Another Cold War

I'm so old I can remember the first Cold War. 

In the 1950s and 60s, we were all going to be incinerated in our beds by the Reds nuking us. In the event of a nuclear war - expected any minute - Machrihanish (outside Campbeltown) would be turned into an airstrip for the combined US and UK air forces and the fleet in the Holy Loch in Dunoon would be blasted to smithereens either by 'friendly fire' from Machrihanish or by the Russkis. 

We're still waiting. Turned out the Russians (even backed up by the East Germans, Yugoslavs, Czechoslovaks, Hungarians, Poles and Bulgarians) didn't have either the firepower or the desire to blast the poor old UK out of the water. But the fear - ah yes, the fear - kept us on our toes. Kept us spending big bucks on the armed forces for a generation. It also led to the founding of CND - no bad thing, in my opinion.

Now we're told by Gavin Williamson, army minister in the Tory government: 

"Moscow is spying on energy supplies which, if cut, could cause "total chaos" in the country.It is "the real threat... the country is facing at the moment."

Let's get real. Maintaining Fortress Europe, with a full set of nuclear weapons, is only of interest to two world powers: the USA and Russia. And the area the two of them are interested in fighting over is far from the UK. We're talking Crimea and Ukraine. The only way the UK will get involved is because we have the US nuclear weapons base on our territory. At Faslane, to be exact. About 30 miles from Glasgow. Some of us are none too happy about hosting a nuclear fleet - which is really the USA's nuclear fleet. They pay for it. The UK just rents it. 

Gavin Williamson on behalf of the UK government wants more money spent on the UK's 'defence' (that is, 'attack') budget and he's trying to make a case for it. He also wants the replacement for Trident in place quite soon and that's to be parked at Faslane too. 

It is all, of course, bollocks. Exactly what 'energy supplies' are the Russians threatening to cut off? Oil, gas, wind power, wave power, water? Give us an example - proof if you like.  How do the British government know that's what's planned? Have they intercepted messages? Threats? At least tell us how the Russians might go about it. 

This is like the stories of Russian fighter jets flying over UK air space that we've been hearing for months now. No, they don't. They do fly but they're in international air space and no threat to the UK. 

The amounts of extra money these people are talking about spending on 'defence' are eye-watering. 200billion quid on a replacement for Trident alone. Given the condition of the UK economy - thanks to Brexit, the historic debt racked up by both Labour and the Tories since 2008, the deficit, and the indecision of the Westminster government about what to do about, well, any of it - we can't afford to spend more on anything, and least of all the military. 

Cutting 'welfare' spending will only save about 2% of GDP this year - if that. 

Productivity is falling, along with wages and standards of living. The UK is already slipping down the league table of wealth-producing countries, with a poorer debt rating than ever before. 

So how come Theresa May is suddenly Trump's best buddy at Davos. Well, here's the reason: Trump holds the purse strings. Just read all this again if you're not convinced. 

There are times when I wonder what it will take to persuade the people of the four nations of the UK they're being taken for mugs. Will there ever come a time when people will say: Enough? I wish I could think so. But right now all I can see are Daily Mail/Telegraph/Express readers standing up in cinemas across England to applaud Winston Churchill - Our Winnie - and looking back at their history. And let's not worry too much about the future.