Buy British: our salvation?
Discussion
tonym911 said:
Agree Derek, the cockup reference was about the odd gaffe like T-shirts made in Portugal etc.
Reminds me of a scarf and hat set which my aunt bought in New Zealand as a present for my daughter. It had a little sheep on it, and "A souvenir from New Zealand". It also had a label on it saying "100% polyester, made in China". 
Kermit power said:
tonym911 said:
Agree Derek, the cockup reference was about the odd gaffe like T-shirts made in Portugal etc.
Reminds me of a scarf and hat set which my aunt bought in New Zealand as a present for my daughter. It had a little sheep on it, and "A souvenir from New Zealand". It also had a label on it saying "100% polyester, made in China". tonym911 said:
Agree Derek, the cockup reference was about the odd gaffe like T-shirts made in Portugal etc. Properly marketed and with some sort of incentive or regulation I reckon it could be the catalyst we need. Using nationalism in a positive way.
Yes, forgot about that. It was overhyped at the time. It was just one bloke.The buy British was first of all supported by the press and then, as they do, they turned against it and tried to destroy it.
Most other countries, in particular France, stick to buying nationally sourced products. We are, rather unusually, unique almost. I remember when the best and cheapest initial and substantive breath testing devices were made in Britain - South Wales. The French refused to pass the necessary legislation until there was a French equivalent. it was, many said, inferior. With the sudden influx of money from the French government - oh, sorry, it could not have been as this would be illegal under EU regs so that must be wrong - it was able to produce something fairly similar.
We do not support our own industries. And the result is obvious.
V88Dicky said:
I've been buying British-made New Balance trainers for years.
£80 for third-world Nikes/Adidas/Reebok or less than half that for Cumbrian made NBs. A no-brainer for me.
I drive a British-made Japanese car (best of both worlds?
) as my daily driver, and the wife drives a Jaaag.
I try to buy British when available, don't know why I do this, always have, always will.
It IS possible, even these days, to buy British in most areas, it just requires a bit of research, that's all.
Somethings you just can't get, like a British-made TV for example (Sanyo 2008) or a mobile phone (Motorola Startac 1997
) but most things can still be done.
Cookers, 'fridges, ovens, furniture, beds, mattresses, clothing, all reasonably easy to get hold of, and most importantly well made and decently priced.
£70 for Pakistani Levis jeans, or £70 for British-made Oliver Spencer jeans?
Anyway, enough rambling by me
Dicky, 2 things:£80 for third-world Nikes/Adidas/Reebok or less than half that for Cumbrian made NBs. A no-brainer for me.
I drive a British-made Japanese car (best of both worlds?
) as my daily driver, and the wife drives a Jaaag.I try to buy British when available, don't know why I do this, always have, always will.
It IS possible, even these days, to buy British in most areas, it just requires a bit of research, that's all.
Somethings you just can't get, like a British-made TV for example (Sanyo 2008) or a mobile phone (Motorola Startac 1997
) but most things can still be done.Cookers, 'fridges, ovens, furniture, beds, mattresses, clothing, all reasonably easy to get hold of, and most importantly well made and decently priced.
£70 for Pakistani Levis jeans, or £70 for British-made Oliver Spencer jeans?
Anyway, enough rambling by me
1. Where do I get Ollie Spencer jeans for £70?
2. We need a Buy British list of comparable products (with purchasing source)
PS: I would like to nominate British Bacon v Danish water infused rubbish.
Good grief, where do I even begin with this one.....?
What happens when other countries do likewise? I presume you have a plan for how to deal with the millions of jobs that will be lost from our exporters too?
2. Who are you to tell me I am not allowed to eat a mango for example?
tonym911 said:
Interesting piece on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-1555181
reminded me of the I'm Backing Britain campaign. It was a cockup back then but surely the timing is spot on to bring this back now. Don't just make it a 'please buy British' exercise this time but regulate it in some way so it's in our interest to do the right thing, starting with basic foodstuffs.
What about all those people currently employed in imports (finance, marketing, sales, transports, business services etc.)?http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-1555181
reminded me of the I'm Backing Britain campaign. It was a cockup back then but surely the timing is spot on to bring this back now. Don't just make it a 'please buy British' exercise this time but regulate it in some way so it's in our interest to do the right thing, starting with basic foodstuffs.
