Virtue ....... Freedom ....... Aspiration ....... Wealth ....... Peace
A MANIFESTO IN THE MAKING
Manifesto Introduction
The party defines itself by the five core policies. So that members and non-members clearly understand what the party stands for, these cannot be changed. At present they are principles the details of which will be decided according to the party constitution
All other policies will be decided according to the constitution
Below is a provisional list of headings for the Mani-festo each with a link to a page
That page contains provisional ideas for discussion.
Read this, as work in progress. Only DRP paid up members can comment and so if you want to have your say:
JOIN THE PARTY AND LEAVE A COMMENT !
A NEW CONSTITUTION FOR BRITAIN
Constitution Design
Executive
House of Commons Senate/House of Lords
Autonomous Regions
Democracy
Judiciary
Constitutional Court Supreme Court
Functions of Government Public Services Board Monetary Policy Board
ECONOMICS
Banking
Finance
Globalization
Monetary reform
TAXATION
Tax havens
Corporation tax
Income tax
Wealth tax
REGIONS
Federal nation
Autonomous regions
INDUSTRY
Skills training
Industry needs
Business development
Export assistance
PUBLIC SERVICES
Health
Education
Utilities
Transport Road Rail Air
Social Housing
Postal Services, Telecommunications
Police
Fire Service
Prisons
Probation Service
Waste/ pollution
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Europe
Commonwealth
SOCIETY
Families
Social exclusion
Minorities and race relations,
Citizenship
Economic enfranchisement
Church of England
Civil Society
Deprivation
Youth
Meritocracy
Immigration
Ethical Issues
Humanitarian issues/Animals
Press and Media
NATIONAL PLANNING
National planning strategies
Coordination of regions
Transport
LAW
Justice
Human rights
Liberty
Economic rights
Citizenship
Penal reform
Vice
Drugs
Prostitution
Gambling
CULTURE
Arts
Broadcasting/BBC
Press
POLITICS
Political parties
Corruption
Protest
Political philosophy
HISTORY
SPORT/LEISURE
ENERGY
ENVIRONMENT
AGRICULTURE
CEREMONIAL
CIVIL SERVICE
Government departments
Prosecution Service
ISSUES DISCUSSED IN THE NEWSLETTERS NOT LINKED TO THE MANIFESTO
Whiggism
HISTORY
British Republican History
OTHER NATIONS
Five Big Changes Democratic Republicanism Will Deliver
2.Small chartered banks designed to serve their customers
No one today likes the banks. The great crisis that has been unfolding since 2008, and that has still a long way to go, was caused by the financial sector.
The government played an important role in creating the crisis but the financial sector was the proximate cause. No one - but no one - disagrees with that.
The real productive economy that produces goods and services that people buy was in no way to blame. Blame fully and squarely lies with that sector that is supposed to be there merely to facilitate the running of the productive economy.
Its activity of handling money in itself is clearly without any direct value. It is only useful insofar as it plays a constructive role in supporting the activities of the productive economy. That is the only way it can justify its existence.
That the financial sector has ruined the real productive economy shows that the whole banking and financial system under which we live is rotten to the core. That tax payers have bailed out the banks for their mischievous and greedy conduct further twists the knife in the heart of every honest contributing British citizen.
But, as we are seeing in Britain and elsewhere, nothing is being done to change the financial banking system to ensure that the same thing cannot happen again.
The coalition government is colluding with the banks every step of the way to prop them up and allow their managers multi-million pound take-homes and bonuses whilst insisting that the rest of us endure increasing hardship and austerity to set the country right.
This policy cannot work, is not working and will never work. We are heading off a cliff with no plan B in sight. Meager increases in GDP are virtually meaningless in the overall economic context.
Small Chartered Banks
There are a number of ways in which we will reform the banking system but central to these measures must be breaking up the banks.
If you work for a company, or run your own, the relationship that that company has with its bank is crucial to the business’s success. All thriving businesses need to borrow sometimes. There is nothing wrong with this. It is a perfectly natural thing for one simple reason. It is rare that a business is profitable enough to finance expansion plans from their own profits.
But the big problem here is that the big multinational banks that we have today are never going to take an interest in small or mediums sized businesses.
And even helping large productive businesses can be seen as a distraction from what they see as their core operations.
This situation works against productive innovation. Any business must be able to pay its way in running from day to day but when the owners or managers decide to break into new territory, either by expanding production, expanding geographical reach or trying out a new product, they will most likely need more money than they have accumulated from profits.
In this case, they need a bank loan. In a sense, in taking out a loan they can be seen as borrowing from the future. And it is in the future, of course, that they will pay back the loan.
The banks’ role in this should be supportive. They may need to be flexible as circumstances change and above all they need to take a long term view. If they do not they may well throw the business into problems and ruin a good project that only required more time to mature.
