It’s looking like the final days of the McBroons as they scramble from saving face in the hot Afghan desert and onto snowy Copenhagen to save the world from climate change. As they have got so little right in their 12 years of mis-rule, few would give them any odds on pulling something useful out of the fire at this late stage of their decline.
McBroon and his cohorts are allowing the busted banks to pay bonuses and fund the Krafty take-over of a British chocs company; Spend money faster than they can print it on some days, while cheating on promised pension increases; providing vital helicopters after five years of military casualties while whitewashing over the vainglorious Iraq invasion… offering Third World ragamuffins billions to squander on staying green while giving nowt to Britain’s greenest van maker - who’s now gone bust.
It’s a fairy tale world the McBroons have created for themselves, but surely without a happy fairy tale ending… Hans Christian Andersen lived in Copenhagen and like McBroon he liked to travel around the world compiling imaginative stories to tell, one of which, “Only a Fiddler”, might become McBroon’s tomb-top testimonial when judged by history?
The parlous and changed state of Great Britain PLC, now Lorded over by the mortgage fiddler with more titles than Idi Amin, Saddam Hussain, Robert Mugabe and Hazel Blears, is getting many people looking for a better country to move to.
A place where their meagre pensions will go further; where the sun shines 300 days of the year and their neighbours will be friendly and more respectful in their safer neighbourhoods. The nearest place is Spain, where they can now find a nice house for less than the average price of a flat in the UK.
Spain’s in the recession too and in trouble because they built too many second homes to cater for the never-ending demand from discontented Brits, bored Benelux bods and over-rich Russians. As Spanish banks were not allowed to stray into the twilight zones of dodgy lending and toxic assets they are still around to advance good mortgages to sensible borrowers.
As McBroon has done nothing to support Sterling, the pound has crashed against the Euro, making life difficult for Brits paying mortgages in Spain. Some have had their Spanish homes repossessed, but most will go without the Sunday roast before giving up their splendid lifestyle on their favourite Costa.
Showing posts with label recession. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recession. Show all posts
16 December 2009
27 May 2009
Spanish practices in perks and property...
There was a bit of an image problem for Spain when trade unions called the shots in Seventies Britain by demanding more money for less work, layered with a load of bosses' perks.
It was likened to traditional similar practices in Spain and the insult stuck, despite that country subsequently becoming a dynamic Med powerhouse with a strong economy, 21st century communications, and the leading tourist destination and international property market.
Margaret Thatcher kicked the trade unions and their “Spanish practices” into touch, resulting in the strongest-ever Britsh economy as inherited by the incoming McBroon government.
Now the country is looking busted with £750 billion of debt and wracked by the parliamentary expenses scandal, the media has harked back to the Seventies for the ultimate sobriequet "Spanish practices" to describe the fiddles and scams of McBroon ministers and MPs from all parties.
The unspeakable Mick Martin was cast in the role of the old trade union boss, living it up with the free big house and chauffer cars and encouraging the Honourable Members to claim for the maximum on the taxpayers’ tab...
When the House of Commons members were exposed as “indulging in old-style Spanish practices”, the shop steward simply had to go. Commentators, such as the BBC’s Nick Robinson - their one terrier in a team of political poodles - have used the “Spanish practices” phrase and it has been revived in the minds of the general public.
But it should now carry the different usage and meaning. The last time a Spanish Government lied to its citizenry – “ETA blew up commuter trains in Madrid” - it was swept from office within weeks.
That’s one “Spanish practice” that could be useful in ridding Britain of the failed McBroons and their poor governance, ongoing spin, failed fiscal policy and downright dishonesty. Over-50s in Britain remember clearly the benefits of renewal process started by the incoming Thatcher government... they’d like to see similar sooner rather than later.
Meantime, they are becoming more aquainted with the practice of buying property in Spain, cashing in on that country’s recessional woes, such as Spanish bank repossessions and other distressed sales. Over-50s reckon spending more time out of Britain might be better for their health, welfare and wallet.
It was likened to traditional similar practices in Spain and the insult stuck, despite that country subsequently becoming a dynamic Med powerhouse with a strong economy, 21st century communications, and the leading tourist destination and international property market.
Margaret Thatcher kicked the trade unions and their “Spanish practices” into touch, resulting in the strongest-ever Britsh economy as inherited by the incoming McBroon government.
Now the country is looking busted with £750 billion of debt and wracked by the parliamentary expenses scandal, the media has harked back to the Seventies for the ultimate sobriequet "Spanish practices" to describe the fiddles and scams of McBroon ministers and MPs from all parties.
