[Diggers350] 300,000 jobs we really can pay for

[Simon Fairlie]

James writes: "So, if we scrap subsidies (mostly now to corporations/  
farmers/ food manufacturers/landowners... ) , they  are then  going  
to commit hare kire by  cutting their other source of income by not  
growing and selling wheat /milk /etc?"


Probably yes, that's what happened in the 1920s and 1930s when there  
were no subsidies and UK agriculture was undercut on the world market  
— we imported about 80 per cent of our food. Then the Second World  
War came and we suddenly found ourselves in short supply. Hence the  
post war subsidies, to ensure food security. The subsidies didn't  
stop jobs being lost — that was because of mechanization — but they  
have kept UK agriculture viable.

If the subsidies were cut , we might just manage to grow wheat  
profitably , because our yields are so high, but we would be  
importing more beef from Brazil, lamb from NZ, pork from Eastern  
Europe, milk from Europe or even India, sugar and vegetables from the  
third world, and just about everything else from China. Landowners in  
the UK would be angling for environmental subsidies from other  
sources, for doing sod all on their land; going hell for leather for  
tourism; sticking mobile phone masts and pylons up to obtain the  
lucrative wayleave payments; and lobbying the planning system even  
harder to turn their farm buildings into conference centres,  
toyshops, industrial plant retail depots and what have you..

Subsidies are necessary to protect UK agriculture because the World  
Trade Organization and the neo-liberal establishment don't allow  
protective tariffs. But tariffs are much fairer than subsidies,  
because poor countries can afford to  impose tariffs,  whereas they  
can't afford subsidies. That's probably why the neo-liberals oppose  
tariffs —  they are actually  closet imperialists.

Simon

On 28 Nov 2010, at 19:09, james armstrong wrote:

>
>
> So, if we scrap subsidies (mostly now to corporations/ farmers/  
> food manufacturers/landowners... ) , they  are then  going to  
> commit hare kire by  cutting their other source of income by not  
> growing and selling wheat /milk /etc? I don't think so.
> The proposition is to target and means test subsidies and save  
> £billions,  and stop rearing big bustards and save jobs.
> James.
>
>
> To: diggers350 at yahoogroups.com
> From: chapter7 at tlio.org.uk
> Date: Sat, 27 Nov 2010 22:00:11 +0000
> Subject: Re: [Diggers350] 300,000 jobs we can pay for
>
> If we scrap CAP subsidies  the majority of our food will be  
> imported form the North America, Australia/NZ  and developing  
> countries.
>
> The problem is not the subsidies (though tariffs would be better) — 
> they are needed to make UK  farming viable in a competitive  
> capitalist market.  The problem is the concentration of land in  
> large farms.
>
> Simon
>
> On 27 Nov 2010, at 15:46, james armstrong wrote:
>
>
>
> 300,000 jobs at the  minimum wage £12,000 p.a. can be saved if we  
> scrap CAP payments.costing £3.9billion .p.a. write your MP and ask,  
> Does your family receive CAP payments? How much?,  Then I'll  
> publish them all  on a web site and campaign to stop this madness  
> of secret
> payments to rich bustards .
> James
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 

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