New FCA Investigation Scheme and Blasphemy Laws

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have published a new Enforcement Guide which may improve their performance. Too often investigating potential offences takes too long and progress is hidden from those affected.

The FCA says: “we recognised that our average investigation times were too long. We have focused our portfolio of enforcement cases in line with our strategic priorities and significantly accelerated our investigations. 

Our consultation included proposals for a new investigation publicity policy to provide a measured increase in transparency under a ‘public interest’ test. Following feedback to our consultation, we revised these proposals and limited the resulting policy changes”.

See https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/policy/ps25-5.pdf for details.

Another legal shortfall has been the recent conviction of Hamit Coskun who was found guilty of a religiously aggravated public order offence, namely, disorderly behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress by burning a Koran.

Mr Coskun said: “This decision is an assault on free speech and will deter others from exercising their democratic rights to peaceful protest and freedom of expression. As an activist, I will continue to campaign against the threat of Islam. Christian Blasphemy laws were repealed in this country more than 15 years ago and it cannot be right to prosecute someone for blaspheming against Islam. Would I have been prosecuted if I’d set fire to a copy of the bible outside Westminster Abbey? I doubt it.”

The Free Speech Union (FSU) has supported the legal opposition and subsequent appeal. See https://freespeechunion.org/

My opinion (being an atheist) is that the law should not interfere in religious matters or any attempts to limit free speech on the grounds that someone might be offended by religious opinions. Please support the FSU.

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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The Origin of Covid-19? Matt Ridley suggests he knows.

Writer on scientific matters, Matt Ridley, has published an article in the Telegraph which tries to explain the likely origin. The virus is rapidly fading from the public’s minds but it did kill 20 million people and some are still dying from it with persistent symptoms in other cases.

It is important to identify the source of the virus because it could well happen again with even more devastating impacts. When scientists start manipulating genetic material, it is exceedingly dangerous.  His article is present here:  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/covid-19-lab-leak-origin-most-likely-matt-ridley/ .

He starts the article by saying: “While attempts to identify a seafood market in Wuhan as the source of Covid-19 have failed to find proof, there is growing realization that the source might be the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). In the period up to 2019, the WIV, in collaboration with EcoHealth Alliance (EHA) and other institutions, brought to Wuhan numerous bat viruses from the distant regions where viruses most similar to SARS-CoV-2 have been identified. They created genetically modified versions of viruses and tested them by infecting human cells and humanised mice, causing significant gains in infectivity and lethality in one known case. They did some of these experiments at inappropriately low safety levels”.

But it’s worth reading the whole article.

Genetic engineering can be a useful tool – there is even a GCSE on the subject. And there is a good recent example of curing a rare disease using CRISPR gene editing technology – see https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/infant-rare-incurable-disease-first-successfully-receive-personalized-gene-therapy-treatment

But it could clearly be misused with very deadly and dangerous consequences. It does need to be heavily regulated.

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Andrew Carnegie Biography

If you want some easy summer reading, here is a book I have been reading and can recommend. It’s the Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie. He was born in Scotland but emigrated to the USA at the age of 12. Starting at the bottom as a poor immigrant he became one of the richest men in the world – emulating John D. Rockefeller in the same era.  

He developed the US steel industry but effectively retired at a young age and devoted himself to philanthropic works. In particular the establishment of libraries of which there are several thousand in the USA and UK. He also endowed many educational institutions.

His management style is particularly interesting and he believed in giving way to the demands of workers for higher pay. Better to have well-paid and well-motivated employees than disgruntled ones he believed. By this approach he avoided union disputes and strikes that disrupted production – an essential aspect of running blast furnaces and steel rolling mills at the time.

The only negative episode that affected his reputation was the Homestead Strike where 10 men were killed after the State Militia were called out to break a strike at a Carnegie owned plant. Carnegie was out of the country at the critical time so can hardly be blamed for what happened.

The book is an easy read and very enlightening on how to manage employees.  

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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M&S Cyber Attack – Disgraceful Incompetence

Marks and Spencer (MKS) have suffered a cyber attack that put some of its IT systems out of commission and exposed their customers to loss of personal information. Its on-line clothing business was shut down for several weeks causing very substantial financial losses.

According to an FT report this was caused by criminals breaching its systems using “social engineering tactics via a third-party supplier”. I presume they mean that identity impersonation was used to obtain access to M&S IT systems.

