The Free Lunch

Decentralisation? Fewer MP's?

The UK political party conference season is over and one of the topics has been decentralisation. What does this mean? Fewer jobs in Whitehall and more in the regions and districts? An increase in power for the Regional Assemblies (currently not directly elected)? More power for Parish and Town Councils?
The ultimate decentralisation would begin when a government transfers cash raised in taxation from itself back to citizens, so that they make the decisions as to where to spend it. The Free Lunch advocates the Citizen's Royalty to start this process. The idea is partly to do with sorting out the real problems of means-tested benefits and from then on more to do with empowering people. One assumption is that individual people look after their own money more carefully than governments and bureacrats do. Look at www.citizensincome.org where you will find, in Issue 2, 2006, the case for giving £110 per week to pensioners; £90 pw to other adults and £50 pw to children, all possible within current financial restraints.
See http://www.the-free-lunch.com/ for more on this and other related topics. Read the book!