Merv outvoted

MacMickster

Generali wrote: »

For those worried about the price of imports, remember you can afford expensive imports if you have a job but you can't afford cheap ones if you don't.

There is a problem in equating household finances to an economy.

Energy remains a significant cost to both households and business in the UK. We rely heavily on imported oil and gas. Increasing the price of these to UK users (by devaluing the pound) makes wage inflation far more likely, whilst also increasing (in sterling) costs of manufacturing and transporting goods.

UK plc actually risks working hard but still being unable to afford expensive foreign imports, without our exports looking particularly cheap either.

Generali

MacMickster wrote: »

There is a problem in equating household finances to an economy.

Energy remains a significant cost to both households and business in the UK. We rely heavily on imported oil and gas. Increasing the price of these to UK users (by devaluing the pound) makes wage inflation far more likely, whilst also increasing (in sterling) costs of manufacturing and transporting goods.

UK plc actually risks working hard but still being unable to afford expensive foreign imports, without our exports looking particularly cheap either.

You do but the situation isn't as bleak as is painted (as usual).

For the 12 months to September 2012 the deficit in oil was £13,668,000,000 out of a total trade of over £700,000,000,000.

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-286024

vivatifosi

Generali wrote: »

Merv and other Governors have regularly had split votes and that's how it should be, again contrary to the views of some here, as each member of the MPC is independent from the others as well as from the Government.

Poorly worded on my part. I know that the split vote is common, it is just that it didn't very often go against him, it's this latter point I was trying to get across.

This isn't something I'm particularly interested tbh, I just felt a duty to come back and host something I had started. So my posting has just been a bit slapdash.. Sorry:o.

MacMickster

Generali wrote: »

You do but the situation isn't as bleak as is painted (as usual).

For the 12 months to September 2012 the deficit in oil was £13,668,000,000 out of a total trade of over £700,000,000,000.

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-286024

The balance of trade deficit in respect of food, oil and other fuels comes to over half of the balance of trade surplus in respect of all services.

I firmly believe that making these essentials more expensive, at a time when energy prices are expected to rise significantly without the effect of currency fluctuations, then this will lead to the wage inflation that we have so far managed to avoid.

The situation certainly isn't as rosy as your interpretation of the figures suggests. Currency devaluation is not a panacea and brings the risk of an inflationary spiral which will actually leave us far less competetive than we are currently. There is a tipping point which I believe that we are fast approaching.

grizzly1911

Generali wrote: »

For those worried about the price of imports, remember you can afford expensive imports if you have a job but you can't afford cheap ones if you don't.

Depends on your job and rate of pay.

Energy is an expensive luxury for many and the need to stay warm is a difficult choice for many.

.

Generali

grizzly1911 wrote: »

Depends on your job and rate of pay.

Energy is an expensive luxury for many and the need to stay warm is a difficult choice for many.

.

I would imagine those without work generally face tougher choices regarding heating than those with it.

For example when I'm at work my air con bill is $0 as the boss picks it up for me.

grizzly1911

Generali wrote: »

I would imagine those without work generally face tougher choices regarding heating than those with it.

For example when I'm at work my air con bill is $0 as the boss picks it up for me.

Save on loo rolls as well;)

I was going to say air con for you guys.

We have a AUS relocation program here thst gives UK bods a chance to "taste" AUS. When they compare bills form the UK and AUS stuff over there is quite often more expensive but it is interesting to see the air con cost usually exceeds the heating cost here.

Generali

grizzly1911 wrote: »

Save on loo rolls as well;)

I was going to say air con for you guys.

We have a AUS relocation program here thst gives UK bods a chance to "taste" AUS. When they compare bills form the UK and AUS stuff over there is quite often more expensive but it is interesting to see the air con cost usually exceeds the heating cost here.

Yeah, Aussie houses are very badly insulated if at all.

The first house I rented here was a shack, far worse than many houses that would be condemned in the UK. It had a single 'fibro' wall between us and the outside (fibro is a stable mix of concrete and asbestos fibres AIUI). We had single glazed windows made out of picture glass, a corrugated iron roof (known as a tin roof here, probably because the iron is galvanized with zinc which looks like tin) and holes around the edges you could fit your fist through (and fist sized spiders regularly made their way in).

In the UK you couldn't live like that; in the first hard winter you'd die. Over here there was some discomfort but nothing life threatening.

As a result, Aussies tend to chuck houses up with little thought for the bills that result: after all if you can't afford the electric bill then you can turn the air con off for the parts of summer that are below 40C.

wotsthat

vivatifosi wrote: »

Poorly worded on my part. I know that the split vote is common, it is just that it didn't very often go against him, it's this latter point I was trying to get across.

Merv votes last so given the split he chose to vote for the losing side.

A former MPC member on the radio this morning says Merv normally goes with the majority so it's significant that he voted knowing that he couldn't affect the outcome.

Harry_Boyle

Generali wrote: »

Yeah, Aussie houses are very badly insulated if at all.

The first house I rented here was a shack, far worse than many houses that would be condemned in the UK. It had a single 'fibro' wall between us and the outside (fibro is a stable mix of concrete and asbestos fibres AIUI). We had single glazed windows made out of picture glass, a corrugated iron roof (known as a tin roof here, probably because the iron is galvanized with zinc which looks like tin) and holes around the edges you could fit your fist through (and fist sized spiders regularly made their way in).

In the UK you couldn't live like that; in the first hard winter you'd die. Over here there was some discomfort but nothing life threatening.

As a result, Aussies tend to chuck houses up with little thought for the bills that result: after all if you can't afford the electric bill then you can turn the air con off for the parts of summer that are below 40C.

Surely it must pay off to insulate the houses to keep out the heat rather than to rely on air conditioning. There are plenty of house designs from ancient Persia that use passive air conditioning techniques that could be updated and used. There shouldn't really be a need for aircon if the houses are designed and built correctly.

Passivhaus designs in Northern Europe need little or no heat even when the temperature gets down in the minus double digits. The same should hold true if the temperature gets into the high 30s.