Thread by @tony_nog

1) Thread - It's not the Manifesto stupid, Why John McDonnell wants #Brexit
Interesting interview with JMcD on #Marr this morning. He talked about nationalisation of water companies but used "speculators" as a term quite liberally.
So what? Well, pull up a chair

2) however, let's say we do renationalise water, and gas & electricity. Ok, unlike rail (where the rail network is already nationalised & franchises simply expire & can be taken back) the utility companies are real industries with a market value

3) now, regardless of the wisdom (?) of privatisation, it happened, 30 years ago and we are where we are now. Labour would need to buy back these companies at that market value. That's a lot of money to find, a very long term bet and a lot of cash post #Brexit

4) which is why McDonnell using the word "speculators" is interesting, and worrying.

Utility companies are not dot com, start up volatile companies, there is not a booming day trade "buy high/sell low" share business in E.On,the shareholders are generally long term pension funds

5) the utilities are not owned by "speculators" but by investors. But by describing them as such McDonnell is setting up I suspect for a seizure of assets at a government defined price, below Market value, grabbing the assets back from "speculators"

This was not in the manifesto

6) it's also however likely against single market rules, ie the state seizing assets for a knock down price.

It would also shatter investment in the UK, why invest if the government can grab your company?

But how else do you finance an asset grab post #Brexit?

7) hence, McDonnell wants out of the EU, to have maximum freedom. It also means you can forget anything in the manifesto as he'd be operating to a different paradigm.

8) you may even be in favour of this model, control of the "commanding heights" of the economy was Labour policy until about 30 yrs ago so it's not exactly out there

However, a post #Brexit land grab of company assets, in an already weakened Economy, is not an experiment I fancy

9) ultimately the reason we are still in this mess is because both the far right & far left want "freedom" from the liberal anchor of the EU,for different, but ultimately authoritarian reasons, control, power, to force a reshape of our society (that crucially, was not voted for)

10) the EU keeps states "in the middle", which is why far lefters call it neo-liberal & far righters call it socialist, it prevents them dragging countries to the extremes.

It's also why both sides use the easy answers of cheap populism to persuade people to agree

10) because describing pension funds as "speculators" *is* cheap populism
End