That shouty well fed bloke is everything that is wrong with this country. What an absolute helmet

“When Liz Truss rejects a windfall tax on the £170,000,000,000 profits oil and gas giants are expected to make, it’s worth remembering: She’s a former Shell employee whose party has taken more than £1,500,000 in donations from the oil and gas industry since the last election.”

OMG it's not all about profits and shareholders, no workers, no profits...

Cristo Faufas pushed absolutely non-sense and incompetence this episode. Shameful levels of misinformation and ideology.

Grace blakey is so intelligent and those fools like Andrew pierce and christo can't cope with her knowledge and facts. Keep going grace along with ash x

The geezer in the suit doesn't look like he has ever missed a meal so how would he know how we feel.

When Cristo says I want to help those who really need it. He should spend some time going through the bullying, humiliating, degrading and spiteful hoops required to receive any benefits under this cruel Tory Government. The third parties running assessments and Universal Credit management will do anything to punish anyone that dares to claim help.

The chubby guy has nothing more to offer than that we are all fated to live beneath the base instincts of profit-maximising corporate executives.

That bloke arguing so passionately that the big businesses should be allowed to keep these extreme profits! It’s like he’s immune to basic facts and maths. Business turnover is up yet wages are down and profits are enormous. You don’t need to be Einstein to work out that the profits are basically unpaid wages. But if we redistribute that money apparently businesses will suddenly implode. They didn’t before, why should that suddenly happen now?

Why are we subsidising industries who make these vast profits. Companies who take more in subsidies than they pay back in taxes.

Who is this oaf? He doesn’t deserve a seat at the table. Government have more power than private companies. Simple. The fact that the companies aren’t forced to do as we all so wish is because there’s nobody running government who is willing to take their role seriously and would prefer that their own pockets to be lined with the corps dirty money. That or they are being threatened. Disgusting

There is also the fact Truss is a former Shell employee and no doubt has a lot of shares in that company

The Tories have driven this country into the ground on every issue. Having said that the political system needs to be morality driven, not cash !

Loving Grace Blakeley! So much more patience than I'd have to debate against some idiots.

Absolute waffle! This is the end of greed, the game is up.

Woooosh, that went right over his head. Good old conservative thinking, change is hard so let's not do it and think of poor profits the rich will have to endure!!

That guy’s a total tool! Literally everyone else makes sense apart from him? How can you keep that up? The Tory waffle tactic isn’t working as well as it used to…

Wages have been going down every year since the Tories came to power, but profits have risen grotesquely over that same period. The wages of workers ahve gone down every year since the tories came to power and the profits of companies have risen massively. In the last two years profit increase are ridiculous and to expect a £170 billion windfall to go untaxed inflation is caused by corporate greed not by maintaining wages. These companies take their untaxed profits and put them in tax havens but a worker will spend their pay rise. As for the cretin in the suit I have no words.

All this tells me is there needs to be legislative action to force companies to pay better wages and be unable to raise prices purely to maintain current levels of profit

Kudoos to Grace Blakeley, Grreat job!

Grace is fantastic! She should be on everything!

Remember folks, carry yourself with the same confidence as Cristo Foufas. If he can go on a debate and spout this utter shite, you can ask that person out.

Well, the Tories did say they wanted to unite the country on Brexit, and the economic ruin it has wrought - or at least exacerbated - seems to be doing that.

So his argument for not paying workers more money is because they don't want to pay the overheads out of profits. Wages are operational overheads. If you don't pay your overheads you don't have a viable business. Trying to convince people to take less while shareholders take the same or more is a confidence trick.

The Tory way - privatise profits, and socialise the debt.

Liz Truss...Shell (1996-2000) When she left Oxford, Truss joined Shell as a graduate trainee, where she gained her accountancy qualification. The scheme reportedly had a focus on "project economics and contract negotiation", and Truss' roles at the company included commercial manager for liquid natural gas shipping, project economics and contract negotiation.

