[Dissent-bristol-info] Updated dayschool proposal - 9/4

[Ollie]

hi, here is the text so far for privatisation - i thought it was two
sides of A5, but now realise it's A4 so will expand into a bit more
detail as this is a very broad piece.

comments and critique please.

Match of the Day Century: public v private
ONLY ONE CAN WIN!

What are public or private entities?
Private entities are owned by individuals or groups, whereas public
ones are owned by the government. Public entities are popularly linked
to communism and socialism as systems of governance that were based
around an ideal of a fully publicly owned economy. Neo-liberalist
governments in the 1970s, spearheaded by Reagan in the US and Thatcher
in the UK, started to aim towards an ideal of a fully private economy
not just at home but for the world.

The move from public to private
Popular political economic discourse in Britain and the US has been
based around recognising faults in a fully publicly owned economy and
hence aiming for the opposite, a fully private economy. In the UK,
starting with British Coal, Steel, Sugar to name a few, also
privatised (sold to companies owned by shareholders) were British
Telecom, Water, Rail and Power. These industries changed from acting
in the interests of the majority (as they do when owned and run by the
government) to acting in the interests of shareholders (as they own
the company).

What about somewhere in the middle?
What is not recognised is the possibility of operating a mixed economy
successfully. The theory behind total privatisation is that the 'free
hand' of the markets will make each industry more competitive, based
on economic models, and hence lead to lower prices and better products
(has this happened?). Included in these models is the key assumption
that private companies will act in the interests of the majority (if
the majority own a share of the company) rather than the minority
(that actually own most of the shares).

What is the Private Finance Initiative
The next phase of privatisation in the UK involves education and
health. This has been off the agenda for discussion and contrary to
popular belief the Labour government has actually accelerated the
Private Finance Initiative, the start to privatising our entire
country. Virtually none of this has been discussed either in
parliament or in the media.

Under the Private Finance Initiave, our schools and hospitals are
being sold off bit by bit to private companies that act in the
interests of their shareholders. Contracts for building work are
awarded to building firms that have the closest links to Labour Party
members that DO NOT act in the interests of the majority, let alone
the end-users of their services. Local rural hospitals are closed to
build 'super-hospitals', making people travel further, using taxpayers
money to fund the profits of the building contractors at a much
greater cost to us taxpayers than a simple total refurbishment would
have cost.

Where will this stop? Perhaps a more important question, when will
this democratic government consult us before they spend any more of
our money?

We all have the power to do something about it. Use your voice, your
brain, your body, your wallet and your vote wisely. And let them know
at Gleneagles!