007nick
14 Feb 2018
IT'S DEFINITLY SPIN - Another brain wave Labour are saying anything to win supporters, here's another example with their latest brain waves : Tenants should have 'default right' to pets - LabourPersonally I love dogs & cats but you've got to think sensibly - however, currently there are blocks of flats where the tenancy agreement states no pets and some people choose that because -a) they have an allergy to fur/pets.b) They are frightened of pets/animalsOh and then there are people who actually don't want to live somewhere where there are animals - eg people who don't want to hear somebody's cat or dog making noises in the night, or having to contend with the smell of cat or dog p155 or poops. Any young mother with a baby probably won't sleep to easily knowing the person next door keeps snakes.It gets better, you will always have some extreme people, how about the ones who want to keep a donkey, horse, sheep,pig as a pet in there nice tower block ?? Is labour going to discriminate between what pet you can and can't have ?Labour are saying anything to grab headlines and win votes, without thinking things through. IT'S ALL JUST SPIN
cashpharma
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi Unfortunately for the sake of the country if she goes it's likely to be Jacob Rees Mogg. JRM isn't nicknamed the right honourable member for the 18th century for nothing.Whatever happens we're gonna get a loony for pm some time soon.
FRTEB
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi To be fair, I don't think anyone else really wants her job at the moment! She's getting flack from all sides and because of that she can't do right for doing wrong. Can you imagine the pressure and stress she's under? I doubt there are many people who could do her job at the moment, never mind would (or say they would - but that's not the same thing). So credit where credit is due from me. If she can successfully steer the country though Brexit and still be Conservative leader by the time we arrive at the next general election, then I can't think of anyone else who would be more capable of the job. I also can't help but wonder that if the Conservatives do force a leadership contest then they might live to regret it come the general election. Be careful what you wish for.
Jerb44
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi I'm just hoping the Cons will come up with a credible candidate before May implodes.
Hardboy
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi Good post, number, and apologies if I was a little generalistic with my previous post. Many of the nationalised industries did offer good products and services, but from what I experienced directly of them they were hugely inefficient. In the mid 80s I was a commissioning manager working mainly on off shore rigs. I worked for may different clients - British Gas stood out as the most laid back and inefficient project I ever worked on. No one seemed to care when their were delays (each day's delay of commissioning an offshore rig is worth millions)or even try to do anything about it. I also worked at a few power stations, and except getting someone to sign my timesheets (which was hard enough) I don't think I ever saw anyone doing any work. In the early 90s I joined the newly privatised BT, and was classed as a senior manager. Most of the people I had dealings with were of the management & professional grades. I was pretty appalled - not by the ability of people, but of their attitude. No one wanted to take responsibility or make a decision, if a new issue came up (as it does with dynamic businesses) no one wanted to tackle it, because it was not included in their objectives for the year. When I first arrived it took some time to sort my contract out (the person in charge of the relevant HR department told me it was the best within BT. I told him it was the worst I had ever experienced - 3 months after being offered the job I'd started the job without the HR department confirming my Ts & Cs or even confirming my appointment, and that I had somehow ended up with 2 company cars.) This meant officially I did not know what grade I was. Whenever I met someone knew one of the first things they asked was what grade I was. I was able to say I didn't know, and they'd be quite confused because they did not know how to deal with me. In defence of BT, it was changing in the time I was there, and at a practical level - the people who really matter because they really do the work, I only find great attitudes - a desire to do good work and provide a good service. It may be different this time, but I doubt it; and I'd hate to go back to that world.
Hardboy
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalization - It's just Spin 007 Nick,Good post, but I have to disagree - it's not spin, they really believe they can do it; though good luck with stealing electricity shares from their German, French & Spanish owners!And I agree about the pension funds - I've tried to make the same points many times before. Corbyn is leader because he has union backing, it's that union backing which needs to wake up and realise what nationalisation will do to their pensions, or maybe they believe JM that they will be just as well off with the bonds.
FRTEB
13 Feb 2018
Re: Trends and Targets - FRTEB Good morning Pref Yes I've just read that article. I felt all warm and fuzzy knowing that I wasn't the only one thinking 650ish was a realistic target. ...Then I saw 490 mentioned. Eeeekkk!!! Need to draw a few more lines on a chart to see if I can make head or tail of that. I wonder if 490 is the Labour election win worst case scenario? Maybe time to sell everything and run for the hills. I see the SP continues to head south and for the life of me I can't see it recovering any time soon for reasons highlighted in various posts below. Is it too late to post a Strong Sell ?