The Tory line is just a long-winded, purposely confusing way of saying to the poor: "shut up and know your place!" without actually saying: shut up and know your place!"

The system is broken. Needs to be amended

The real problem is leaving corporations that are motivated to suck wealth out the country with the power to set the value of their products, profits and pay. We have been moving further and further away from a tandem of state run industries and infrastructure supported by private enterprise towards an almost totally private enterprise dominated landscape. In the past private enterprise struggled to match the quality, price and wages of state owned enterprises. It is not surprising that the switch has created the imbalances we are seeing today and threaten to widen in the future. It’s not surprising either that the push to create ever increasing minorities out of a collective has seen a switch in the power dynamic. It’s not surprising either that we have a stagnant economy when we have an economic system that’s prime directive is to impoverish the majority and make areas of the nation redundant.

Strategic price controls won't cut it. You need strategic profit controls, and probably even maximum salary controls.

"That would never work" he keeps yelling... Except for all the times it did, like when strikes won us little things like weekends, sick pay, the 40 hour work week. Funnily enough society didn't collapse under an out of control price spiral all those times, but they will now if we say to corporations: "take less profit and pay your workers fairly". Men like him would have been begging us to think of the poor land barons against the vicious serfs

Corporate immunity from the law is at the heart of this, while ever corporations have more rights and "voting power" than citizens then we are lost. The whole price cap mechanism was always a joke, it's like telling the supermarkets that they could only charge £1 for a loaf of bread then allowing the bakeries to form a conglomerate monopoly and charge the supermarkets £50 per loaf, whilst saying the supermarkets must only sell bread. The price control must be at the start of the chain or even all the way through, not in the middle. If governments were performing as they should they would dictate to the corporations not the other way around, if the corporations will not comply take away ALL their assets and start locking up their most senior members - after all that's what happens when citizens don't comply with the law.

Really enjoyed this episode. Grace Blakeley was on point.

So how hard would it be to legislate to guarantee inflation matching pay rise paid prior to dividends?

Workers haven't had a pay rise, for over a decade. Yet prices rose, anyway. Thus proving that rising prices have nothing to do with rising wages. Prices have increased, because of corporate greed.

That fella who swallowed a couple of pillows seems to have got some brain damage from whatever they were stuffed with.

The guy on the right talks a whole lot of nonsense

People wanted a change for decades and we the people are being ignored by the politicians

If words were hammers we'd not have a tory party at all. Keynes would have had them all locked in a mh unit.

That guy is typical of Tory thinking to blame for this crisis

BP, Shell etc... on paper pay 40% tax BUT that 40% tax is GIVEN BACK to BP, Shell as subsidiaries (tax loophole (avoidance) provided by the corrupt UK govt ONLY to the rich and privileged) so BP, Shell pay 0% TAX .... BP, shell have made UNEXPECTED EXTRA PROFITS on top of the profits they forecast for this year... (E.G... if you were going to make £10b this year but BECAUSE you've PUT UP YOUR PRICES you've made an extra £90b..... perhaps you should lower you prices).... OH how sad POOR BILLIONAIRE Shell perhaps we should all band together and open up an "PROFITS BANKS" for these billionaires.... you know similar to food banks and warm banks... the PROFITEERING company will leave is a LIE... there will be thousands of companies to replace them.... as is the " trickle down economics" is a LIE... (the only place money trickles to is execs pay packets and shareholders)..... they made more than enough to pay the pension hundreds of times over...... so NO empathy for pensions riding on buses ALL DAY to KEEP WARM (because the can't afford price hikes)... WE ONLY need to care about INVESTOR pensioners

Ultimately, if workers aren't paid a fair wage, then businesses will have diminished profits because they need a market for their goods and services. I've read numerous articles talking about this on Evonomics, One likened the concentration of wealth to a blockage in the blood supply. Money needs to circulate for a healthy economy..

