Two interesting articles on lack of investment and misguided subsidies and the economic consequences
Chaos in our skies, crumbling concrete in our schools: grim symptoms of a British disease Will Hutton | The Guardian
“A long-term lack of investment has left our infrastructure in pieces. Instead we are prey to dire fallout from events that should be within our control”
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/sep/03/chaos-in-skies-crumbling-concrete-in-schools-grim-symptoms-british-disease And
Fossil-fuel subsidies surged to a record $7 trillion last year as governments supported consumers and businesses during the global spike in energy prices caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the economic recovery from the pandemic.
As the world struggles to restrict global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and parts of Asia, Europe and the United States swelter in extreme heat, subsidies for oil, coal and natural gas are costing the equivalent of 7.1 percent of global gross domestic product. That’s more than governments spend annually on education (4.3 percent of global income) and about two thirds of what they spend on healthcare (10.9 percent).
Scaling back subsidies would reduce air pollution, generate revenue, and make a major contribution to slowing climate change
Simon Black, Ian Parry, Nate Vernon
Fossil Fuel Subsidies Surged to Record $7 Trillion (imf.org)
https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/08/24/fossil-fuel-subsidies-surged-to-record-7-trillion?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery