To think the UK has gone to hell in a handcart?

[Superlambaanana]

I’m just so fed up hearing about powerful people (usually men) getting away with things. It seems to have become the norm for them to do whatever the hell they like with zero consequences beyond a bit of handwringing in the media, which dies down fairly quickly, and never results in anything changing or being overturned. Leaving us ‘little people’ just having to suck it up.

Examples:

P&O sacked 800 workers in 2022. The CEO, Peter Hebblethwaite even admitted it was illegal. Yet nothing was ever done about it and he’s still CEO!

Liz Truss’s honours list. Bit of a roasting in the press for a day or two, but all the Truss supporters still got their honours in the end. Add to that Boris Johnston’s and the very dubious Charlotte Owen, and now Rishi Sunak creating a whole new honours round to make sure some party donors were rewarded in a blatant exercise in corruption.

Prince Andrew. Apparently still thinking of making a return to public life!!!!!! I mean, wtaf?!!!!!!

Michelle Mone. Has she really faced any actual consequences?

Phillip Scofield. Cheats on wife, bullies colleagues and his boyfriend, but achieves victim status because he was coming out of the closet.

Post Office scandal. Yes it’s managed to get some traction, but people will tire of it eventually and I bet that happens long before the sub-post masters get any justice or decent compensation.

Cost of living crisis and energy companies making absolute fortunes at all our expense with no prospect of bills actually coming back down to where they should be - no, instead we should be happy that they aren’t going up just as fast as last year!

Water companies. Borrowing money to give shareholders big payouts instead of actually managing the water and sewage systems to the extent that rivers are now full of faeces.

😩😫😩😫😫😩😫😩😫😫😩

I agree. Add also Boris Johnson, Matt Hancock etc whose ineptitude and dithering in Covid caused thousands of people to die and then stuck 2 fingers up at the dead by ignoring their own rules.

And the post office scandal as well.

So many people should be held properly accountable for their failings but it never happens. For a politician losing their seat doesn’t matter much they will have plenty of connections to use to make money. And the post office lot should be in jail!

And people still defend Boris, they just respond to his upper class voice and assume that means he's a decent person.
I recently listened to an LBC presenter talking about interviewing Johnson he said that one of his tactics is to never make eye contact he always looks around the room because he knows that makes it more difficult to interrupt him.
I think many people implicitly assume that no one like him would be able to get into high office. Of course we all know that's bs.
I think similar factors apply with trump, trump is America's Boris

Another one for your list @Superlambaanana on LBC news today they were talking about the tax dodges that big corporates in UK get away with.

Companies like Apple, Starbucks, Google are all at it. They restructure their companies, divert profits to other parts of their behemoths etc, basically tax evasion by another name, because they have clever accountants and tax lawyers who know all the loopholes and exploit them.

Their response is always that they "complied with relevant tax laws". Disingenuous in the extreme

£2bn would have helped sort out the NHS (trouble is if the NHS got the money they would squander it through mismanagement so that's another issue.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/16/uk-lost-out-on-2bn-in-tax-in-2021-as-big-tech-shifted-profits-abroad-claim-campaigners#:~:text=The%20UK%20might%20have%20missed,campaigning%20for%20greater%20tax%20transparency.

Alternatively, Schofield’s career is over- in spite of his ex wife being supportive (and possibly being aware he’s gay for a long time) and the ex runner never accusing him of anything illegal.

I believe the relationship in question was wrong and a power imbalance at best but if he’s not actually being accused of anything illegal, I’m not sure it should end a long and successful career. Much like Huw Edwards.

And what have been the consequences of their actions? A farce of a covid inquiry, that did sod all, except waste taxpayers money. What a joke. Plenty of people still love that buffoon, and will be voting Tory.

Spot on. I’ve lived on 3 different continents and life in Britain today is dire.
The violence is horrific and sentencing so light in lots of cases it’s no wonder criminals so their own risk assessment and find the odds in their favour.

Local news yesterday was a man sentenced for 12 years for stabbing another man to death. 12 years for ending a life.

This is the article about Starbucks. The fact they've been getting away with it for so many years and yet nothing has ever been done to close the tax loophole makes it even more disgusting. But then again why would the Government ever change it when the employment figures are positively influenced by the number of outlets in UK and people employed - but the subtext is that most staff are on NMW and having to claim UC top ups.