For the past six centuries, the United Kingdom has been a parasite, the UK relies heavily on leveraging the economies of other nations to its advantage rather than focusing on domestic production. Major economic decisions that impact other countries are made in financial hubs like London and New York. This centralized decision-making leads to disparities in how resources and values are determined. Historically, since the Industrial Revolution, the UK has been known for extracting resources from foreign lands and to the detriment of those nations. This practice is due to British self-entitlement, double standards, and contradictions in its global interactions, United Kingdom seek their interests, and benefit without contributing, a dynamic akin of parasitism. Furthermore, the UK's historical entanglement with slavery was not adequately abolished; rather, it underwent a transformation. The United Kingdom did not provide "financial compensation" to slave owners. Instead, a new form of bondage emerged, wherein debt became the new shackles. Through this method, people could be ensnared without direct confrontation. Slavery assumed a subtler form, but for this evolution to occur, the slave owners of that era needed the means to perpetuate their control, and that means was money. It's crucial to note that it was only in this era that we saw the rise of paper currency and banking, which provided the legal infrastructure for this new method of enslavement. Prior to this, slave owners primarily sought land and gold; printed paper held no appeal to them. However, they reluctantly embraced this financial system as it became their only means to maintain their dominance. Refusing to adapt and continuing with traditional physical chains posed significant risks to their lives, especially in the midst of widespread popular revolutions. In anticipation of the fate that befell the French king, who was decapitated during the French Revolution, they presented this deceptive narrative, claiming to liberate slaves while continuing to oppress colonies-a claim that was far from the truth and continues till today in 2023. The influx of foreigners into the UK, who initially took on labor-intensive jobs, brought a change in mindset. These newcomers sought equal rights, opportunities, and participation in the country's democratic processes, which, at times, clashed with notions of British superiority. UK's constitutional monarchy lacks accountability, with the sovereign not subject to removal or accountability to no one, acting asa if the whole country were just him and his family. A new modern Magna Carta MUST be sign with the king that would redefine the relationship between the monarchy and the people, particularly the taxpayers. In the past, the Magna Carta represented the interests of lords, and today's taxpayers are seen as the modern equivalent of peasants. A reimagined Magna Carta could ensure that the monarchy aligns with contemporary values of democracy and expectations. Until such reforms take place, the burden of taxation will always fall on the people and income, while its money with capacity to outperform any actual human labor in terms of generating wealth, it is the income tax that have the heaviest tax burden and fortune is subject to lower taxation. These disparities in the tax system need to be addressed to create a fairer and more equitable society, empower me and in 3 days and i will bring financial equality worldwide, my measures are not from the right or left, makes no enemies, makes everyone with a clean slate.

Does the guys not realise that the levels of profits these companies are making from previous prices are basically 'reserve' FIXED capital not 'ongoing' profit, based on the ticket price (which the company can change at any time for any reason eg you can get to London for less than 20 quid on one journey but the one 30 minutes later on the same route and same train will be 2 or 3 times more expensive). There is more than enough monies in the reserves to give a proper pay rise to the striking workers, he's basically just saying "I want the money to go to the dozens of shareholders who don't even need it, rather than the 1000s of workers who do". Plus being a Shareholder isn't a guaranteed income provider. It's a gamble like anything else. One year your shares can be worth 50 percent more the next year they could be 75 percent less. That's the risk you enter into willingly! Workers have contracts that are meant to be legally binding and have consistent salaries. Not on a month-by-month basis where they might get more money one month and less money the next. They consistently worked the same hours those 2 months. It's all just rich people wanting constant protection against any fluctuation no matter what even if it means screwing over workers!

excessive profits are stolen wages

I am amazed that few people are talking about the real root cause of our soaring energy bills… privatisation by the tories coupled with abject lack of long term investment in power generation to make us independent. We need a sea change in our long term policy on our utilities and take it out of the hands of self-centered politicians and 4 year parliamentary cycles.

