The Island didn’t vote for socialism [Ben Shenton]

SOME recent events have demonstrated how we, as a society, must protect vulnerable 16- and 17-year-olds as they can be easily influenced and led astray.
At this age, their brains are not fully developed and this is why, when I was a politician, I did not support the introduction of the vote for 16-year-olds. They are susceptible to influence and fairytale ideologies.
Socialism may appear an attractive political system at this age, yet the reality is it is a form of government that only works if you have someone to pay for it, and does not work at all when the money runs out. A passage in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13:11, seems to sum up socialism most succinctly: ‘When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.’ I don’t believe the majority voted in the last election for a bloated and expensive big brother socialist centralised government, albeit I’m not sure anyone’s vote actually made a difference.
On Sunday, while walking the dog, a woman stopped me to vent her anger. Within ten minutes I knew her whole life story, and to say she was not a fan of Reform would be a massive understatement.
Her blood pressure had risen to dangerous levels when she read an advertisement by the government calling for landlords to freeze rents, which followed their decision that they would in future decide if your accommodation can be rented. She is retired, has only a small basic pension and relies on the rental income from a small flatlet.
The government has increased her rates and electricity bills, added GST to her Amazon orders, and then had the temerity to ask her to freeze the rent she charges while giving its own staff, even those earning £150,000 or more, a union supported 7.9% pay rise. As the rent she charges includes parish rates and electricity/ water, the government seem intent on reducing her net income at a time of rising prices.
There is an economic theory called the butterfly effect, which is the notion that a small occurrence can have big implications.
Normally this is only apparent in hindsight, but two recent government decisions will certainly have major negative implications for the economy.
The first is the JFSC’s decision to abandon the ‘level playing field’ principle and bring in onerous director registration legislation that even the lawyers don’t seem to agree on in respect of interpretation and implications. It puts us at a competitive disadvantage.
The second is the socialist landlord registration ‘hammer to crack a nut’, which simply duplicates many tenant protection powers already provided under existing legislation.
Both registrations require extra staffing, are a personal intrusion, are unnecessary, reduce productivity, and both will have disastrous longer-term consequences.

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