What is key here is the attitude and culture that exists within the bank. And in the banks we have today are not supportive of their customers.
This takes a heavy toll not just on individual businesses but on the whole economy.
The economy’s ability to produce and provide employment is eroded because the banks do not do what banks are there to do.
Industry Dedicated Chartered Banks
The banks as they are currently structured will never provide the support to the productive economy that is essential if Britain is to prosper.
There are many reasons for wanting to break up the banks and an obvious much talked about one is to avoid having banks that are “too big to fail”. We need small banks that we can let fail, if need be, but it would be ridiculous to have mini-versions of the current leviathans - and these would not be viable anyway.
No, each bank should have a “charter” granted by the financial regulator which allows them to work in one and only one particular area.
This is a type of banking that Germany and France, for instance, had and still do to a certain extent, so the idea is far from new. A bank’s special area might be, for instance, construction. So a bank specializing in this sector would over time acquire a real expertise in it and be able to use this experience to help companies working in it. It would also mean that a bank so-chartered would have a commitment to the construction industry as a whole for it would only be able to do more business and prosper if that industry prospered. It would naturally take a long term view.
This would be a far cry from today’s massive global banks for whom even a major industry like the British construction industry is of no real interest to them. They can always pull the plug on it and shift funds to another industry or more likely to another part of the world.
It is worth mentioning that we could not have one bank with a monopoly charter in any industry for this would give no choice for participants in that industry to shop around between different banks.
This is where we have to get used to the idea of small banks. By having a plethora of them, and that means probably thousands, competition and choice is created with all the benefits that that brings.
Regional Banks
The chartered banks might also have a remit to work only in one of the autonomous regions that we will create as a central aspect of the new republican constitution.
Imagine how this would work. It will mean that as a bank accumulates the savings of people living in the region for which it has a charter, it will automatically have incentives (tax incentives, for instance) to retain those savings to use as a financial base for lending solely within the region.
This means that wealth created in the region remains in the region to provide the seed corn investment for future projects in the region.
So the regional government will take in more taxes and a benign feedback loop will be created whereby the whole region prospers and people can take a pride in the identity and prosperity it brings them.
At present any money a bank has on deposit can be zapped around the world at a moment’s notice regardless of the needs of any regional economy.
Money today is entirely promiscuous and can get into bed with anyone it likes – and it certainly does this.
The structure of the regionally dedicated chartered banks would address this problem and money made in an area would be strongly incentivized to stay in that area and help to build its wealth further.
The creation of the regional banks is part of the DRP proposals for Britain as a nation comprising autonomous regions
Just like sector-dedicated chartered banks, region-dedicated banks are not a new idea. In the USA, the whole banking system is based on state banks, that is to say, banks that are restricted in their operations to a single state. So for instance a bank registered in New York city in New York state cannot, by law, set up a branch in any other state of the USA.
The reason why the country has this system is for the very reasons that we advocate chartered regional banks in Britain. Once wealth has been created within a state, it is deposited in a state bank and lent out to customers within that state.
This state bank system has in the last thirty years been undermined by a relaxation on regulations that started under President Ronald Reagan and the extensive use of tax havens to siphon money directly out of the country.
Nevertheless the history of USA state banks provides guidance as to how regional banks will work in the new republican Britain comprising autonomous regions.
Hundreds, Even Thousands, of Banks
There will be a plenitude of small chartered banks. Instead of four or five giant banks that are free to do virtually any financial dealings they like –dealing that range from the damaging to the outright criminal – there will be literally hundreds of small banks each limited by their registered and enforceable remit.
These will direct money and real solid expertise to small and medium businesses - and also to micro startups allowing enterprising individuals to try their hand at being their own boss.
Because of their close involvement with their customers these banks will be expert at risk assessment and so will be able to keep their borrowing rates down and their own profitability secure. This is vital to the system because if they fail there will be no government bail outs.
The knowledge of this will mean the banks will have to keep their eye firmly on the ball. Because of their smallness and because of set transparency rules everyone will be able to judge if a bank is getting into trouble.
But the chartered banks’ remit will not encourage undue caution.
The way they will be structured will allow them to take risks to stimulate dynamism in the economy and the culture and feed the dreams and aspirations that our natural British genius demands.
Deposit Guarantees
Although any and every one of the hundreds of new chartered banks can be allowed to fail, the government will still provide some insurance to depositors for we cannot allow working men and women to lose their savings.
However, because of the multitude of banks the insurance set by the government for any bank deposit will be low, and in any case savers can easily spread their money and diversify their placings.
A Supportive Role
This system of banking will ensure that banks perform the supportive role to business which a modern diverse economy needs.
This will affect your work and employment for your company, whatever uncertainties it faces in the market and other external factors,
it will know that its bank or banks are on its side in the case of trouble, and on its side in its visions for the future.
This will radically change your work, whatever it may be, and make you part of a dynamic responsive economy.
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