It’s going to increase inflation when you increase worker wages but it won’t when you fill the pockets of directors of large corps. They filter expert advice as and when required.

Grace is mostly right about the structure of the economy as prices rise. What she says about income and profits is correct. What she doesn't get mention is that inflation erodes savings and debt. That is generally bad for the "haves" and good for the "have nots". The exceptions are that the very rich own assets which inflate with inflation and the very poor cannot even get loans so they don't have debts to be eroded.

The tories must think and hope we are all stupid. You know when price don't fall who has shares in that sector.

Great content as always.

Christo never had a chance against Grace.

The worship of greed on full display by the big money apologist.

The muppet just doesn’t get it does he🤦‍♂️.

Thanks

"Stealth Redistribution" is spot on. Except nobody dared to mention the real source of it - modern monetary policy. Central banks around the world have added $30trn to the m2 money supply via quantative easing (QE). This is the very definition of inflation outside of keynesian supply and demand/velocity of money effects; more dollars chasing after the same number of things means those things cost more money. Call it devaluation of purchasing power of your currency if you will, but either way, your money gets you less over time. We have actively chosen QE as a policy, so in large part, this inflation is manufactured. The best part is, all that printed money (which is a public liability we will all have to pay back) has basically gone into propping up asset classes which the majority of normal folks don't own e.g. equities + hard assets like property and commodities. So rich people and corps directly benefit from printing, then poor people disproportionately pay for it all through inflation and increased taxes. This is quite literally transferring money from the poor to the rich - almost like we are directly handing them $$$'s. This is the true crime going on around the world right now. It is plunging normal folks into debts they haven't even agreed to, all while improverishing them via increased prices and devaluation of earnings. The only way you can combat this is by participating in the the asset bubbles created, or you suffer worsened conditions without an appropriate offset. Once the markets have corrected over the next 2 years, buy stocks. It's the only way to properly insure yourself.

"If you have a greater need, I'll just have greater greed." That guy can't even keep a straight face while he gaslights everyone.

this is the time to emigrate don't be the one left to turn the lights off ,little england is fucked get out whilst you can I went and its the best thing I have ever did

So now profits should be guaranteed

It’s a moral question, as much as an economic one: should those who take the investment risk, staking their capital, expect to sustain losses as well as profits - if you want the gain, should you be prepared to handle the pain?

Focus on people not profit. Nobody should have more money they can spend in A Lifetime. whilst a food bank is open. Come on people wake up

Not every business can afford to give staff a pay rise. I run a charity, I am responsible for everything that happens in my charity. I have a few staff lowest paid being on £10.50/hr. I am paid £13.30/hr. If the suggested £15/hr. Is implemented, my charity will close down. The impact of this will be huge, kids who are vulnerable to exploitation will have no safe space, people will be unemployed, community support offered which will disappear will put the poorest in the community into further economic difficulty. Whilst I would love a pay rise to help, we have to realise just putting wages up doesn't help. It makes things worse. We need to squeeze to the big companies to help smaller businesses start and grow to create competition which will drive down costs.

Cap profits. You can only make x amount more than the lowest paid worker. You don't get to make millions per year and cry poverty when the people who made you those millions want their fair share. This isn't a debate. One side wants everything and the other wants enough to live.

What he's saying is ' our corporate boot is on your neck and there's nothing you can do to remove it, except it ".

Where’s Grace been hiding, not seen much of her since 2019. Missed her.

This would have been more worthwhile with just Christo and Grace. Grace was trying to make the counter point about that if companies can put prices up at a whim it's a sign capitalism isn't functioning properly because there isn't adequate competition in the industry (the railway being used as an example here) but everyone was talking over eachother and there wasn't enough time for each person to speak. For a robust argument it's also important to allow people who you don't agree with to finish making their point.

In summary, his rationale for not confronting the corrupt system boiled down to the belief that engaging in a battle against it would be futile, given its inherent state of corruption.