Apart from the fact that the heavy use of outside contractors will always make a company vulnerable, weak identity verification is always going to be a problem. Sensitive systems should be protected against identity theft by using better than simple password security. Companies such as Intercede (IGP) provide highly secure software products to secure identities – I hold shares in them.  

A company as large as M&S should know better. When your company relies on functioning IT systems to process orders, you really do need to take steps to forestall such cyber attacks.

FT article:  https://www.ft.com/content/19dcd993-877e-43c5-aab4-c727e574e3f2

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Interfering in Pension Funds

Whenever a socialist government gets elected, they think they can improve the economy by interfering in the decisions of capitalists. The current thinking seems to be that pension funds will be the next target with defined benefit pension schemes being encouraged to invest in big infrastructure projects covering transport, housing and energy.

This might be extended to target ISAs and SIPPs. ISAs hold as much as £750 billion but a lot of it is in Cash ISAs which don’t contribute much to the economy in terms of financing businesses. In total UK pension schemes, including SIPP pensions, hold a vast amount of assets, totalling over £3 trillion. This is a very attractive target for any Chancellor.

ISAs have been very successful in attracting savers because of their tax-free status and simple administration. SIPPs have also proved attractive in pension savers who want more control over their pension funds. It would be a shame if there was interference in these successful models. But the government apparently thinks that more of the money should be directed to financing UK companies. At present there are few explicit limits on what ISAs and SIPPs can invest in. And it is difficult to see how such limits can be imposed when investment trusts and funds which are listed or registered in the UK can pick from any listed companies worldwide.

The big issue for individual investors is whether the government should be interfering in the investment decisions of savers. The assets held in ISAs and SIPPs should not be diverted at the whim of civil servants or politicians who have proved to be incompetent investors if you look at history – British Leyland is a great example.

If investors wish to invest in the US economy instead of the UK’s – why should they not? This has proved a very successful investment strategy in the last few years mainly because US companies are better managed and operate in bigger markets.

Any wise investor does diversify investments geographically even if by doing so they expose themselves to currency exchange rate variance. Pensions in particular are long-term investments. The world economy might look very different in 30 or 50 years’ time so backing UK businesses may be perverse when Chinese companies might be dominant.

SIPPs are a particular issue because most SIPPs are written in trust. They are not owned by the investor in them but whoever is named as the beneficiaries. Government interference in where the money is invested breaches the fiduciary duties of the manager, whoever that is.

The key question is: “would diverting pension funds into infrastructure projects actually provide a good return?”. That is a very difficult question to answer and the answer might change over time. But if such projects do provide a good return then there are plenty of funds willing to invest in them and take any risks associated with doing so. They do not need the government to start interfering.

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Assisted Dying Bill Challenged

Despite the Scottish Parliament voting for an assisted dying bill this week, the Telegraph reported maliciously that the UK Bill promoted by Kim Leadbetter was at risk of collapse. The article suggested that some MPs were changing their minds based on anecdotal reports.

The Assisted Dying Bill returns to the Common on this Friday and a large number of amendments have been tabled. This seems to reflect some concerns (mainly imaginary ones in my view) about the protections against being coerced into volunteering for a painless death by those with some mental deficiencies. The large number of amendments might result in the Bill being “talked out” (a “filibuster” in essence by a few extremists opposed to any change).

All of this is hypothetical in my view and it would be most disappointing if this Bill was not progressed. Some MPs do like to sit on the fence when it comes to contentious political issues instead of providing leadership. No new Bill is perfect and there should be room for subsequent changes to tidy up matters after some experience of the practice. In other countries where such Bills are already in place the concerns have turned out to very few.

See the Telegraph article here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/14/assisted-dying-bill-risk-collapse-backers-change-minds/

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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The Changing Faces of VCTs

I have received a document entitled “The Changing Faces of VCTs” – probably because I hold a number of them having invested some years ago. It’s a good summary of the successes of some Venture Capital Trusts and how they could be improved – the limits on funding and age of investee companies do inhibit the growth of successful businesses.

The rules for VCTs are now quite restrictive and they are no longer as attractive as they used to be. It is clear from this report that VCTs have been successful in stimulating investment in early-stage companies. What is not so clear is whether such investments have given good returns to investors in VCTs, even after the tax reliefs that investors obtain.

With high management charges and a high risk of failures in investee companies (which tend to drop out of the fund performance figures), I am not convinced that they are great investments at present. The main beneficiaries have been the VCT managers and the Government, not the retail investors in them.

