USA Politics
I have just returned from a stay in Philadelphia (funnily enough at a short distance from a small town called Malvern) and have taken the opportunity to learn a little from American politics.
Firstly the Presidential election - it was most interesting to watch the television debate between the two candidates in the company of local people. I think we could benefit from the opportunity to listen to election candidates debating a wide variety of subjects chosen by members of the public who are not connected with the parties.
Secondly, I had the opportunity to attend a thought provoking lecture at the Wharton Business School on local government finance. Further discussions have convinced me that the idea of simply replacing the current Council Tax, imperfect though it might be, with a local income tax is more of a populist proposal than a workable and equitable reform. I believe a far wider, more detailed and informed debate is needed to produce improvements. Figures suggest that the current proposals to "axe the tax" would produce a substantial increase in costs for the average household in the Woodbury Ward with an additional tax bill of some £200,000 being used to subsidise other parts of the District, with no apparent resulting improvement in services in our villages.