Wow. Naked greed. Reduce profits or tax them properly and legislate so that a company gets taxed on the revenue from sales in the country regardless of where they are registered. Put in a maximum amount that any executive can be paid as a locked multiple of the lowest paid worker, including subcontractors.

How dare he say why we’re angry

Why is it such an issue for companies not to make as high profits in a crisis, think about long term not short term

ENLIGHTENED CENTRISM

Yes maybe companies won't pay out of profits. But there needs to be a change. Not everything should be about profit driven

BUT THE MP'S GOT A MASSIVE PAY RISE.............

Grace Blakely is very intellectually clued up in everything she talks about. Gorgeous as well may I say

About companies, their profits, and wages I will give an example of two big logistic companies: Company one - during tawn hall meetings CEO speaks about profit which increased every year during pandemic and it was a significant increase (more than expected), at the last town hall meeting even mention that company adjusted their prices accordingly to inflation level. With the inflation level of 10% they offered employees les thatn 8% pay rise at the end as the final offer. Same comapany announced it will buy off the sheres because is doing so well. Another change they make is to reduce employees contracts across the company from 40 hours to 37,5 per week (unpaid break) for every new employee and during every pay negotiation they try to change work terms & conditions (i.e. reduce sick pay or canceling additional breaks) calling that self funding pay rise. Company two - similar situation, rise in the profit at the level of company one, no pay rise offer for employees (there is no trade union on site) - instead they tell people that to help them with rising energy prices they offer overtime which will let them earn extra money to pay their bills (basic pay in the company is national minimum wage). This what Cristo says sounds a little bit wrong. Both companies adjust they prices in relation to rising costs and inflation, which means their customers have to do the same with retail products, what we can see and feel every day in the shops. But they dont want to share their profit with employees. That means they maintain profit growth year after year without taking responsibility for the employess and their situation in the realy hard times, because company and share holders profit is more important. Basically employees wages are dropping year after year only because of inflation level when companies profit rise.

you’d think they’d see the pain/suffering the cost is causing,and give back without being asked

It's not just prices that are going up the amount you buy is going down, I mean 2 weeks ago I bought flora 500g my last shop they were down to 450g for the same price in a stealth raising of prices.

"Those are things from previously" - this genius

Yet he will happily bring Britain to a standstill because some old woman died...

What did the father of modern economics say? "But the rate of profit does not, like rent and wages, rise with the prosperity and fall with the declension of the society. On the contrary, it is naturally low in rich and high in poor countries, and it is always highest in the countries which are going fastest to ruin." Adam Smith, classical economist Exactly the opposite of today's thinking, what does he mean? When rates of profit are high, capitalism is cannibalising itself by: 1) Not engaging in long term investment for the future 2) Paying insufficient wages to maintain demand for its products and services Today’s problems with growth and demand. Amazon didn't suck its profits out as dividends and look how big it's grown (not so good on the wages). The benefits of the system can be passed upwards in dividends or downwards in wages. Both actually detract from the money available for re-investment as Jeff Bezos knows only too well. He didn’t pay dividends, and paid really low wages to maximise the amount that he could re-invest in Amazon and look how big it’s grown. The shareholders gains are made through the value of the shares. Jeff Bezos hopes other people are paying high enough wages to buy lots of stuff from Amazon; his own workers don’t have much purchasing power.

What's not helpful is this government is taking everything away from the work class

They are not fighting about things, they are all the same.

