Are we all Trussed up...

[Stevek76]

Now you're arguing that the current crisis is a result not of government incompetence but a mysterious illegal cartel?

I don't think there's any full conspiracy going on, I suspect it's most likely that truss and kwarteng are just deluded incompetents who cannot see past their own extreme ideology. Truss in particular appears to think she's thatcher mk2 but has clearly bought the thatcher fan club account of 80s economics rather than the rather more nuanced reality.

That said, if the aforementioned 'credible traders' are not just made up, then it's quite possible they are also stupid enough to listen to individuals like Crispin Odey (whom Kwarteng used to work for) who despite quite publicly stating he's been shorting the £ is obviously going to make hay and tell them what they want to hear (i.e. it's not their fault) before he goes home and takes out even more short positions.

I'm not sure that's really accurate to say 'the market' that's causing the crash though, it's still entirely truss/kwartengs faults. They have near unlimited access to a wide range of views should they want to listen, they do not, as demonstrated when they sacked Tom Scholar when he inevitably told them to get off the crack.

[axel_knutt]

This professor at Sheffield reckons it's been done deliberately so that they can scrap public services in the name of balancing the books.
https://twitter.com/RichardJMurphy/stat ... 9176089600

[UpWrong]

There's been talk of scrapping or ignoring the pay review bodies when the public sector is becoming dysfunctional due to staff shortages.

[reohn2]

Truss has appeared and is going round local radios for 5 min interviews tomorrow morning followed by some regional tv slots.

In other news, according to sky reporters it appears no10/11 are convinced that they're doing the right thing and that the market moves had nothing to do with Friday's mini-budget announcement.

They have spoken to credible FX people and market traders, who have assured them it simply “doesn’t add up” that their fiscal package could have caused this market reaction. They believe the main explanation for these ructions is US monetary policy.
...
One message you’ll be hearing a LOT in the coming wks: if it weren’t for govt’s mini-Budget (and by this they seem mainly to mean the energy package) UK would have been facing a major economic shock.
Markets can do what they want; they believe theirs is the right plan.

So it was fear of a labour government earlier, now it's the US?

They're absolutely nuts. Utterly bonkers. Moronic. Cretinous. Several bananas short of the full bunch.

These people ascribe near magical, mystical properties to "free markets". Until, amazingly, said markets run a million miles from their nutcase delusional budget.

At which point, stunningly, it's suddenly someone else's fault "Fear of Keir Starmer!"; "US monetary policy!"

Incredible.

Quite!
"There's none so blind as them that will not see"!

[reohn2]

........It's all very disappointing that our Government has sunk to such incompetence and such stupidity.

Ian

Indeed,though the past 12 years has been a display of incompetents,this lot really are completely off their trolly!

[Jdsk]

Now you're arguing that the current crisis is a result not of government incompetence but a mysterious illegal cartel?

I don't think there's any full conspiracy going on, I suspect it's most likely that truss and kwarteng are just deluded incompetents who cannot see past their own extreme ideology. Truss in particular appears to think she's thatcher mk2 but has clearly bought the thatcher fan club account of 80s economics rather than the rather more nuanced reality.

That said, if the aforementioned 'credible traders' are not just made up, then it's quite possible they are also stupid enough to listen to individuals like Crispin Odey (whom Kwarteng used to work for) who despite quite publicly stating he's been shorting the £ is obviously going to make hay and tell them what they want to hear (i.e. it's not their fault) before he goes home and takes out even more short positions.

I'm not sure that's really accurate to say 'the market' that's causing the crash though, it's still entirely truss/kwartengs faults. They have near unlimited access to a wide range of views should they want to listen, they do not, as demonstrated when they sacked Tom Scholar when he inevitably told them to get off the crack.

That sounds right to me.

In our system Ministers and Prime Ministers do not have to be domain experts. But they do have to manage vast amounts of conflicting advice.

In addition to the sacking of the Permanent Secretary I'd add avoiding an OBR report, especially when it had been explicitly offered. And not recalling Parliament.

Jonathan

[roubaixtuesday]

The notoriously Marxist Economist's front cover...

Truss has done an absolute train wreck set of interviews with local radio this morning.

I predict a U turn before the weekend. Though Truss may well be arrogant enough to try and continue through a party conference whilst the financial markets crash about her. Think Theresa May's famous speech but with bits falling off the economy rather than letters falling off the set.

