It is with great sadness that we received the news that Iain Lawson, one of the best and brightest of the independence movement, passed away this afternoon after a short illness. Iain's knowledge was surpassed by none and he made a massive contribution to both the Stirling Directive and Salvo. He was also gracious and kind and always willing to help. He is an incalculable loss. #IainLawson
@KateBMwriting as the world becomes increasingly automated & complex we should all be concerned for what is ahead. I’m 60, just sold my business, thought I was pretty savvy but with every update, every new device & every new labour saving app I can feel my confidence slump. I’m worried.
My dad is nearly 90 and every official communication he gets requires the downloading of an app or the setting up of an online account. How do older people without relatives manage?
#OnThisDay
Congratulations to Vanuatu - who on this day in 1980 achieved independence from the UK and France. Independence is normal.
#YesScots | #RejoinEU
The "Great British Enegy" bill set before Parliament is pretty much just the set up of the new investment company. There is, however, an interesting bit where it says that if it strays into devolved matters the Scottish Ministers must be consulted. Not a veto, just a quick convo.
Govt revives the disastrous Private Finance Initiative (PFI).
PFI ran 1992-2018. Govts got £60bn private investment, repayment £306bn.
Now £1 of public investment to be matched by £3 of private, will repay £15-£18, guaranteeing corporate profits
There are sensible alternatives
Congratulations to Peru - who on this day in 1821 claimed independence from the Spanish Empire. Independence is normal. Fiestas Patrias!
#YesScots | #RejoinEU
A 25,000 acre Scottish estate changes hands. Who now owns it? A Texan billionaire. Do we know who he is? No ties up the ownership in shell companies. When Scots Gov are you going to legislate to end this land ownership scandal. Wouldn't get away with this anywhere else in Europe.
"I very much hope that both NHS managers and the private sector will respond to the opportunites that [PFI] creates." 🤑🤔🫣😮😲
And the rest is history... which will repeat itself in GB Energy.and FreePorts. 17/17
The speech was silent on how the public sector could and should be advised or upskilled in negotiating PFI contracts. The value of NHS contracts that had to be referred to the Treasury was increased from £250k to £10m, with a sample scrutinised between £4m and £10m. 15/n
"Below £4m we shall rely on internal NHS discipline, subject of course to proper audit procedures. These changes represent a significant increase in the delgated authority of the different tiers of NHS management. " 16/n
"That is the discipline that is lacking in public sector provision."
And that was the real problem with PFI. The public sector purchasers who had no experience in negotiating contracts got eaten alive by the private sector providers. 14/n
9 June 1993: Stephen Dorrell MP, Financial Secretary, speaks on PFI and NHS to the Environmental and Medical Products Conference... summary of speech 1/n
"What we seek is access to private sector disciplines and management. The [private sector] manager of the project must assess its viability by looking at the capacity of its revenues to cover its costs and produce a return to its investors." 13/n
"IT IS NOT THE FUNCTION OF A PUBLIC SECTOR PURCHASE CONTRACT TO GUARANTEE A RETURN TO A PRIVATE SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDER [editor's caps]. If we allow ourselves to drift down that road the PFI will quickly be discredited as a bookkepping fix." 12/n
"The public sector purchaser must preserve a reasonable degree of freedom to take his business elsewhere; the private sector provider must retain the commercial risk that attaches to his venture." 11/n
"We should start with the contract between the public sector purchaser and the private sector provider... Each contract will have to meet a value for money test..., must be placed as a result of an open competition..., must preserve the independence of both parites." 10/n
"We are of course asked to clarify the rules which will now be applied. 'We understand you have torn up the Ryrie Rules', we are told, 'but what have you put in thier place'. It is to that question that I now want to turn."
See Ryrie Rules https://t.co/fQGTLT8VWE 9/n