The unspeakable Mick Martin was cast in the role of the old trade union boss, living it up with the free big house and chauffer cars and encouraging the Honourable Members to claim for the maximum on the taxpayers’ tab...
When the House of Commons members were exposed as “indulging in old-style Spanish practices”, the shop steward simply had to go. Commentators, such as the BBC’s Nick Robinson - their one terrier in a team of political poodles - have used the “Spanish practices” phrase and it has been revived in the minds of the general public.
But it should now carry the different usage and meaning. The last time a Spanish Government lied to its citizenry – “ETA blew up commuter trains in Madrid” - it was swept from office within weeks.
That’s one “Spanish practice” that could be useful in ridding Britain of the failed McBroons and their poor governance, ongoing spin, failed fiscal policy and downright dishonesty. Over-50s in Britain remember clearly the benefits of renewal process started by the incoming Thatcher government... they’d like to see similar sooner rather than later.
Meantime, they are becoming more aquainted with the practice of buying property in Spain, cashing in on that country’s recessional woes, such as Spanish bank repossessions and other distressed sales. Over-50s reckon spending more time out of Britain might be better for their health, welfare and wallet.
14 February 2009
Spain moves could aid crashed Brits
Brits are biting the bullet every day as the media reveal more bungling of the ruling McBroons and their cosy cohorts in the banking business.
Having forced Lloyds Bank into a shotgun marriage with busted HBOS, McBroon preened how single-handedly he’d saved British banking and trotted off to meet the more sensible leaders of other countries to “lead the world out of recession”.
He never paused to get the Bank of England, his beloved and disgraced Financial Services Authority (FSA) nor his army of foolish fiscal mandarins to check the balance sheet of beggarly HBOS. Nor did Lloyds do much checking, in their haste to grab the McBroon billions in bribes if they saved his skin.
Ten billion quid is a lot of money and that’s what Lloyds will have to write off having found toxic assets in HBOS. It was comeuppance week for the British bankers when they trotted along to Westminster to say sorry for fouling up the world economy and wrecking the lives of millions.
They said it wasn’t their fault though…implying that that the FSA, operating the light touch” governance of McBroon for a decade or so, had not rapped their knuckles or threatened to downgrade the chateau wine at their next cosy luncheon..
So where to now for cash-strapped Brits, whose property assets and pensions are worth a third less than they thought and the markets that govern the prices are in total disarray and unlikely to show any growth for years to come, according to some pundits.
Think Spain, where the banks were banned from getting involved with American trailer trash mortgages, are still reporting good profits and have plenty of cash waiting for mortgage applicants. They also have the best interest rates for savers with one deal from La Caixa at 6% on 12 month call, being over-subscribed by a long way.
The Spanish banks also have a growing supply of repossession homes at up to 50% below current valuation and they can be purchased from specialist broker http://www.propertyinspain.net/ often with low cost subrogated mortgages built-in.
It’s an obvious way out of the crazy world of the McBroons, who seem to turn everything they touch into a solidifying rock bottom of common sense and diligence.
It seems few of the McBroons have actually run anything remotely commercial in their lives. If UK PLC was a commercial undertaking it would be going bust about this time and the McBroons would be collecting their redundancy payments and handing back the keys to the limo.
Having forced Lloyds Bank into a shotgun marriage with busted HBOS, McBroon preened how single-handedly he’d saved British banking and trotted off to meet the more sensible leaders of other countries to “lead the world out of recession”.
He never paused to get the Bank of England, his beloved and disgraced Financial Services Authority (FSA) nor his army of foolish fiscal mandarins to check the balance sheet of beggarly HBOS. Nor did Lloyds do much checking, in their haste to grab the McBroon billions in bribes if they saved his skin.
Ten billion quid is a lot of money and that’s what Lloyds will have to write off having found toxic assets in HBOS. It was comeuppance week for the British bankers when they trotted along to Westminster to say sorry for fouling up the world economy and wrecking the lives of millions.
They said it wasn’t their fault though…implying that that the FSA, operating the light touch” governance of McBroon for a decade or so, had not rapped their knuckles or threatened to downgrade the chateau wine at their next cosy luncheon..
So where to now for cash-strapped Brits, whose property assets and pensions are worth a third less than they thought and the markets that govern the prices are in total disarray and unlikely to show any growth for years to come, according to some pundits.
Think Spain, where the banks were banned from getting involved with American trailer trash mortgages, are still reporting good profits and have plenty of cash waiting for mortgage applicants. They also have the best interest rates for savers with one deal from La Caixa at 6% on 12 month call, being over-subscribed by a long way.