The Bank of England, is not the government, it is a privately owned bank that the British tax payer borrows money from, it is situated within london, but in the city of London, the city of London is not part of the uk, they don’t have democracy, it governs itself, therefore it is not the government lending money to themselves. It’s is a private area that doesn’t pay tax, has its own governing model. Has its own laws and it does not follow any of the rules within the uk as it was designed by the elite to keep them elite. Unfortunately the lack of economic and business knowledge in the uk is why we all get treat like shit by the elite. And unfortunately like the brainwashed chap in the glasses is talking about, is that instilled control that society has over people if they dribble everywhere listening to lies through mainstream media, big tech, big pharma etc, people need to spend some time understanding the world we live in so that you can see the way things are is wholly unacceptable, there is no argument that the rich are getting richer, their is no argument that tax money, which is debt is extracted from the public and given to the elite, it happened during the pandemic, now it’s oil and gas, all ways to redistribute poor people money to the rich. That is capitalism in the uk, it is not about distribution of wealth to the residents of the uk, it hasn’t been since prior to world war 1

Corporations raised rates far above inflation as an opportunity to gouge for extra profit, while passing none of it on to their employees. Their raises are responsible for 65% of inflation but nothing is being done about that and all this government keeps saying to workers is tighten your belt. There needs to be some sort of balance. My suggestion is moderate raised of say 4-5%, with a one time payment of an additional 4-5% to take care of shirt term pain until inflation comes down.

Let him finish a damned sentence!

Christo. From Talk TV. A News UK channel. Owned by Murdoch. 'Nuff said,. Someone also needs to point out to corporations that the higher they increase prices, the less workers on stagnant wages can afford. Eventually no one will afford their products. Fuel is a classic example.

Cristo Foufas is a bit dim isn't he?

Profit is the problem. Water, gas, electricity and transport should not be for profit. It should be cost plus a reasonable margin for reinvestment.

The point is, if a company chases profits it creates opportunities for market entry. Competition will eventually erode profits; it's what is supposed to happen.

I may have missed the point: but surely the rises are caused by the way prices are decided involving the futures market - the result of speculation, that's to say.

Cristo Foufas is acting like the only thing that controls the price of goods and services are workers wages, but prices are a function of Supply vs Demand - If rail tickets go up in price, people will buy less of them. If wages go up, it's not like everyone is going to go out and spend their new found wealth on train tickets, and increase their demand. Also, an increase in wages of 10%, would cause a rise in inflation of roughly 3%, according to historical data - so workers would still benefit from almost 7% of a 10% pay rise. This is because staff wages only account for roughly 1/3rd of most business' expenses. It's also worth pointing out that since we live in a GLOBAL economy, wages in the UK do not have a marked impact on GLOBAL prices of goods and services - i.e. higher prices here don't equal higher prices everywhere. If our wages go up, it doesn't increase the price of goods in say, France - making it cheaper for us to import French products (reducing demand for British products, acting like a brake on price increases here).

Wow

❤

the shoulda asked bigfat christo if he's ever asked for more from the tenants hes landlords to.

Companies can just put up prices? What?

what is ALWAYS missed about debt is private sector debt. Since 1979, and the new economics of limiting govt spending, personal debts have soared. 1979: personal debt totalled 50% of GDP; in 1990 it went to 100% of GDP; and by the 2008 crisis it reached 200% of GDP. And what was our answer to the financial crisis? Cut govt spending and raise personal debts (higher house prices, higher student fees) even further. Brilliant

when ur a hammer everything looks like a nail ....

This is a great discussion. We can all say what is happening and what is right. However, OPPORTUNITIES make corporations take massive advantages of it (now tied in) debtors. Its bloody disgusting. You should be ashamed! You may know these people, how can they look at themselves in the mirror. The strike comment. A business will/may take it on the chin, but they will close that loop later and punish its workers for future actions. Organisations /corporations are so powerful nowadays they bully governments and populations. It would take a paradigm shift to stop this increasing take over. Wake up.

Tell me Foufas how many days pay did you lose during pandemic whilst sat on your Brobdingnagian backside listening to others woes in the real world who actually ‘work’ ????

Just understand, if “they” wanted it work harmoniously, “they” would! It is a choice!

Sorry, big bloke… Shareholders and employers took a calculated, voluntary risk - venture capital, right? Employees have no share in that. Period.