Two Stories combined over the last few days that, for me, juxtaposed Scotland's possible and unfolding futures.
First, in Norway's Aftenposten and covered in English here, the happy story of the Norwegian oil fund:
‘Oil fund’ reaches dizzying new highs
The other, in Today's Scotsman was the not so happy story of Scotland's economic predicament:
Scots getting poorer faster than the English
Norwegian finance minister Sigbjørn Johnsen can hardly believe how successful the Norwegian oil fund has been: "It’s kind of like a dream”. In pounds the oil fund is worth £316 billion pounds which is enough to pay all Scotland's public spending for 10 years without taxation. In 10 years, on paper, every Norwegian will be a millionaire.
According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Scots have been getting poorer faster than the English since the 'crisis' began. Child poverty and unemployent are exploding and London cuts have yet to start!
Scots could vote to have what Norway has. Instead they vote for despair and decline. What makes them do that?
Answers on a postcard.
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6 comments:
Popped a link elsewhere.
@CH,
Thanks. I'm working on an oil story right now - a follow up to the article posted elsewhere..
Excellent article.
Yet it would seem that not having a minimum price for booze is more politically resonant with the population.
Profoundly depressing
" Scots could vote to have what Norway has. Instead they vote for despair and decline. What makes them do that?"
Maybe because when they vote to have what Norway has they get shafted by the SNP who renege on their side of the bargain and scrap Independence ?
In other news, for the cost of a new nuclear power station , we have the new windfarm /seafarm ?. Read this article and weep at the kind of project Alex Salmond is throwing £8Bn at ( although I noticed today in the Scottish parliament he wants 80% of our energy from renewables now so I think that must be £16Bn or something. WTF ?
Anyway Alex humour me and read this article...
http://eureferendum.blogspot.com/2010/09/scam-spreads.html
Bob I would check on that post re nuclear newbuild at £1.2 billion as they are way of the mark.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/31/new-warnings-about-costs-of-nuclear-power/
cynical..
I think the NYT's must have been talking to the ex PR man now minister in charge of 'climate change ' our Mr Hendry who knows the square root of eff all about energy.
So don't take any notice. This is the minister who claimed France was importing energy to help it's flagging nuclear power stations forgetting to tell us that French nuclear workers were on strike and so half their nuclear power stations were offline.
Usual smoke and mirrors.
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