The Spanish banks also have a growing supply of repossession homes at up to 50% below current valuation and they can be purchased from specialist broker http://www.propertyinspain.net/ often with low cost subrogated mortgages built-in.
It’s an obvious way out of the crazy world of the McBroons, who seem to turn everything they touch into a solidifying rock bottom of common sense and diligence.
It seems few of the McBroons have actually run anything remotely commercial in their lives. If UK PLC was a commercial undertaking it would be going bust about this time and the McBroons would be collecting their redundancy payments and handing back the keys to the limo.
6 December 2008
Spain: Recession is quieter over here
As the British economy staggers from crisis to crisis, as witnessed by the daily poor numbers on sales, mortgages, repossessions, jobless, pensions and business confidence, Spain seems less frenetic, despite having the most unemployed in Europe.
With its massive construction industry in decline and house-building down by a third to 400,000 completions this year, it hardly surprising jobless figures are rising and may reach 15% next year,
The Spanish Government announced an 11 billion euro stimulus package aimed at creating 300,000 jobs and cushioning the Spanish economy from the global crisis. Prime Minister José Luis RodrÃguez Zapatero told the Spanish Parliament that the package, which will cost the equivalent of about 1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) would include about 8 billion euros for public works and an additional 800 million euros to help the country’s ailing auto industry.
Spain has also created a 50 billion euro fund to buy assets from banks that need liquidity and said it will underwrite up to 100 billion euros in new bank debt. The country can afford this because its massive reserves contrast with the “cupboard’s bare” position in the UK.
Said the Prime Minister, “The public investment measures are meant to protect and create jobs. Particularly due to the big contraction taking place in our property sector, Spain is especially sensitive to the poor international environment.”
By that, he means foreigners are not buying second homes in Spain at the same level enjoyed during the last decade. By bank assets, he means the 1,000s of completed homes funded by the banks in the building boom years and lying empty as the recession bites in the UK and other north European nations whose citizens have been buying sunshine homes.
The next move is fairly predictable. In a dash for cash, more developers will offer huge discounts for their key ready apartments on the Costas and even more will themselves under pressure from their funder banks to do the same in order to pay back outstanding loans.
So expect a buying bonanza in 2009 as Brits, Germans and Scandinavians are tempted by discounts of 20% to 50% on quality apartments with swimming pools, paddle tennis courts, gyms and spas close to the golden beaches and amenities of top Costa resorts.
With an asset in the world’s strongest currency it’s an investment that will start to look good in 3-5 years as Spain is expected to remain as Europe’s top holiday destination.
Meanwhile, for buyers in 2009 the new place in sunny Spain will provide a lovely family refuge from the trials and tribulations that will continue to afflict the UK for years to come as a result of the McBroons’ fiscal frolics…
With its massive construction industry in decline and house-building down by a third to 400,000 completions this year, it hardly surprising jobless figures are rising and may reach 15% next year,
The Spanish Government announced an 11 billion euro stimulus package aimed at creating 300,000 jobs and cushioning the Spanish economy from the global crisis. Prime Minister José Luis RodrÃguez Zapatero told the Spanish Parliament that the package, which will cost the equivalent of about 1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) would include about 8 billion euros for public works and an additional 800 million euros to help the country’s ailing auto industry.
Spain has also created a 50 billion euro fund to buy assets from banks that need liquidity and said it will underwrite up to 100 billion euros in new bank debt. The country can afford this because its massive reserves contrast with the “cupboard’s bare” position in the UK.
Said the Prime Minister, “The public investment measures are meant to protect and create jobs. Particularly due to the big contraction taking place in our property sector, Spain is especially sensitive to the poor international environment.”
By that, he means foreigners are not buying second homes in Spain at the same level enjoyed during the last decade. By bank assets, he means the 1,000s of completed homes funded by the banks in the building boom years and lying empty as the recession bites in the UK and other north European nations whose citizens have been buying sunshine homes.
The next move is fairly predictable. In a dash for cash, more developers will offer huge discounts for their key ready apartments on the Costas and even more will themselves under pressure from their funder banks to do the same in order to pay back outstanding loans.
So expect a buying bonanza in 2009 as Brits, Germans and Scandinavians are tempted by discounts of 20% to 50% on quality apartments with swimming pools, paddle tennis courts, gyms and spas close to the golden beaches and amenities of top Costa resorts.
With an asset in the world’s strongest currency it’s an investment that will start to look good in 3-5 years as Spain is expected to remain as Europe’s top holiday destination.
Meanwhile, for buyers in 2009 the new place in sunny Spain will provide a lovely family refuge from the trials and tribulations that will continue to afflict the UK for years to come as a result of the McBroons’ fiscal frolics…
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