Tag: subsidy

Posted on by Tim Worstall

New York Times Discovers The Problem With The Large State

The New York Times is not normally a fan of the small, minarchist, state. That is to put the point in a most mild manner, for they’re usually all in favour of ever more governance and ever larger government, as long as the sort of people who write the New York Times are the people doing the governing.

When considering the European Union’s agricultural policies they manage to spot a small flaw in how such a system works:

Yet it is opaque in key areas, with gaping shortcomings in accountability.

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Serious Stupidity About Electricity And Renewables

Just consider this. Taste it, savour the flavour, then ponder on the gross idiocy necessary to think it a problem.

But ministers have refused to lift a block on support for new onshore wind farms, which are unable to compete for subsidies despite being one of the cheapest forms of electricity.

Why does the cheap form of electricity generation need subsidy?

Answers on a postcard to John Gummer.

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Do These People Even Read Their Own Articles?

As we know Naomi Campbell didn’t even read the novel published under her name let alone write it. Something to think about as we regard these academics and their ruminations upon electricity generation:

Fast-forward to 2019: onshore wind is the UK’s cheapest form of electricity,

OK, excellent, therefore people will be building it in preference to other forms of ‘leccie generation.

So, are energy policymakers listening to the public? The short answer is: no. At present, the UK government is pursuing the energy technologies which receive the lowest levels of public support (nuclear and fracking), while cuts to various subsidy schemes are making it more difficult for popular onshore renewables such as wind and solar to get built.

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

How Silly Is This? Malaysia Subsidises Sugar So Much People Smuggle It

Most of the world is desperately trying to reduce the amount of sugar people eat. There are calls for taxes on anything which does contain sugar, several places – including the UK – have extra taxes on soda pop because of that sugar content and so on. That sugar consumption is already down from historical levels is something people seem keen not to acknowledge.

Then there’s people at the other end of the silliness spectrum like Malaysia.…

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

As We’ve Been Saying, We Should Subsidise Vaping

The big question about vaping from a public health perspective is whether it reduces health problems or increases them? The more basic civil liberty point, that people should be able to ingest as they please, is true but already rather lost unfortunately.

So, is vaping a substitute for smoking? People vape instead of smoking that is? Or is it a complement to smoking. People do both, doing the one increasing the rate or likelihood of the other?…

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Ridiculous Idea – £2,000 Not To Use A Car

The underlying thought has some merit here but once they worked out the cost they should have shot this dog. For they’re suggesting that people should be paid some £2,000 to £3,000 to not use a car for a year. To use public transport instead etc.

As an experiment? Well, why not? The why not being, well, what are these people thinking? There are 30 million households in the country. £2,000 a year each is £60 billion.…

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Owen Jones Wants Us To Throw £10 Billion A Year At His Mates

Owen Jones is not one known for thinking through his plans for the world – not known for acknowledging extant reality in them in fact. So it is with this latest solution of his, the one that imposes censorship on the British media at a cost to the rest of us of £10 billion a year. It’s a nice enough bung for his mates of course but it does rather miss the target.

His first mistake is to think that capitalist organisations try to change the views of their audience.…

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

European Union’s Lies About Fossil Fuel Subsidies – It’s Just Lower VAT On Household Energy Bills

The European Union has a report out telling us that the UK provides more fossil fuels subsidies than anywhere else. This is nonsense nonsense amounting to a lie. But then when did something like that ever stop The Guardian? Or the EU for that matter:

The UK leads the European Union in giving subsidies to fossil fuels, according to a report from the European commission. It found €12bn (£10.5bn) a year in support for fossil fuels in the UK, significantly more than the €8.3bn

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Surprise! People Like Free Things Like Solar Power Subsidies

This is a finding from the very Annals Of The Extraordinary. People like to have free things and in the absence of that they’d like other people to pay for at least part of whatever it is. As we’ll all agree, such an interesting and unusual insight into the human species. This all applies to solar power. We all think it’s just loverlly, we’d kiss ourselves to have it. As long as someone else pays for it.…

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Posted on by Tim Worstall

Let’s Make UK Farming Profitable Post-Brexit – Abolish All Subsidies Entirely

Quite what we all do with the farmers when we leave the European Union is one of those little conundrums. The farmers themselves will scream blue bloody murder if they stop getting their usual excessive cheques. Varied townies will moan that the countryside won’t look beautiful for them. And everyone sensible will say that this is the golden opportunity to sort out British farming once and for all by doing a full New Zealand. Simply stop all subsidies entirely.…

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