Royal yacht or not?
I have always been in favour of a Royal Yacht. If Norway can afford one then so can the UK, they are handy for conferences and flying the flag. But the problem is that a new one now is just going to be used by the PM to boast about his patriotism.
A man who during the covid crisis, when they have saved the country, decides to give nurses and other health workers a pay cut, needs a large flag to wrap themselves in. So does someone who cuts international aid. It is a popular move with voters, so long as the Cabinet can bear the shame of overseeing huge cuts to programmes that prevent polio, provide clean water to millions and save children from slavery and exploitation.
This is also a government that is spinning the ridiculous line that the credit card is maxed out, warns that further huge cuts in spending are on the way, has slashed the size of the army, yet again, and has overseen the worst economic response to covid in the developed world. But fear not, there is always the money available for a bigger flag.
Internationally, when the government’s policies have made the UK a laughing stock and when rivalry is increasingly concentrated in ever more high tech industries, like space and green energy; building a yacht as a symbol of British power and influence is pretty pathetic. The UK’s power and influence are declining as a direct result of this Prime Minister and putting out more flags won’t change that.
It might be nice if the Royal Family said, ‘thanks but no thanks, give the money to the nurses’. Unlike the PM they do not need a bigger flag and the nurses certainly need the money.
https://jonty.substack.com/