II Editor
13 Feb 2018
NEW ARTICLE: A defensive favourite powered by attractive yield "National Grid (LSE:NG.)It can be quite strange, how some days the @GB:UKX:FTSE shows as 1%+ up yet from our perspective, nothing is happening. This nonsense occurs when the market moves within trigger levels, essentially pretending to be ..."[link]
cashpharma
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi and yet what everyone forgets is that British Leyland was a mess created by the private sector and it was nationalised to rescue it.British Rail was superb value for money, and the trains were designed and built in the UK.
PrefInvestor1
13 Feb 2018
Re: Trends and Targets - FRTEB Hi FRTEB,This iii article (as contained in the related post) seems to give your mid 650 target a chance !!.[link] ATBPref
PIE-EATER
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi number biterBritish Rail WAS a shambles.....and always was in my lifetime. (not that I can say it is better now)British Leyland.......a real class act ! etc etcThe problem with nationalised industries per se is that historically there has been no incentive to actually manage them, whether that is investing appropriately or taking hard decisions about cuts or targets. They are also far too easy a target for extreme union views. (Think Red Robbo, Scargill the RMT and Unite now)Government organisations have their place. Unions have their place. But the large nationalised industries that we recall don't.PE
frog in a tree
13 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi An excellent and well-argued post Numberbiter!F
II Editor
12 Feb 2018
NEW ARTICLE: Trends and Targets for 13/02/2018 " National Grid (LSE:NG.) It can be quite strange, how some days the FTSE shows as 1%+ up yet from our perspective, nothing is happening. This nonsense occurs when the market moves within trigger levels, essentially pretending to be ..."[link]
numberbiter
12 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalisation Threat - Jimi Hardboy, I am not young, but old enough to remember the nationalised industries. First of all, they were definitely not a shambles - British Rail was both innovative (inter-city 125) and efficient. In 1981 the time from London to Leeds/Liverpool was faster than now - 39 years later. The Tories starved Britsh Rail of cash for eighteen months to make them look inefficienct prior to privatisation. Since privatisation, rail has been a true shambles. Despite fares going up at twice the rate of inflation year on year the service has continually deteriorated and still the private firms cannot cope and renege on their franchises, Give me back British Rail every time.Now if you look at the Balance Sheet's of many companies involved in the private finance initiative and utilities (Capita and Centrica, as examples) you will find that excluding intangible assets their liabilities exceed their assets, so they are technically bankrupt and cannot justify their current share price. So it would be very easy for a Labour givernment to send valuers in and pick off these companies for not a lot.But National Grid's shareholders can rest easy; the company has a strong Balance Sheet and will not be easy to get hold off.Now, as Heseltine correctly said, a Labour government would be bad for the country, but Brexit would be ten times worse (the irony is that recent Government research as indicated that areas who had massive Leave majorities will be worst hit).The Labour Party as a whole want to stay in the single market and customs union and the majority of members are telling Corbyn to back them. If he does, then Labour will win the next election (there is no majority for a hard Brexit in this country), If not he has no chance. Under these circumstances many Labour voters would secretly vote Tory or abstain, in the knowledge that a hard Brexit would severely damage the Tory Party.In the other hand if May has the courage to kill off her would-be assassins (Gove and Boris the Clown) then she could win with a massive landslide next time.This is what makes politics so interesting; everything is in the melting pot. Either way, National Grid will be safe.
Guitarsolo
12 Feb 2018
Re: Nationalization - It's just Spin 007 - fair points and well presented!I would look forward to a capable journo taking Corbyn/McDonnell to pieces about plans to nationalise NG. Exactly as you say, NG. is for the largest part ultimately owned by the British public through pensions and investments. So Labour would be issuing debt in "our" name to buy from us something that we already own and paying us less than it is worth for the pleasure. Come on Paxman/Marr sharpen you pencils......And I would also agree that NG. would be a good way down the list of nationalisation targets - certainly behind rail and water. the time they got to borrowing the £25bn they would need to issue in gilts for NG. the pound would have fallen so low that even the Marxists would be starting to get worried and that cheap borrowing that McDonnell is eyeing up won't be so cheap any more. Let's not discount the risk to NG. but also let's not get too worked up about it. I would have thought rising interest rates are more of a concern (especially if Old Labour was to win) because some of NG's debt is on variable rates and more needs to be refinanced in the years ahead. And although these are regulated assets that regulators on both sides of the Atlantic allow NG to make a fair return on - that is calculated modelling certain financing costs which may have underestimated the speed of rising rates. I'm sure it is more complicated than that but that's how I see it! Guitarsolo - the Grid is still a cornerstone for me!
