Letters to the Editor – 14/10 – Public sector pay, Emissions taxes, Best of Twitter
Public sector pay
[Re: Wages in public sector still beat private sector, Friday]
It is hard to believe this has not been properly tackled. As long as public sector pay outstrips the private sector in any part of the country, the goal of the best and brightest young people will be to work for a local authority, and not to become captains of industry and fuel the engines of business and growth. The fact that, at the lower end of the income scale, identical training and education can earn you over 14 per cent more in the public sector is worrying. This is clearly the government’s responsibility to sort out.
Matt Fincham
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Emissions taxes
[Re: Misguided energy policies have put Europe on a path to economic decline, Friday]
While I am against government micromanaging, and agree that Britain’s energy policy is a shambles, even believers in limited government should recognise the legitimacy of using tax policy to ensure that the prices of goods and services reflect their full social cost. Carbon emissions are pollution and are harmful, regardless of whether they cause global warming. It is right that the cost of this source of energy should reflect that harm, and it is good that those higher costs encourage businesses and consumers to be more efficient.
Name Withheld
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BEST OF TWITTER
UK construction output sees best growth since December 2011, but still has a long recovery to go.
@WilliamsonChris
Labour has edge on living standards (34 per cent vs 25), but Tories lead on economy (38 per cent vs 23).
@YouGov
Share-owning democracy is back. Congratulations to the new first-time share owners in Britain.
@grantshapps
60 per cent of independents disapprove of the way Obama is handling his job, only 16 per cent approve.
@minefornothing