So, this is what happened ...

I was intending to do a piece on another topic, when an article in last Sunday's Observer gripped me. Will Hutton, a respected writer on economics, is saying, in the words of his headline, "Now we know the truth. The financial meltdown wasn't a mistake – it was a con".
This is a story about the implications of the pending prosecution against Goldman Sachs, 'the world's most famous investment bank'. The allegation is that they were selling a dodgy product, while at the same time supporting a hedge fund which was betting on the stock in that product collapsing. The question is, why have no allegations of bankers' misconduct emerged from the UK?
He makes the point, 'We have to live with the fiction that our banks and bankers are whiter than white, and any attempt to investigate them and their institutions will lead to a mass exodus to the mountains of Switzerland. The politicians of the Labour and Tory party alike are Bambis amid the wolves'.
Greens want to regulate this lot - with vigour.

Manifesto lesson 2

Our policy on the economy starts with some assumptions. Firstly, the present system is bust and is only working in fits and starts. The collapse of last year is just a symptom.
The frequent failures come from irresponsible financial speculation (casino capitalism), forgetting that resources are finite, and not grasping the implications of increasing inequality.
The Green economy ties money to goods, resources and services. It promotes equality and fair shares, and balances the books honestly against the future.
This is not a doom and gloom scenario. It creates jobs - in abundance, promotes well being and good health and reduces the reasons for international disputes and conflict.

OK, sounds fine but what of the realities? The details are on pages 8 to 11 of the Manifesto , and include

• paying back the debts (50% by 2013)
• regulate the financial sector more stringently
• protect public services
• reverse the trend of falling taxation levels