John Lewis, Power up the North, Baby Nonsense
John Lewis:
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Robert Owen, William Henry Brooke (1772-1860)
Photo Credit: National Portrait Gallery, London [CC BY-NC-ND]
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Spedan Lewis (1885 – 1963), John’s son, had a specific aim, which
still applies today – to run a business “whose ultimate purpose is the happiness
of all its members.”
The Partnership, he explained, was “an idea for a better way of
managing business, so that instead of the many being exploited by the few,
there will be a genuine partnership for managers and the managed alike, all
pulling together for their common advantage.”
Influenced by the Welsh social reformer Robert Owen and the artist
and designer William Morris, who founded the Socialist League in 1884, Lewis
first set up democratic staff councils in 1919 and began to experiment with sharing
profits at the Peter Jones store in 1920.
(The Guardian, 2019)
John Lewis
has a successful business model of partnership. Two questions. Why are there
not more firms like that in the country? Secondly, why is the salary of their
CEO 73 times that of the average staff salary?
Power up the north
More than 30
newspapers and news websites in the north of England have published front pages
demanding “a revolution” in how the region is treated by the government.
Along with dozens of regional politicians and business leaders, papers including the Manchester Evening News…demanded “a fundamental shift in decision-making out of London, giving devolved powers and self-determination to people in the North.
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, described it as a watershed moment. “The North doesn’t just need its fair share of investment but also substantial new devolved powers,” he said.
In the “power up the north” collaboration yesterday, the news organisations demanded that the government: commit funding immediately to make “northern powerhouse rail” a national priority…overhaul the region’s road and rail network…put its full weight behind a bespoke industrial strategy for the north of England to enable every sector of the economy, from manufacturing to farming, to flourish…make additional investment available for the north’s schools, colleges and universities to boost skills training…set out a programme to build a new generation of social housing and affordable homes…accelerate investment in the north’s digital infrastructure…
…They also called on the next prime minister to elevate the post of northern powerhouse minister to cabinet status with full power.
(The Guardian, 2019)
*The mayor of Greater Manchester has demanded the same subsidies for bus fares in the north of England as those applied in London.
Andy Burnham called on the government for more public transport parity, arguing that “there is no ‘northern powerhouse’” without increased fairness in transport subsidies.
…On the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show yesterday, Burnham said successive governments of “all colours” had failed the north of England.
…If you want a very everyday example of the north-south divide let me give you one. It costs £4 here for a single bus journey, capped at £1.50 in London. How can that be possibly fair?”
… “It is time we are given the same investment that London has had for decades. There is no northern powerhouse without it.”
(The Guardian, 2019)
Modern ThinkingPower up the north
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Middleton Wakes, Rochdale, Lancashire, Frederick William Jackson (1859-1918)
Photo Credit: Rochdale Arts & Heritage Service [CC BY-NC]
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Along with dozens of regional politicians and business leaders, papers including the Manchester Evening News…demanded “a fundamental shift in decision-making out of London, giving devolved powers and self-determination to people in the North.
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, described it as a watershed moment. “The North doesn’t just need its fair share of investment but also substantial new devolved powers,” he said.
In the “power up the north” collaboration yesterday, the news organisations demanded that the government: commit funding immediately to make “northern powerhouse rail” a national priority…overhaul the region’s road and rail network…put its full weight behind a bespoke industrial strategy for the north of England to enable every sector of the economy, from manufacturing to farming, to flourish…make additional investment available for the north’s schools, colleges and universities to boost skills training…set out a programme to build a new generation of social housing and affordable homes…accelerate investment in the north’s digital infrastructure…
…They also called on the next prime minister to elevate the post of northern powerhouse minister to cabinet status with full power.
(The Guardian, 2019)
*The mayor of Greater Manchester has demanded the same subsidies for bus fares in the north of England as those applied in London.
Andy Burnham called on the government for more public transport parity, arguing that “there is no ‘northern powerhouse’” without increased fairness in transport subsidies.
…On the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show yesterday, Burnham said successive governments of “all colours” had failed the north of England.
…If you want a very everyday example of the north-south divide let me give you one. It costs £4 here for a single bus journey, capped at £1.50 in London. How can that be possibly fair?”
… “It is time we are given the same investment that London has had for decades. There is no northern powerhouse without it.”
(The Guardian, 2019)
It’s about time that more resources were allocated to the
north of the country. For far too long London and the south east have enjoyed a
disproportionate allocation of financial investment.
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Motherhood, Laura Knight (1877-1970)
Photo Credit: Nottingham City Museums [CC BY-NC-ND]
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(Ann Treneman, The Times, 2019)
No, I didn’t know just
as I didn’t know “baby shower,” either. Is there a “baby conception” party too?
Is this yet another US import?
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