Labour has a cheek urging people to become more resilient in the face of growing threats from multiple enemies which could disrupt food and energy supplies when it’s done next to nothing itself to improve national resilience.
uncertain
it → have → resilience
Recent Tory governments were missing in action on this front, too, even as the world became a more dangerous place.
asserted
world → miss → front
But Labour has failed to make up for lost time.
asserted
Labour → fail → time
Even though the threats – cyber, terrorist, state-sponsored disruption and disinformation by Russia, Iran, China – stare us in the face, Labour ministers are just as complacent as their Tory predecessors, if not more so.
asserted
ministers → sponsor → predecessors
Its ‘Be Ready’ preparation checklist published on Thursday – sleeping bags, blankets, warm clothing, a battery-powered radio, a ‘grab bag’ in case of emergency evacuation and three days’ supply of food, water and essential medicines – is fair enough, if no more than the minimum required.
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more → publish → minimum
But even that was botched.
asserted
that → botch → ?
The Cabinet Office sneaked it out via a website and a written ministerial statement.
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Office → sneak → website
Dan Jarvis, the security minister in charge of the initiative, was nowhere to be seen.
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Jarvis → see → initiative
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting was visiting a new munitions factory in Shropshire just as the policy was being announced.
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policy → visit → Shropshire
A perfect opportunity to speak of resilience in the face of danger, you might think.
uncertain
you → speak → danger
But he didn’t say a word about it, until pressed by journalists.
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he → say → journalists
Perhaps he was too busy prepping for his appearance on Celebrity Gogglebox, or recording yet another TikTok on a matter of supreme national importance (perhaps the urgent need for supermarket trolleys to have four wheels that go in the same direction).
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that → preppe → direction
Andy Burnham heads a Government which has called for a ‘national resilience conversation’.
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which → head → conversation
But we’ve had nothing but silence from him.
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we → have → him
Her contribution was to reveal what would be in her grab bag: ‘mascara, concealer and a bottle of sauvignon blanc’.
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what → reveal → blanc
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has called for a ‘national resilience conversation’ but Housing Secretary Angela Rayner joked her grab bag would include ‘a bottle of sauvignon blanc’
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bag → call → blanc
Labour published its ‘Be Ready’ preparation checklist on Thursday – featuring blankets, a ‘grab bag’ in case of evacuation and three days’ supply of food, water and essential medicines
Well, it’s only national security. So why not joke?
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it → publish → food
It’s not a priority for the Government.
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It → ’ → Government
It has nothing useful to say.
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It → have → nothing
George Robertson warned in April that the UK was ‘under-prepared... under-insured… under attack’.
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UK → warn → attack
Coming from a former Labour defence secretary and secretary-general of Nato, you’d think his words might carry some weight with a Labour Government.
uncertain
words → come → Government
Britain remains just about the least resilient country in Europe in its inability to cope with threats.
asserted
Britain → remain → threats
Other governments – from centre-Left Canada to centre-Right Germany – have realised that in a dangerous world it no longer makes sense to over-depend on global supply chains for essentials.
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it → realise → essentials
In any conflict or severe disruption to trade we’d quickly discover that without imports we’d be unable to feed, heat, power, rearm or medicate ourselves.
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we → discover → imports
Successive UK governments for more than 40 years have lauded globalisation and its signature feature, free trade, because it meant cheaper stuff for consumers (ie voters).
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it → laud → consumers
That was fine when free navigation of the high seas was a given and the might of the US Navy, backed by a formidable Royal Navy, sailed these seas to keep them free.
uncertain
might → back → them
Well, free navigation is no more: think Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf and Bab al-Mandab at the southern end of the Red Sea.
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navigation → think → Sea
We can no longer depend on America to uphold the world order that underpinned globalisation.
asserted
that → depend → globalisation
And we no longer have anything resembling a navy.
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we → have → navy
In 1990 we had 46 frigates and destroyers.
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we → have → frigates
We now have 13, most of them undergoing some sort of repair or refurbishment.
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most → have → repair
Thirty years ago we had 22 submarines.
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we → have → submarines
Now we have nine.
asserted
we → have → nine
Of the remaining five, most of them are also in for repair.
asserted
most → remain → repair
We struggle to keep tabs on Russian ships dawdling suspiciously over the undersea data cables and energy pipelines crucial to our economy, so we’re hardly in any position to keep the world’s sea lanes open as America retreats from such commitments.
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America → struggle → commitments
Yet we still import most of our food, iron, steel, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, gas and oil.
asserted
we → import → food
In any prolonged disruption to these supply chains we’d quickly be on our knees.
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we → prolong → knees
You’d think a strategy to bring these products onshore might appeal to Labour.
uncertain
strategy → think → Labour
You might even call it an industrial policy.
uncertain
You → call → it
Energy provides the starkest example of our lack of resilience.
asserted
Energy → provide → resilience
…and 33 more, not listed.
The Aporia