If she tries to continue we could have a new PM before November.

[Jdsk]

...
Truss has done an absolute train wreck set of interviews with local radio this morning.
...

Including deliberate weaselly repetition of highly misleading statements:

26 September:
"Liz Truss wrong to claim ‘no household’ will pay more than £2,500 on energy bills"
https://fullfact.org/economy/Truss-ener ... guarantee/

Today:


Jonathan

[Psamathe]

The notoriously Marxist Economist's front cover...

Screenshot_20220929-110755_Facebook.jpg

Truss has done an absolute train wreck set of interviews with local radio this morning.

I predict a U turn before the weekend. Though Truss may well be arrogant enough to try and continue through a party conference whilst the financial markets crash about her. Think Theresa May's famous speech but with bits falling off the economy rather than letters falling off the set.

If she tries to continue we could have a new PM before November.

I heard some of the clips (she isn't appearing on R4 until next week but they played the clips).

She comes across really badly on the radio even though the questioning was weak/easy.

She seems to be trying to turn the focus on the energy cost relief and ignoring the bond market instability and the crash in GB£ (briefly pushing that it's global market instability causing those issues). I think that's a totally daft approach as all the reports (even the very neutral BBC) are linking all the issues to their non-Budget; people wont believe her "global market instability" excuse.

But coming across so badly at interviews (no character) makes Starmer look like a real engaging, interesting, dynamic, etc. person.

Ian

[Bonefishblues]

...
Truss has done an absolute train wreck set of interviews with local radio this morning.
...

Including deliberate weaselly repetition of highly misleading statements:

26 September:
"Liz Truss wrong to claim ‘no household’ will pay more than £2,500 on energy bills"
https://fullfact.org/economy/Truss-ener ... guarantee/

Today:


Jonathan

I sense you have offended hordes of Mustelids up and down the country Jonathan, who would not want to be associated with Truss's remarks.

[Stevek76]

She caveated it with 'typically', perfectly truthful

I heard some of the clips (she isn't appearing on R4 until next week but they played the clips).

She comes across really badly on the radio even though the questioning was weak/easy.

I've not had time to listen but I've seen a few transcripts and there's plenty of tough ones, I think the national BBC news is continuing their effective client journalism role by picking the 'best' bits. Caught a bit of R1's news bulletin at around 08:30 this morning while the local interviews were still ongoing and they'd just played a snippet of a scripted answer with zero challenge.

Clearly Truss's press team are as useless as she is, a few national pundits were noting last night that if she thought she was getting an easy gig out of local broadcasters she was very wrong.

[roubaixtuesday]

The highlights tape...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0d3f ... are-mobile

[Psamathe]

She caveated it with 'typically', perfectly truthful :lol: :roll:

I heard some of the clips (she isn't appearing on R4 until next week but they played the clips).

She comes across really badly on the radio even though the questioning was weak/easy.

I've not had time to listen but I've seen a few transcripts and there's plenty of tough ones, I think the national BBC news is continuing their effective client journalism role by picking the 'best' bits. ...

The excerpts I heard were weak maybe because of the short time limits (5 mins). Interviewer has a list of questions and when answer Truss gives does not answer the question instead of challenging Truss to actually answer they move on to next question as the 5 mins is running out. Other better interviews e.g. R4 Today interviewing Secretary to Treasury(?) (today) mid non-answer the interviewer interrupts saying "I'll stop you because you are not answering the question I asked so please answer the question". Truss on local radio with 5 min slots could get away with using it as a platform for her pre-prepared statements rather than having to address the question asked.

Ian

[francovendee]

........It's all very disappointing that our Government has sunk to such incompetence and such stupidity.

Ian

Indeed,though the past 12 years has been a display of incompetents,this lot really are completely off their trolly!

I do get tired of the Tories blaming their mismanagement of the country on the legacy of the last Labour government. Even the world wide financial crash of 2008 and the effect on the economy is somehow Labour's mistake.
One thing the Tories are good at is deflecting blame. It must be the Teflon coating they get when joining the party.

[Psamathe]

She caveated it with 'typically', perfectly truthful :lol: :roll:
...

I always remember a statistics lecturer back in my University days "I have an above average number of legs".

When they say typical one has no idea exactly what that means. Interpret as "average" and suddenly half the households in the country are paying more than the quoted £2500.

Ian