Thoughts on Trump's quest for reciprocal trade, the return of Brexit cakeism, five options to save broken Brussels, and is Tesla paying the price for Elon Musk's political activism
I am unclear to what extent company car drivers choose the car that the company purchases. We were considering a Model Y Tesla, having had good reports of it, but are no longer!
Interested to see the Best for Britain report, which is under-reported elsewhere.
I have a degree of sympathy for Labour in taking a gradualist approach to the EU. It is not as we are hearing any clear message from the business world about what it wants, to which Labour and others could respond.
Agree, there's been a surprising lack of input from business organisations setting out what they would want from a reset. But that may be because they have not been asked...
In the context of Tesla, it is noteworthy that UK Tesla sales have not fallen anything as like as much as elsewhere. My guess is that this is because use the majority of EVs in the UK are sold to company car drivers due to the generous tax incentives available. These are being slowly reduced. Will UK executives gradually adopt the anti-Musk sentiment evident elsewhere? It will be interesting to monitor this in the coming months.
I would be surprised if the Tesla brand has not become completely toxic here too, though that may be projecting my own prejudices onto the company car-driving classes!
The dithering is real it has its origins in the lack of a geostrategic focus and a Labour navel gazing. These are challenging. to move forward Labour needs to realize four things (1) on the part of the Cabinet and the Party that the EU is a de-facto confederation - and not an oddity (2) that Monet was correct - the power of Brussels increases as Member States strive to meet global challenges - Trump/Putin give it momentum (3) the EU is a regulatory superpower because its competitors (US and China) lack the competence, will and underlying legitimacy to conduct that role, the Party must understand that acceding to those regulations is a process but vital to growth and the raising of UK living standards (4) the UK can make a limited contribution but the terms will be the outcome of protracted negotiation: the Party must learn the tradition of consensus building: including all groups of the Centre-Left - Starmer has talent for this - his adjutant - McSweeney seems not to understand the necessity for across the board coalition building necessary to create the centrist majority that can explain and deliver the political imperatives.
Agree on both counts. I am sure he could go quite a long way on the reset without suffering any adverse political consequences because it would leave the Tories defending the current wretched Brexit outcome. But as I say, the constraint is how much the EU is willing to give him. A failed bid takes us back to more binary choices...
The public are ahead but it needs to progress further. Amusingly Paddy Power are running an advert at the moment poking fun at Brexit. These kind of cultural jokes are very corrosive on public consciousness and will damage all those who are associated with it. I perceive we will reach peek Farage this summer and then it will fade away as the smell of Brexit failures is one he just can’t shift.
Trump and lack of economic growth will drive us and the Europe back together and hopefully a happy second marriage.
I am unclear to what extent company car drivers choose the car that the company purchases. We were considering a Model Y Tesla, having had good reports of it, but are no longer!
Well if you hang on for a bit, they could be about to get a lot cheaper!
Interested to see the Best for Britain report, which is under-reported elsewhere.
I have a degree of sympathy for Labour in taking a gradualist approach to the EU. It is not as we are hearing any clear message from the business world about what it wants, to which Labour and others could respond.
Agree, there's been a surprising lack of input from business organisations setting out what they would want from a reset. But that may be because they have not been asked...
... beyond what Labour is doing.
In the context of Tesla, it is noteworthy that UK Tesla sales have not fallen anything as like as much as elsewhere. My guess is that this is because use the majority of EVs in the UK are sold to company car drivers due to the generous tax incentives available. These are being slowly reduced. Will UK executives gradually adopt the anti-Musk sentiment evident elsewhere? It will be interesting to monitor this in the coming months.
I would be surprised if the Tesla brand has not become completely toxic here too, though that may be projecting my own prejudices onto the company car-driving classes!
Not completely. More like Marmite! 🙂
The dithering is real it has its origins in the lack of a geostrategic focus and a Labour navel gazing. These are challenging. to move forward Labour needs to realize four things (1) on the part of the Cabinet and the Party that the EU is a de-facto confederation - and not an oddity (2) that Monet was correct - the power of Brussels increases as Member States strive to meet global challenges - Trump/Putin give it momentum (3) the EU is a regulatory superpower because its competitors (US and China) lack the competence, will and underlying legitimacy to conduct that role, the Party must understand that acceding to those regulations is a process but vital to growth and the raising of UK living standards (4) the UK can make a limited contribution but the terms will be the outcome of protracted negotiation: the Party must learn the tradition of consensus building: including all groups of the Centre-Left - Starmer has talent for this - his adjutant - McSweeney seems not to understand the necessity for across the board coalition building necessary to create the centrist majority that can explain and deliver the political imperatives.
I think we just want Starmer to stop dithering and get on with it. The public are ahead of him.
We also need a Tory in parliament currently, to admit Brexit was a mistake.
Agree on both counts. I am sure he could go quite a long way on the reset without suffering any adverse political consequences because it would leave the Tories defending the current wretched Brexit outcome. But as I say, the constraint is how much the EU is willing to give him. A failed bid takes us back to more binary choices...
The public are ahead but it needs to progress further. Amusingly Paddy Power are running an advert at the moment poking fun at Brexit. These kind of cultural jokes are very corrosive on public consciousness and will damage all those who are associated with it. I perceive we will reach peek Farage this summer and then it will fade away as the smell of Brexit failures is one he just can’t shift.
Trump and lack of economic growth will drive us and the Europe back together and hopefully a happy second marriage.
Do I then swallow my principles and buy one?