Keir Starmer vows to ‘close door on Putin’ with GB Energy
Labour would “close the door on Putin” by reducing Britain’s reliance on fossil fuel from overseas, Sir Keir Starmer has said, as he accused the Tories of leaving the nation exposed by failing on energy security.
The party leader claimed Rishi Sunak’s “political collapse” on net zero commitments risks leaving the UK “over a barrel” as he linked the green power transition to issues of national security.
On Tuesday, he will say the party’s plan to set up GB Energy – a publicly owned clean energy company – will help to protect the UK from spikes in the price of fuel like those that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
We appear to be in the odd situation where the next PM is likely to be a bureaucrat in that more bureaucracy seems to be "Sir" Keir Starmer's political philosophy. Far from providing democratic oversight of the permanent administration, he clearly intends to be part of it. That's his notion of oversight. And democracy.
GB Energy is a good example, a bureaucrat's wheeze if ever there was one. Even side-lining some of his political headaches such as Jeremy Corbyn was not dissimilar to a chap sorting out his filing system. GB Energy is intended to "sort out" Net Zero and our energy problems. And Mr Putin apparently.
Yes it's insane, yes it's bound to be ludicrously expensive, yes it's bound to be a net negative for voters, yes it's bound to be supported by wealthy charlatans, but it does sit rather nicely in the bureaucratic comfort zone.
Apart from Reform as a loose cannon in the electoral game, Starmer as PM seems likely to erode political oversight of the permanent administration even further. Parliament becomes little more than an outlet for marketing official policies and narratives. Not that we are widely separated from that scenario now.
5 comments:
Starmer being a mediocre bureaucrat is what makes his attempts at sloganising seem so odd. He's going to "shut the door on Putin", and his response to unfettered immigration is to say that he's going to "smash the gangs". Of course he'll do neither. He'll try to adopt a few new policies, carefully crafted so as not to upset anyone, and expressed such that he can't be seen to fail.
Sam - he reminds me of phrases such as "make sure that" or "ensure that" in relation to some imagined future activity. It's usually a weak way to sidle out of practicalities such as just how the thing is to be done and what counts as achieving a goal.
Surkeer does not have much foresight.
He will reduce our dependency on very expensive LNG, LPG and pelleted forest from the US of A and increase imports of windmills (and the steel to hold them up), solar panels and lithium batteries from China.
He obviously has not had the memo from Sleepy Joe. Like Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan Russia is a lost cause. Don't mention the wars.
China is the new Enemy of World Peace and must be isolated, sanctioned and if necessary given a thorough thrashing by our battle proven wonder-weapons (plus our young folk.)
Yes it's insane, yes it's bound to be ludicrously expensive, yes it's bound to be a net negative for voters, yes it's bound to be supported by wealthy charlatans, but it does sit rather nicely in the bureaucratic comfort zone.
But then jobs for the like minded and support for Big Business is the tool of soft power and patronage. Or as we like to say, corruption.
Doonhamer - Starmer doesn't appear to understand the technical aspects of anything but law, as if he thinks that's enough. As if he knows nothing about expensive LNG, LPG and pelleted forest from the USA, or makes no effort to know anything. Must be a strange bubble he lives in. Or just a corrupt one.
DJ - yes, corruption seems to be the monster dragging us down. Not necessarily the illegal variety, but the corruption of the high-level charlatan. In that latter sense, the major parties are corrupt.
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