On 26/11/2008, Steve Haywood <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > IMO it's always been madness to believe that government - any government of > whatever colour -was actually going to leave a portfolio this large > untouched. It was only a matter of time before one of them targetted it as > part of some 'efficiency' drive or another. > > To continue to build it up in the hopes that it would remain inviolate has > always struck me as the most politically naive policy of Robin Evans' > politically naive tenure. > > Steve
You should treat anything the Daily Mail says with scepticism (and know that the answer to any headline in the Mail that finishes with a question mark is 'no'). But the fairly uniform reporting that BW canalside property is up for sale in today's papers suggests that this is being talked about. Whether it happens or not is another question. It is not sensible to sell off property when the property market is in free fall. It may be that the Treasury has simply dusted off some old lists of public assets to suggest that it can plug some of the gap in public finances by selling things off that a Keynesian boost to the economy will cause . (I'm not sure I'd have done it precisely that way myself, but the intention was right.) But Steve is right. There is always the possibility that government will force BW to sell stuff off and keep the proceeds. Still on the recession as I may have said before, we will get temporary employment schemes at some stage - and there may be potential to use this for canal restoration schemes (to get back on topic). -- Nigel Stanley