You can read the VCTA report here: https://www.vcta.org.uk/news/vcta-launches-30th-anniversary-report%3A-the-changing-faces-of-vcts

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Summer at Last and Political Issues Rising

Yes the sun is out and there is not a cloud in the sky – although thunderstorms are threatened for later today.

Keir Starmer has said he will reduce the number of immigrants which he now seems to accept have got out of hands. But exactly how he will do this is not really clear. Minor changes to rules imposed by the ECHR will not suffice. The real problem is some lawyers have got out of hand and have finessed the legal system to put obstacles in the way of any restrictions. They have been supported by funding from legal aid and from charities. Unless such funding is stopped, not a lot will change.

We need an Act of Parliament that stops funding of legal appeals regarding refusal of admittance.

The Telegraph ran a good article today on how Starmer made past promises to stop illegal immigration, none of which were carried through or had much impact – see https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/05/12/keir-starmer-has-changed-his-tune-on-immigration/

Why the sudden urgency to do something about immigration? It’s because the Reform Party are now looking a serious threat to both Labour and Conservative Parties. Recent opinion polls and local election results put Reform well in the lead. Personally I won’t be changing my voting intentions unless I see some actual results from the Labour initiative. But Chris Philp M.P. (shadow Home Secretary) is doing a good job at promoting some Conservative Party initiatives on immigration. He has always impressed me with his ability to put forward practical and popular policies. He would be a better leader for the Conservative Party than current or recent ones.

If you think immigration is out of hand in this country and that it could not get worse, just look at Sweden. Gang warfare has broken out and even children are paid to commit crimes including murder as they cannot be prosecuted. Over the 20 years since I worked for a Swedish company, the culture of Sweden has changed from being a safe and disciplined country to one of rampant crime. This is a direct result of excessive immigration. See https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/11/30/sweden-gangs-child-contract-killings-foxtrot-young-offender/

Another big political issue at present is free speech in the UK. There have been several examples recently of the police prosecuting or harassing people who might have said allegedly offensive words on social media (for example the case of Julian Foulkes). I certainly think it has gone to far and I today joined the Free Speech Union (see https://freespeechunion.org/) who have been supporting challenges to the misuse of legislation in this area. Even I am at risk of falling foul of some misguided police challenges after some over-sensitive person complains about my political views!

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Introduction of “Deportation” Bill

The Conservative Party have introduced a Deportation Bill to Parliament. Chris Philp MP, Shadow Home Secretary, said: “Labour and Reform are both complicit in the trade of empty slogans and hollow promises. Our plan can be enacted now to get immigration back under control.”

The Bill’s main elements are:

  • Automatic deportation for anyone who arrives in the country illegally.
  • Introducing an annual cap on migration – Ensuring migration levels are determined by the British people. 
  • Doubling the residency requirement for Indefinite Leave to Remain from 5 to 10 years – British citizenship is a privilege to be earned, not a right to be claimed. 
  • Creating new powers to revoke Indefinite Leave to Remain – Allowing us to remove those who have become a burden to the UK.
  • Disapplying the Human Rights Act from all immigration-related matters – Preventing foreign nationals from exploiting our court system.
  • Increasing the salary threshold for work visas to £38,700.
  • Introducing powers to deport all foreign criminals – If you break the law here, you go home.

This all seems eminently sensible to me. But what is the chance of it becoming law? Rather low I suspect because the Labour Party is keen to have more low-paid immigrants in the country who are more likely to vote for them as the UK’s social security system is way too generous and easy to exploit. Gerrymandering is the name of the game.

More information here: https://www.conservatives.com/news/conservatives-introduce-the-deportation-bill

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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Warren Buffett Retirement

The major financial news yesterday was that Warren Buffett announced his retirement as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway. At the age of 94 that is not altogether surprising. Greg Abel is taking over as CEO.

I don’t personally hold the Berkshire Hathaway shares but shareholders will have been very pleased with Warrens stewardship of the business which has a remarkable performance track record over 60 years. There are several books documenting his investment style but he has always demonstrated humility and often admits his mistakes.

He has given out lots of wisdom in his witty remarks on the investment world, such as ““Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing” – as opposed to measuring investment risk via share price volatility.

Warren Buffett will be sadly missed as an example of how to invest in companies and in the stock market.

Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson  )

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