Despite my intense dislike of ever more laws, seeing the biter bit is nevertheless amusing.
Local councils, public bodies and even some university student unions are to be banned by law from boycotting “unethical” companies, as part of a controversial crackdown being announced by the Government.
Under the plan all publicly funded institutions will lose the freedom to refuse to buy goods and services from companies involved in the arms trade, fossil fuels, tobacco products or Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Any public bodies that continue to pursue boycotts will face “severe penalties”, ministers said.
I don’t have a problem with this. After all, these people were indulging in political campaigns with my money without my consent. So, er, not being able to do so any more is a good thing, no?
No, apparently. It is an assault on democracy.
A spokesman for the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “The Government’s decision to ban councils and other public bodies from divesting from trade or investments they regard as unethical is an attack on local democracy.
“People have the right to elect local representatives able to make decisions free of central government political control. That includes withdrawal of investments or procurement on ethical and human rights grounds.
Is anyone stopping individuals indulging in boycotts? Is anyone stopping private businesses making ethical choices and advertising the fact? No. Then it is not an assault on democracy. What it is, is an assault on the nasty little social justice warriors who infest local government and student unions engaging in their pet political campaigns on our money. They can do so on their own if they wish. So democracy is unaffected.
The squeals of outrage are a joy to behold.
They seem to forget that it is our money they are playing with,therefore they have a duty to seek a proper return. Ha ha! That means big tobacco & lovely oil, here we come. Oh I love this sort of thing. That has fair cheered me up.
Glorious, innit? Imagine them having to observe their fiduciary duty to maximise returns for their pension holders instead of vacuously virtue signalling, eh? Ha!
I suspect that the useful idiots are squealing whilst the finance wallahs never had any intention of disinvesting from tobacco companies to reinvest in some crappy corporate equivalent of an SJW.
Quite possibly. Probably, even 😉
This is both good and right in principle, but almost impossible to enforce.
As long as they don’t issue a statement declaring that they are intentionally boycotting any business for ideological reasons, they can carry on doing what they like.
Who’s to say they are not investing in / not buying from a particular company for political reasons? They can just say the reasons are financial.
Usually, of course, they trumpet it from the rooftops.
“Usually, of course, they trumpet it from the rooftops.”
Of course they do, they can’t help themselves. Where is the point in doing it if you aren’t going to make a great big self righteous noise about it?
Slightly off topic – but I use “the biter bit” as my card here – will you discussing Peter Tatchell’s comment piece in the Telegraph on how the NUS is seeking to ban/ostracise him for being “racist and transphobic”?