Pete Burnett

[Liam Halligan @LiamHalligan]

“The fasten seat belts sign is on”.

This is a message I received early this morning from one of the UK’s most experienced, savvy and respected financial traders. Someone I have come to know and trust for the last 25 years.

10-year bond yields are now almost 4.5pc - up some 50 basis points over the last month.

30-year yields this morning went above 6pc - a 28-year high.

Yet the UK’s political and media class continues to focus on party posturing and folksy rhetoric, ignoring the slow-motion disaster that has been happening on the UK’s sovereign bond markets for at least the last 18 months - a disaster that will inevitably, unless we drastically change course, turn into a fully blown market meltdown.

At that point, the UK government won’t be able to borrow enough money to finance our already spiralling debt interest bill.

Britain’s financial management will be taken over by overseas technocrats - that will be the condition of additional borrowing, to maintain the basic functions of the state, as happened in Greece and Italy back in the early 2010s and here in Britain 50 years ago this year (when we were forced in 1976 to apply to the IMF for a bailout).

The austerity then imposed on Britain would make 2010-2019 feel like a picnic - far, far worse than it would be if we took serious action now to control our public finances.

Lower-income households would suffer most - and there would be serious damage done to the UK’s already rapidly-fraying social fabric ….

I have been warning about these looking fiscal dangers publicly, in my newspaper columns and elsewhere, since at least early 2024.

Doing so hasn’t been easy or fun. I have been dismissed and derided by numerous economists, “economists”, officials and policymakers - as well as lots of journalists.

I absolutely don’t want a disastrous 1976-style outcome - which is why I’ve taken the blows and issued the warnings.

The state is too big. Public spending is out of control. Our fiscal rules are a convenient nonsense - designed to kick the can of financial reality into the future. We need to get real … and take bold action to tame the growth of spending, push back a now totally over-bearing state and snap the British economy out of today’s high-tax-high-borrowing-low-growth doom loop - the result of myopic, counter-productive policy-making by successive governments for the last decade and more …

Other prominent economists who agree with me - ie who are financially-literate, can read a yield curve, have a passing interest in economic history and who understand the dangers of some 80pc of UK government borrowing going on debt interest as it currently is - need to chuck “career risk” in the bin, and start saying publicly what so many of them have, for quite a while now, only had the bottle to say to me in private …

Remember: “The fasten seat belts sign is on”

[Pete Burnett @BurnettPete]

@Paddy_Boyland Guarantee he'll stick Keane back in next week through 🤦🏻‍♂️

[Tim Shipman @ShippersUnbound]

The thing that baffles me is that good and serious people have seen versions of what happened tonight in the US for eight years and are still surprised that people don’t see the world as they do.
1) Voters think “the economy” is “can I afford to live” NOT “we are doing better nationally than others”. Inflation is politically more important than GDP
2) Immigration matters, both the sense of control/uncontrolled and the raw numbers, particularly when money is tight. See 1
3) Don’t take voters for fools: in this case don’t insist a clearly gaga leader is up to the job
4) Don’t try to fight a charismatic opponent with someone who can’t answer basic questions about why they want to be in charge. The ability to communicate is not an optional extra for politicians, it is a core part of the job description
5) Go woke, go politically broke
6) What the metro elites regard as an illogical vote is not necessarily illogical for people who are struggling and angry - see 1,2,3,4,5
Personally I think democracy matters very much and some/much of what Trump says is appalling but until his opponents learn the lessons above, voters will keep voting for someone who manages to encapsulate what they feel

[Pete Burnett @BurnettPete]

@vinerbrian Man U or Everton?!

[Pete Burnett @BurnettPete]

@liamgallagher Ashcroft

[Pete Burnett @BurnettPete]

@nealmaupay_ Just simply the worst player I’ve ever seen play for Everton. And that’s a pretty low bar

[Don Hutchison @donhutch4]

One of my fave games ever 💙
Sleep well Skipper x

[Anthems for a Twenty Six Year‐Old Boy @DFakExGoalanke]

Every few months I wonder what these guys are up to in life

[Irish Ranger (Sevvy) @VeteranIrish]

Guessing the wing suit didn’t help much?? 😄😄

[Penfold @elbow112]

When you're having a nice relaxing game of golf....

[Paul Traill @PaulTraill]

Brilliant this. ⬇️

[The author, Séamas O'Reilly @shockproofbeats]

There's no way to prepare you for what this sounds like, I can only insist that it's one of the greatest things I've ever heard.

[Pete Burnett @BurnettPete]

@GSpellchecker Absolute freakshows

[Mac Eochaidh @bigkehoesy]

Happy International women's day you sexy b@stards😍😍 what would we do without you😬👀🤣🤣

[Josh @joshpearson180]

My favourite video of all time, piss myself everytime I watch it 🤣

[Joe Pompliano @JoePompliano]

This video is incredible. A Chinese speed skater takes off at the beginning of a longer race. Her teammate then sprints to the front, confusing everyone on the “final lap” and easily securing Gold and Silver medals for the team. Watch until the end. Great teamwork.

[Adam @adamjeffrey98]

Rattled by a 13 year old

[Josh @joshpearson180]

The best video of all time, I cry with laughter every time I watch it 🤣😭

[Viz Comic @vizcomic]

subscriptions >>> https://t.co/hBFnY6w8Ca

[Josh @joshpearson180]

Nothing comes close, incredible