweden’s Finance minister Anders Borg emphasised on the dangers of those moves. Also stated in the article by the Guardian was “A draft bill has suggests bank shareholders should suffer first, followed by bondholders and then savers. A new fund could also be set up to oversee new tighter rules.”

Now, I get the shareholders suffering side of this. When you invest in shares, you invest in risk. Yet the one part that needs an overhaul, the banks and their board of directors are still not properly dealt with. So whatever draft will be created on dealing with banks and their path of recovery is still not laid out in full. However, with the promotion of bad bank separation only gives pressure on taxation and tax payers. Who wants to live in such an environment, where what I see as unacceptable levels of risk-taking remaining undealt with. To me it seems that it is more humane to legalise drunk driving as that will only kill of a few people, the fact that banks and risk-taking financial institutions can dump these levels of risk on a population group many times the size over is just absurd.

We see all these ideas and patch jobs, yet the instigators of the harm we witnessed since 2004 keep on getting a pass by ‘the deans of industry’ to walk, talk and deal wherever they want. Especially after Cyprus, where we now see the legal proposals to force losses somewhere, seem to be less vocal on jailing the board of directors of banks when these levels of loss become visible. They apparently did not break any laws. If being drunk in traffic is no defence in court, how can irresponsible short-sightedness in financial institutions be legal? This level of high stakes poker where losses are not punished and winnings go to the individual must stop. In that same regard where the European Community (EC) is adding nation after nation, and when these places start to overspend as banks and politicians that the EC stamp is a free for all for name and fame making is short term and the outstanding debts are all dumped on the tax payers in the end. Perhaps it is no longer about saving failed banks. Perhaps any failing bank should be nationalised. The members of the board are investigated for negligence, whilst their belongings are sold at auction and they are scrapped from the banking and financial industry where they may never work again on any level of authority.
Yes, I agree this is equally an overreaction.

Yet, currently nothing seems to be effectively done. Greece remains a slice of evidence in that regard. It is nice for the Greek population to blame others (especially Germany), yet these levels of non-control into the Greek debts come from Greece. It is their own previous government being so utterly irresponsible, not to mention some of the financial institutions who were residing there. From Bloomberg this quote came: “Let’s begin with the observation that irresponsible borrowers can’t exist without irresponsible lenders“. There is logic in that statement. Can we however also mention that Goldman Sachs had given the assistance to hide the levels of Deficit in Greece? So there were more elements in play. Perhaps, when the Greek banks do go into a toxic bank solution, they should consider adding their entire Greek mortgage portfolio and add that to the bad bank. If you truly want to start an economy, taking away their fear of homelessness will go a long way. Especially when the monthly mortgage could then be spend on items that truly jump start an economy.

When nations and conglomerates are talking about the economy, then you should ask them ‘what is YOUR definition of an economy’. It is the same issue as companies hiding behind revenue. Revenue sounds nice, but the reality is profit and contribution. It is what is left after the costs are removed. You will see that many places are not in a good position and they are not getting better any day soon.

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June 20, 2013 · 12:42

RBS of the Clan Goldman Sachs?

Well today the light shines a little brighter. As I was watching Sky News, I now see a stronger and more enthusiastic run to get these bankers under some kind of rational control. Will it work? Time will tell, however there is a start, and it might not take long until a strong voice could stem the tide of greed to a small extent.

We are however nowhere near a good solution. Mr Osborne (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) is about to take a page from a legally valid solution to divide the bank into 2 parts, a good and a bad bank. Yes, Mr Osborne, that will really help to take these billions of bad debt and add them to the tax payer’s burden! Not really a solution, is it?

To add other news moments that the UK economy is out of intensive care is not just wrong; it is a bad insight close to that of the Titanic playing chicken with an iceberg. No, I stand corrected. This decision is worse. You see, the Titanic had a few survivors; this approach might leave people alive, but destitute for a very long time.

So yes, there is a chance that the Royal Bank of Scotland will join Clan Goldman Sachs.

The idea of shares, making public and so on are ideas. I am not in favour of them, but perhaps Mr Osborne does not have a choice. You know, it is unfair for me to just complain, lay blame and not have a solution. What could be done is to keep the RBS nationalised, and remain an operating bank. Do a proper bank job by giving out small loans, do banking functions for those with jobs and create jobs. Also, the money that the RBS bank makes is used to pay off the debts, the bad loans and even create tax fortunes this way. Why not?

It is not like the banks at present are doing anywhere near a decent job.

The so called stated fact that the economy is in a better shape by stating: “Nothing better signals Britain’s move from rescue to recovery than the fact that we can start to plan for our exit from Government share ownership to private ownership.” is in my view horribly wrong. The fact that the UK is not in the red at present is just fortunate (and at less than 0.5%). The fact that most of Europe is down and there is no realistic view that this will improve within 18-24 months is not realistic. I read the claims that some made over the last two years. Good news was always bad news in the end and results had to be corrected downwards every single time. To rely on that a belief that the UK is now in a stage of recovery is in my humble opinion a case of really bad judgement.

