So if we were to start the UK from scratch what you do differently?

[KnittedBreast]

We all seem to know whats wrong with the UK so if the country was cleansed of those in power and all our current instituions and we had the chance to start from scratch, what would you like to see?

Properly equal rights.
Organic farming as normal.
Proper investment in green R&D.
No reliance on foreign food or energy.
Strong manufacturing sector.
Emphasis on science and maths in schools.

Have a banking sector built on ethics and responsibility not greed and power.

Have politicians whose priority is public service not greed and power.

Sorry - these two are very boring and predictable.

Still thinking - interesting OP.

some good ideas there.

Id have all transport and banking nationalised. as would the energy and water company.

All houses would be state owned and would not be able to be passed on to the next generation within your family.

All woodlands, beaches, fields etc would be state owned.

In fact we would exist within our place in the country, not owning anything but using it as a temporary place before we die.

The above are brilliant ideas ladies!

Mine would simply be - move the whole bloody island somewhere a bit warmer

Seriously though, am liking this thread and looking forward to hearing more...

Designate major cities with a principal specialist function (finance, manufacturing, service industries, new technology etc) and site main government departments, universities, airports in each. In other words, spread jobs, functions and population around far more evenly rather than everything being in London and the S.E.

id also have proper porportional representation, people would run government rather than the current elite.

we would have no monarchy-bit of a piss take trying to breed equality when we still pay the queen shit loads to do not very much.

Oh sprey knittedbreast, don't really agree with your ideas but like the ideas from the other ladies

chil234 do you mean that each city would have each of those aspects there rather than all finacie being run in london etc?

thats ok, i am aware that few people would agree with my ideas. no harm done

Agree about the monarchy but then again - they do generate a lot of money in tourism terms and am
I right I'm thinking they generate more than we pay? But the whole blue blood thing is bollocks

No porn on sale where children can see it.
No sexualisation of children by anyone, ever.
Feminism would be seen as a force for good not a dirty word.

Like your name though knittedbreast!

chil1234 - I was trying to think of some way to make that point about everything being South-east orientated.

I was afraid of causing offence with my wording - especially as I am a Londoner by birth (although no-one would know this!) and didn't want to detract from the thread.

So, yes, definitely a fairer geographical spread of housing/poulation/jobs/hospitals/universities/transport hubs.

I'd also like the Lake District to be just outside my house if that's ok.

Id move manchester down into Cornwall and then build a massive wall around it to keep all you southern shandy drinkers out.

I would have resisted invading other countries and developing empire through the oppression of the people in these countries, would hopefully mean that the rest of the world would like us a little better.

I would reform the voting system so that everyone's vote counted and I would abolish the non-elected aspect of the House of Lords and the Monarchy.

In terms of business, where to start, but I think a useful law would be to limit the differential allowed between the person in the company paid the most and those paid the least, which would hopefully go some way to easing the gap between rich and poor.

I'm sure there would be loads of other stuff too if I thought about it.

agree with you callisto

MsKLO thankyou! im currently knitting a breast so I thought id make it my name!

Oh agree with those who say we need to spread things out a bit so that everything is not concentrated in the South East, it seems so silly when we're such a small country with good transport links and we have the technology available to make it easier to work with people in different locations.

I think we should have centres of excellence for specific functions, supported by regional tax incentives for those industries. The City of London is already the centre of excellence for financiers but it is also home to too much of everything else. Means Heathrow becomes too vast, the SE road network is chewed, the housing costs a premium .... whilst other areas of the country languish as job-free, poverty-stricken zones. Imagine if several government departments shipped out to somewhere like Cardiff, it became the hub for Media, Creative and Culture businesses, the airport was massively upgraded and so forth...

Central government would spend a year operating from each major city as well so that it became truly national

I'd put the Capital slap bang in the middle of the country!

Have a cracking public transport system - rail in particular!

I'd not have most of the land and wealth given to so few people

There wouldn't be a monarchy

water, gas and electric would be none profit making organisations!

lots of good quality social housing

lots of good open spaces

I'd make sure systems were efficient and not built up into the huge, wasteful, ridiculous things they are now that nobody wants to take an axe to because they have been established for so long and it would cost a fortune to sort them out and even though they are haemorraging money, the thought of actually doing something about it makes people threaten to strike

I'd make sure that there was actual industry in the country with actual, real things to sell so we could trade with the rest of the world and we wouldn't have to import practically everything because we've closed down most of our factories

There wouldn't be dole as such. Everyone who was physically able would work. If they couldn't find a job then the state would pay them a wage in return for work. In hospitals, parks - so many things. They'd have a choice. But choosing to do no work would not be an option for people capable of work.

Vulnerable or disabled people would be much better supported.

And there's loads more, including probably a novel on the criminal justice system

I'd give it Sweden's social and political structure with Portugal's climate.

agree with the capital in the middle of england-truely central.

when i was little i used to watch the news and they were always harping on about the gov bowing down to middle england, i used to think why is birmingham or nottingham so important? sadly i thought they actually meant people who lived in the middle of england, not the middle class.....silly silly me!

im liking witches ideas too

erase colonialism and the slave trade

oh and move the country to somewhere HOT

No House of Lords, instead a second house elected by PR every 2 years.

I'd keep the monarchy - sorry Knitted! - as I actually think the Queen works bloody hard. Proper written constitution with the Queen having the power to sack the Government if they go against the Constitution.

When Brits return to the UK after holidays abroad, a special queue just for us at passport control. With a welcoming cup of tea and 3 x Rich Tea biscuits each, served by two nice old ladies called Maureen and Janet who call everyone 'sweetheartl'!

Men investigated for cruelty to animals placed on a DV watch list due to the incredibly high correlation between the two.

Children who grow up in care will have a guaranteed right to attend university, tuition fees paid! In fact scrap tuition fees!

All forests in public ownership.

An optimum population level agreed and all government policies aimed at not exceeding that level.

how would you manage the population issue? if weve reached 6 billion or whatever how would you stop over population?

Well we're starting from scratch so I'm assuming there's just a few sensible MNers and their DHs and DCs people initially! Will take a long time to get anywhere near the level!