Meanwhile the fat cats keep getting their fat bonuses and annual dividends of $164M back to the Parent company in Seattle

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/mar/30/starbucks-uk-corporation-tax-profit-administrative-expenses-royalties

Well, it's not just a British thing. It's happening everywhere that governments are not actively making a stand against corporate greed. Look at America.

Just one example: public transport. It is the way it is because of a deliberate ideological decision by Thatcher to take bus services out of LA control and throw them to the highest bidder. The only city with sufficient heft to resist was London- hence London has a superior transport network to the rest of the country.

That's actually very true, although a bit harsh.
😁
To hell in a handcart?
I think it depends how much money you have and which part of the UK you live in.
Nothing more, nothing less.

Yes if you compare us to Iran or Russia or somewhere, we are better but compared to other European democracies, are we? Why do our governments not have the foresight of for example the Scandi governments? Why is there no long term planning? Why is there so much more inequality? Why is the French government making so much out of our utilities? Why does the same North Sea Oil that has been put into a Sovereign Wealth fund for the benefit of Norwegian citizens not being used for our benefit for our share? Why do we have a second chamber stuffed with 800 people, most of them completely useless, who turn up and get paid £300 just for sitting there doing nothing? About 100-150 members of the House of Lords are working peers and do a decent job scrutinising the government. The rest are cronies of various governments, have possibly bought their honours or are ancient aristocrats. Why are we the only country in Europe apart from Belarus where apparently the electorate is too stupid to cope with a more complex but ultimately fairer and more dynamic electoral system? Compared to some dreadful regimes, we are better but comparing like for like we are worse.

He was rotten to the core, a liar, a misogynist and flakey as fuck but I lived as an adult through the Thatcher era. She was the first to open the sewer gates and start the dismantling process of anything decent in society, along with citizens rights. Successive Tory governments have returned to try to finish the job but this one has actually succeeded.

Their response is always that they "complied with relevant tax laws"
Laws which are passed by the wealthy and Powerful in order to benefit the wealthy and Powerful, it's all about preserving existing structures of wealth and power.

It is. The establishment serves the rich and the right wing first and foremost. That includes the (increasingly desperate) preservation at all costs of the Royal Family.

“ To carry on in quiet desperation is the English way”.
Pink Floyd.

I agree with your OP - accountability has been on a downward spiral over the last ten years.

I do feel this is the natural consequence of being governed by a cabinet largely made up of the independently wealthy.

There is little interest in society or a safety net and support for those who need it most. Because these are people who have been fortunate enough, by virtue of accident of birth, to never face hardship.

Wealth and status have shielded them. Privilege, elitism, an assumption that they have the right to lead - that’s their mantra.

They naturally lean towards others like them - tech billionaires, media moguls, the wealthy and powerful.

Make a donation - buy a peership - mould legislation to favour your shareholders - ensure pesky things like increased taxes for the uber wealthy, rent controls etc never see the light of day.

I don’t have faith however in the electorate. They’re easily distracted by migrant scare stories, ULEZ or whatever - while the Cabinet carry on unchallenged.

Yes it's the lack of accountability I'm on about rather than the fact that corruption exists per se. I think many now don't even bother to cover it up! Even the days of 'a good day to release bad news' seem to be over. It's just brazen it out because, sure, who's going to do anything about it?

Northern European countries have Royal Familes though. The difference seems to be that they are far more scaled back, willing to change with the times and pledge allegiance to the people, rather than us being expected to pledge allegiance to them. That we have a 'National' anthem that is about the preservaion of one person is ridiculous!

Similar stuff happen in all countries.

I honestly cannot think of an example of someone powerful who has got their just desserts. Bernie Madoff died pretty soon into his sentence and Epstein also died before receiving justice. The politicians actually go on to profit from their brazen actions!

Couldn't have put it better myself.

🍷

Yeh I am thinking Scofield was a bad example in hindsight. Mind you I'm sure he still gets invited to plenty of dinner parties and nice events and has a very nice lifestyle just out of the public eye after earning lots of money through duping us all about his true nature.

I mean, look what the Spanish Prime Minister did to stay in power! Total hypocrisy.

But it's when they don't hide it or try to pull the wool over our eyes that I'm on about. It's the blatant- yes I have given honours to someone in return for cash: what of it little people? attitude that I'm calling out here.

Hi Boris.