How about playing it safe? Instead of quickly selling the good bank so that irresponsible banks can continue to endanger the lives of too many, hold on to it, make it stronger and get it into a shape where it is worth a lot more than it is now.

The current ‘noise’ that bankers are being chased for criminal charges are nice claims to make, yet the true culprits did what they did, and they never broke the law. Until the law changes, they are out of reach. The small fry we do get to prosecute will get nowhere near the punishment that is due. It is best reflected by Paul Moore, former head of Risk, HBOS. “The banking crises drove 100.000.000 people into poverty“. He is correct, what was done should be criminal and those involved require insane levels of punishment. Yet, as I reflected earlier, that will not happen. Lawyer Sidney Myers seems to be in agreement (or more precisely, I am in agreement with him). Mr Myers is not just a somebody in this field. As the head of Berwin, Leighton and Paisner this man wield a formidable legal cricket bat. It would make Colin Cowdrey instantly humble. Mr Sidney Myers is listed as one of the top 500 lawyers, this in a field that has over 120.000 practising lawyers, so we are in well informed top tier company.

To get a person convicted is near impossible. Getting the group convicted must proof all guilty, neither seems to be a realistic possibility at present. So we need to see a legal overhaul that changes the game, and selling of Lloyds and the RBS before that moment is in my humble opinion not a good idea. Sir George Mathewson, former CEO of the RBS has that same view (in regards to the legal prosecuting). He did however state an interesting line. “Where the information is made clear to the board and the shareholders” this comes to collected responsibility. The interesting part is what information? To get a clue on that, we should look at a book called ‘how to lie with statistics‘ written by Darrell Huff in 1954. It is a gem, an eye opener and it actually shows today’s problems. If we react to numbers and if numbers are ‘not incorrectly’ tweaked, then how is managed risk not anything less than misrepresented risk?

The bulk of data miners will look at profitability, but profitability of whom and how?

Uniting the views of Paul Moore and Darell Huff gives us part of this problem. Separate the data miner from the board of directors and we create a Star Chamber situation that lacks accountability for the simple reason that no laws can be proven to be broken. That danger, until countered gives reason for the now nationalised banks to remain as they are. SNS Reaal in the Netherlands is in that same scope. Until legal secure measures are firmly in place, protecting the taxpayer from irresponsible risks, other banks should not be allowed to continue, especially AFTER they move part of their failures into a bad bank.

The idea that the PM David Cameron has mentioned about selling the RBS at a loss is just not an option in my view. They should continue in the setting they are now, offering financial solutions to the UK citizens at lowest base +1% could over time turn the RBS and Lloyds into banks that are no longer in the red. Other banks have no reason and right to complain. They have been making customer services nearly impossible. To get a grip on that, take a look at The Netherlands where getting a mortgage reads like a tale no less imaginary then ‘the Hobbit’. As banks have been banking on higher levels of return on investments, smaller businesses and individuals suffered. They have no issue with credit cards as they charge 11-12%, however getting a mortgage seems to be a lot harder. So as customers come to the rescue of the RBS as they switch credit cards for 6-7% which will aid the government to get RBS back on their feet and even add some coinage into the treasury’s coffers (with a 1 trillion deficit), this could be a possible good solution. Are there any banks complaining? Well, that is the way the cookie crumbles. It is time for them to face the consequences of unadulterated greed.

The issue of holding bonuses for 10 years does sound nice in theory, however, how about appellant case HQ09X04007 and HQ09X05230. A case settled in the Court of Appeal by Lord Justice Elias and Lord Justice Beatson? A case where 104 members, were due their 50 million Euro in bonuses.

In that case I found this: “Bonus awards for all front and middle office employees who received a letter in December stating their provisional award, which was subject to Dresdner Kleinwort’s financial performance targets, will be cut by 90% pro rata to the stated provisional amount.”

However their contract had this little hidden gem “It is common ground that all the claimants, including the three whose employment agreements did not contain any provision with regard to payment of a discretionary bonus, Messrs Sacre, Honeywood and Daley, had a contractual entitlement to be considered for the award of a discretionary bonus.” (Source: Case note)

How soon will that case get quoted in another court case to get a bonus freed up? Some miscommunication through contracts where no one is accountable, yet the bonus is immediately payable? Another option could be that these senior members will start playing musical chairs with friendly banks, switching each year all protecting one another stopgapping large bonuses on an annual basis (in their favour of course).