What happens when other countries do likewise? I presume you have a plan for how to deal with the millions of jobs that will be lost from our exporters too?
tonym911 said:
It's ridiculous that we're still importing apples from the other side of the world and still expecting to eat strawberries in December.
1. Supermarkets don't decide what people eat - people decide what they want and supermarkets stock it.2. Who are you to tell me I am not allowed to eat a mango for example?
oyster said:
1. Supermarkets don't decide what people eat - people decide what they want and supermarkets stock it.
2. Who are you to tell me I am not allowed to eat a mango for example?
Where did I say you couldn't eat a mango?? Don't remember proscribing anything. And I'm sure you're not serious about (1). Supermarkets stock apples etc that look shiny and that fit into their shelves, not the inconveniently 'ugly' (but far tastier) British varieties. That's common knowledge. 2. Who are you to tell me I am not allowed to eat a mango for example?
tonym911 said:
oyster said:
1. Supermarkets don't decide what people eat - people decide what they want and supermarkets stock it.
And I'm sure you're not serious about (1). Supermarkets stock apples etc that look shiny and that fit into their shelves, not the inconveniently 'ugly' (but far tastier) British varieties. That's common knowledge. Why do you think the supermarkets don't sell the ugly versions?
oyster said:
tonym911 said:
oyster said:
1. Supermarkets don't decide what people eat - people decide what they want and supermarkets stock it.
And I'm sure you're not serious about (1). Supermarkets stock apples etc that look shiny and that fit into their shelves, not the inconveniently 'ugly' (but far tastier) British varieties. That's common knowledge. Why do you think the supermarkets don't sell the ugly versions?
what is often missing from the equation when working out prices, is the hidden cost, take for example the BMW's most police forces drive, the worker who built it pays taxes in Germany,
but if they used jags etc, the taxes direct and indirect would come back to our tax system helping to provide more services,
it just appears madness for our public employees to buy foreign unless they really want to find themselves on the dole.
but if they used jags etc, the taxes direct and indirect would come back to our tax system helping to provide more services,
it just appears madness for our public employees to buy foreign unless they really want to find themselves on the dole.
PRTVR said:
what is often missing from the equation when working out prices, is the hidden cost, take for example the BMW's most police forces drive, the worker who built it pays taxes in Germany,
but if they used jags etc, the taxes direct and indirect would come back to our tax system helping to provide more services,
it just appears madness for our public employees to buy foreign unless they really want to find themselves on the dole.
Good point. One wonders whether those who actually sell foreign-made items into such public bodies are more 'inventive with the incentives'.but if they used jags etc, the taxes direct and indirect would come back to our tax system helping to provide more services,
it just appears madness for our public employees to buy foreign unless they really want to find themselves on the dole.
singlecoil said:
I think a buy British campaign would be a good idea. It wouldn't work, of course, but that's no reason not to try.
Those who would seek to benefit from it need to be consistent though. For instance, anyone who makes stuff in the UK and wants people to buy it because of that needs to think carefully when making their own buying decisions
.Those who would seek to benefit from it need to be consistent though. For instance, anyone who makes stuff in the UK and wants people to buy it because of that needs to think carefully when making their own buying decisions
Well I disagree,
It could work, but it would be expensive.
The government would have to give subsidy as costs would be non competitive in relation to the overseas market costs.
But it could work, and put british workers back into jobs.
The dole money paid to the unemployed could go towards the subsidy.
vette
Bebee said:
Remind me again, what do we make that I might want to buy? Apart from a loaf of bread that is!
We make some awesome hi-fi stuff. Some of the best audio equipment you can buy is British.Surely we could grow a good deal of our own food if we went back to buying things which are in season?
uk_vette said:
singlecoil said:
I think a buy British campaign would be a good idea. It wouldn't work, of course, but that's no reason not to try.
Those who would seek to benefit from it need to be consistent though. For instance, anyone who makes stuff in the UK and wants people to buy it because of that needs to think carefully when making their own buying decisions
.Those who would seek to benefit from it need to be consistent though. For instance, anyone who makes stuff in the UK and wants people to buy it because of that needs to think carefully when making their own buying decisions
Well I disagree,
It could work, but it would be expensive.
The government would have to give subsidy as costs would be non competitive in relation to the overseas market costs.
But it could work, and put british workers back into jobs.
The dole money paid to the unemployed could go towards the subsidy.
vette
coil
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