Every economic system suffers the consequences of balance sheet accounting. This means that relative winners and losers are inevitable. The job of politicians and economists is to distribute the nation’s resources in the most optimally beneficial way. I believe every economy, interdependent as individuals and nations are, has a responsibility to the advancement of humanity through optimising the intellect, skills and talents of each population.
The crucial process of continual development of technology, science, philosophy, art and culture requires a universal basic living standard for every human worldwide. Malnourishment, poverty, undrinkable water, poor housing, unhealthy food options, poor lifestyle choices and other issues lead to bad health outcomes for newborns. We should strive to ensure that every baby is provided with the opportunity to reach intellectual potential. This requires a re-evaluation of society’s hierarchy of worth.
False economy dogma: wealthy people are essential to the economy
For the last 50 years, successive governments of all the major parties have prioritised those with wealth over the worker, and valued dependence over resilience. Commentators have been at pains to convince the public that there is no alternative, and that wealthy people are essential to the economy as high incomes provide tax revenue for the NHS and the welfare state. With two generations of Brits believing nothing but this false economic dogma, the basic true story of the UK money system appears simplistic and too good to be true.
The outcome has seen widening wealth inequality, stagnating wages, and worsening conditions for workers. The government legislates for gilts to be sold to match government public sector deficits. This results in a massive expansion of the money supply through interest payments with no productive benefit to the living standards of the population. The whole gilt system is an unnecessary anachronism of the gold standard era.
New economic system for Scotland
I argue that Scotland should find a new economic system that does not emulate the UK. A new ethos must be implemented on a foundation of a basic guaranteed level of social provisioning. The living standards of all Scottish residents must be secured at a comfortable level. Poverty and homelessness can be eradicated.
This basic level should be guaranteed by the government as part of the social contract. Comfort and luxury can be built on top of this foundation by the private sector, with every individual participating in advancement in thinking, in process, and in technological and scientific development.
The way to go about this will be a matter for discussion but, by distributing power and authority to town or county councils, local procurement of essentials will build resilience. This can allow a cultural identity, once again, to be formed for each community as the outcomes will reflect the resources available in the area. Food and energy provision is fundamental.
Secure the essentials
Energy and food sovereignty are essential, not only for resilience in crises, but also to avoid the position of becoming a price-taker. When a nation cannot provide its citizens with the essentials for life, the government is forced to import these necessities. The desperate nature of the situation results in no option but to accept whatever price is demanded.
Balancing this trade would require an increased amount of the productive output of the population to be allocated to exports, at a cost the government cannot control. In this weak position, the government is forced to be a price taker for the commodities it produces too. It is obvious that good governance should prioritise utility of whatever domestic productive capacity is available, primarily to sufficient food and energy output. It may appear to require massive investment, but the value is a solid, secure, sovereignty in the long run.
The wellbeing economy, at the Scottish level would be built on this foundation of resilience. The government, when contracts are being renegotiated during the independence transition phase, should take control of oil and gas production in the national maritime area, and total control of renewable energy production and secure at least enough output for domestic supply, avoiding the international markets.
Scotland already produces vast amounts of quality food and beverages from well-organised sectors in agriculture, the fisheries and horticulture. The disruption caused by the UK decision to leave the EU has highlighted the insecurity of relying on export/import markets. Through the process of paring-back, we can secure enough of the quality food products to provide the entire population with the sustenance needed to be as healthy as possible.
The power of a resilience economy
In guaranteeing good food and adequate energy to the population it sets the entire country on the journey to wellbeing. The basic building blocks are in place to mitigate the stress experienced by many in the current economic climate. The financial and mental pressure people experience under today’s system also encourages poor diet and lifestyle decisions. The wellbeing foundation, in turn, should be reflected in, and measurable by, the health statistics of the population and pressure on the NHS should gradually reduce.
By lowering the number of people working to export, freed-up employees can be re-allocated to other sectors in need, such as house-building and retro-fitting existing homes to be compatible for district heating systems and upgrading insulation and energy-conservation. We need engineers to design flood prevention measures to combat projected rising sea levels. Other skilled project managers can be building resilience into our National Health Service to efficiently deal with the next global pandemic.
If Scotland is safe and secure in the knowledge that it can produce whatever the population requires to thrive, then imports can be negotiated on a discretionary basis, on value for money and desirability. If the people decide that a little extra output is an acceptable cost for the uptick in living standards or knowledge available for sale from another country, there is no coercion involved. It is a true free market, and this system, once developed will be scalable and adaptable for any nation to follow. We could help end financial colonialism and make the scourge of poverty a thing of the past.
Wellbeing is a temporary stop-over
And so, we are on the road, we have a purpose as a nation. There is so much more for us to explore on the way to wellbeing. Having listened to Lesley Riddoch and watched the films on other small countries, she has produced, it becomes ever-more evident, to me, that independence is more a state of mind than anything else. When the population have a purpose in mind, the politics follows, one way or another.
This state of mind is not owned by a president or any authority figure. It is a collective buy-in to a future vision, by the people., Each individual understands their responsibility to do what they can to advance their sphere of influence, no matter how small, to that end.
This is where all the stars align. There is a free market, there is cooperative collective striving based around providing the best life for the local community, light-touch but powerful local government, less need for law enforcement, mitigation of global climate pressures and the list goes on.
Wellbeing is a temporary stop-over on a journey to a rainbow destination. We see a point in the distance where the thing we seek meets reality, wellbeing in this case, and make our way there. When we eventually overcome all the obstacles to reach that point, we will find that the position of the ideal we wish to achieve as a nation has advanced as far as we have as a people. This is no reason to be down-hearted, however, as we will have garnered knowledge and had many adventures along the way to attaining wellbeing. This information will be the foundation for the next stage in the advancement of Scots and of humanity.
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