So how long until we get some level of miscommunication going on? If we accept the journal of Ronald Green from 1993 ‘Shareholders as Stakeholders: Changing Metaphors of Corporate Governance‘ and if we accept that banks and financial institutions fall in that category, then their responsibility is to profit, not to accountability, which means that their acts will focus on non-accountability to endure ruling of profitability. The latter part would be my take on the works of Milton Friedman.

There is the crux. Until serious changes are made to separate the banks, the profit in regards to  stakeholders and shareholders, whilst increasing a banks social responsibility, the cut-throat business they now do and the taxpayer currently pays for will continue.

 

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June 12, 2013 · 16:05

Has the case of UKIP been made stronger?

It seems that the EU is starting to hand out slightly less restricting measures. Commissioner Olli Rehn is removing for a short time the 3% deficit limit. This is a slippery slope to say the least. Yes, it is correct that the economy is a fact that needs to be fought. Yet all (including the UK) are spending money that they do not have. UKIP is riding on the waves of these fears, where we the taxpayers will end up footing that bill no matter what. And in the European picture the ‘we’ is simply any citizen paying tax. Governments writing checks, for which they have no money. However the difference of that small point that they can no longer cut is still amounting to billions. In the UK with a vastly over the 1 trillion pound deficit such sliding numbers will really add up. Like me, Nigel Farage saw this coming from a mile away and now he is ready to play his move to start walking towards a landslide victory.

If these driving reasons are not dealt with then both Labour and Conservatives who are currently nowhere near changing the economy are heading to a legendary defeat. There is however a comical side to this. (One should always find reason to smile) It would be the first time in history that the opposition could get crowded by both Labour and Conservatives, with day one likely becoming quite the show. How would that fall in the House of Lords? In that case Black Rod (the Usher) will have a field day! A role currently assigned to Mr David Leakey, former Lieutenant General in command of European Union Military Staff. He was awarded ‘Companion of the order of St. Michael and St. George’. Take it from me that when the members of Club Carlton and the Reform Club are on the same side of the isle, the Usher might need a little back-up to break up slight differences of opinion and he better bring a bigger Dragon then the one St. George slew to aid him.

Yet, the shortage is the issue. How to stem the tides? It is clear that spending more and more is not making it happen. I personally think that it is time to join hands together (not singing Kumbaja). As Commonwealth nations we have a duty to stand together. We have always seen the US as a brother, yet when it comes to accountability, their actions have a massive bearing on our situations, yet they just shun accountability, they have remained absent in stemming the tide of the economical Tsunami, they themselves are creating. My suggestion is that we the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand start uniting economic solutions together. Being parked in London, Sydney or Melbourne is no longer an option. All three have to deal with shortages on one hand and unemployment rates on the other. What if we seriously start to change that? What if we push for a preferred partner in solutions? I myself experienced last week the answer from Canada, that they (one consultancy firm), when it comes to foreign workers limit themselves to US citizens. Perhaps our English is not good enough? There might have been a very valid reason in this, yet I cannot stop to wonder whether we are ignoring possible options to make the Commonwealth economically great again.

We are under such pressures to adhere to ‘corporate’ standards, and the bulk of all those companies are American. This is not about pointing fingers, but to restart an economy. If we look at the gaming industry nowadays, then that war, which was a former war of innovation, which is now diminished to a war between Microsoft who is about to hurt low income gamers and Sony, who is true to the gamers. The interesting side is that they for the most come with the same titles. There is still Nintendo, yet they seem to be lagging way behind. This is a multi-billion dollar industry and the shares are almost 40-40-20 with Nintendo in the 20% group. What is stopping us to take the Google OUYA Android Gaming Console into that market and start growing a market that is now, but has massive potential. Let’s face it, getting 10% of that market is still serious money and the economic downturn to people will remain at least another 3-4 years. So with a play to a cheaper solution is one they would love. It also forces the other three to become innovative and competitive again.  Smaller playable games at less than £ 5 makes it possible for starting developers to make many millions. Consider that families can afford 4-5 games instead of 1 Microsoft game with a £5 surcharge. It does not end there.

Europe is outsourcing customer care centres, technical care centres and we cannot find a way to get 100,000 a job? We need to rethink corporate thinking that is smaller based, makes money and pays taxation. That makes those places 3 times a winner for all parties involved. It does not matter who gets to be in office, in the end we need to fight to make sure that this office survives!

And as we go back to that multi-billion dollar gaming industry, when these people get a pre-owned game surcharge where will that be taxed? It is time to put a stand and make these chargeable items taxed in the gamer’s nation, not in a virtual server location where no taxation is due. When these companies move into the nations of the world, demand rights, protection and support, yet walk away from taxation that is due as they receive all those rights, then we should look at the abundance of non-accountability and make it an accounting matter.

We need to start moving. It is nice and essential to fight over the GCSE A-levels, but without an economy they have no future, and we must fight for both!

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