Meaningful freedom has always
implied responsibility.

With a hat tip to Graham:

SOURCES CLOSE to Alex Salmond last night accused Lord Mandelson of trying to “stack the deck” against those challenging the merger of HBOS with Lloyds TSB after they were threatened with huge legal bills unless they dropped their case.

Lawyers acting for Mandelson, the business and enterprise secretary, told the Merger Action Group (MAG) that unless it halted its legal fight, Mandelson would “pursue costs against each of the group’s identified members”.

However if the six-member group, which challenges the merger proposals at the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London tomorrow, were to drop its case, Mandelson would “wholly exceptionally waive his claim for costs”.

…

[Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott] said last night: “The tribunal is meant to be a way for small business to challenge big government. It is wrong for the Labour government to be so heavy handed.”

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Inspired by an advert in the Economist, I found this from invest-in-france.org:

New French labour regulations have been brought in and provide incentives to work more and earn more.

Companies can raise the number of hours worked by management staff or independent salaried employees from 218 days to 235 days (and even up to 282 working days if there is collective agreement for working on Saturdays).

Also, since October 2007, employees benefit from exemptions on tax and social security contributions for overtime hours worked over and above the legal working week, effectively an increase of 25% in pay for overtime. The employer also benefits from a flat reduction in employer social security charges for each additional overtime hour.

Our government has work to do to catch the French in liberalising labour laws. Who would have thought it?

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From the Times Online:

Rick Wagoner, the chief executive of General Motors, today expressed remorse for asking for a $18 billion hand-out from Washington but warned that without immediate assistance the car maker would run out of money by Christmas.

And from my spam filter:

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More echoes of a desire for central planning of the economy, whether or not it is implemented through ownership:

Britain needs urgent reform to the government’s “insufficiently joined up” industrial policy to cope with the economic challenges after the recession, Lord Mandelson was due to warn in a speech on Tuesday. The business secretary will call for a new market-led “industrial activism”, with significantly improved state support for growth sectors.

Cue unintended consequences, misdirection of investment, market failure and further intervention. And repeat until utter failure.

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The Guardian reports:

The prospects of a bleak Christmas on the high street are rising sharply as a survey out today shows a big fall in consumer spending in spite of lower interest rates and petrol prices.

Downing Street’s hopes for a consumer-led recovery fired by a cut in VAT will also be further damaged by another report that shows hiring intentions by firms have collapsed, adding to fears that unemployment will rise. In the wake of the news of 2,000 job losses on Monday, 1,200 more jobs were under threat yesterday.

Repeat after me: Keynes was wrong.

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