This is a very good point

Given the current state of the labour market the idea that you could dilute employees T&Cs is a complete no runner. The idea that the Tories are going to dilute working conditions is a red herring from the left.

The unions would be useful organisations if they were able to concentrate on the job in hand working to improve workers opportunities. Unfortunately they see pushing the political ambitions as their prime objective. There is also an element of self interest for the union employees - look at Unite T&Cs for union employees. They also have a problem of a collective positioning i.e. they cannot deal with an individual issue without considering the impact on completely unrelated businesses. If a decision on one business would be ideal but set a negative precedence elsewhere the union will not support it.

I see the government did not want to make fire and rehire illegal preferring to allow the companies to carry on unchecked. I guess you are correct that they have no intentions to dilute worker’s rights.

There are 1.25m vacancies - I would suggest if firms want to retain decent staff the opposite will happen - increases in rates of pay Amazon starting is £11.50/hour - better benefits. The market will determine the level not the unions.

Most markets are shaped by regulations, to a large degree and for better or worse.

The Conservative Party has changed. It isn’t yet clear how permanently or exactly into what, but my instinct always to assume the worst of them. I mean, becoming UKIP has worked for them to this point but post-Brexit and without any clear plan vision or plan for what comes next, the capitalism red in tooth and claw wing of the party could emerge triumphant. Johnson is an intermission in political direction - the wonky shopping trolley described by Craig Oliver and Dominic Cummings.

The basic principle of supply and demand works in most markets - even the public sector - you want to attract more nurses pay them more, burserys etc.

I think Johnson will survive as long as Labour have weak leadership - once Johnson goes the Tories will revert back to type Sunak-type.

That'll be the same "market" thats responsible for our chaotic railways and raw sewerage being discharged into our rivers.

Are you suggesting the railways and the water supply were better when they were in public ownership?

A big issue with both are the legacy issues inherited from public ownership?

On the news this morning it was suggested in would cost between £150-600bn to put the water/sewage supply back to where it should be.

I am all for public ownership of key services - I am old enough to remember when it was all in public ownership and I would say be careful what you wish for

But this is such a spurious, apples to oranges comparison.

How much money - from government and from fares - did we invest in the railways when they were in public ownership? They were starved for decades, we now pour billion upon billion into them with significantly higher fares and huge amounts are creamed off as profit for private enterprises. If we'd put the same amount into the privately-owned BR it would have made an amazing difference.

Look at DB, look at SNCF, look at FS and you'll see what properly-invested in, publicly-owned railway look like in terms of fares and network and reliability. The straw man of a desperately underfunded BR is almost irrelevant at this point.

So you have confirmed my analysis thank you - as I said be careful what you wish for when you are all clamouring for a return to public ownership.

I have no idea what you think you've proved but I travel thousands of miles a year on French and Italian railways and they are miles ahead of the railway services in the UK.

There's nothing shabby about being the third best railway in the world.

Quote: chissitt "There's nothing shabby about being the third best railway in the world.'" Very safe but with comparatively poor service according to this 2017 report. https://www.consultancy.uk/news/13535/e ... ce-quality

Quote: chissitt "There's nothing shabby about being the third best railway in the world.'" Very safe but with comparatively poor service according to this 2017 report. https://www.consultancy.uk/news/13535/e ... ce-quality

Having used the railways in countries like China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Holland, Germany, France and Scandinavia, I can honestly say the UK railways, and service is are light years behind these countries.

So given that you agree with Nod, that makes us the 12th best railway in the world, not to mention that it must make you 5 times as knowledgeable about railways as him