
I hope no one proposes to put childrens’ safety at risk, as there is always a chance of things turning nasty.
Generally, I don’t approve of ‘stunts’ to further political aims – usually they achieve nothing, promote disorder, and divert police resources. My dilemma is UK Uncut has a point.
However wrongheaded and impossibly idealistic are this band of youthful activists, they strike a popular chord. Banks are in the doghouse nationwide for good reason.
“There are alternatives to the cuts, for example, making the banks pay for a crisis they created or stopping tax dodging by corporations and the rich,” says the group’s website. It could never happen – there’s no way an industrialised country can step outside of the mechanics of the market – especially one as indebted as the UK.
But Barclays and the police had better handle UK Uncut demonstrators with kid-gloves – tear gas was used at a Boots demo – because they are on the fringes of a nationwide antipathy towards the banks.
Barclays cause was not helped last night with news the bank paid corporation tax of just £113 million on annual profits of £4.85 billion back in 2009. Even allowing the bank’s defence – the weight of its exposure overseas etc – it still looks a remarkably low bill.
The recently announced Project Merlin squeeze on the banks by the Coalition earned a few squeals from the sector but left unscathed the biggest scandal of all – City bonuses.
But the initiative was lost by the Labour government when it had the banks by the throat in the 2008 financial crisis. Barclays was just as much a beneficiary of the bailout by taxpayers even if the State didn’t take a stake.
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