After a few beers I very seldom have an inspirational idea, but this has just dawned on me.

The full effect of the globalisation of markets, manufacturing, finances and labour is not understood. We are well into unknown territory.

The GBP has been devalued and Brown is hoping that this will make the UK more competitive with manufactured exports. Well, who is going to provide the knowledge and skills to provide this? Yes, engineers and teachers. The world does not need more estate agents, bankers, paper pushing civil servants. With the devalued Pound, already 30% down, where are these guys going to be looking for jobs? Yep, you've got it, not in the UK.

There is already an exodus of teachers moving to educate the world in the still well regarded British system. Surely this will accelerate and also take the engineers, the guys who can actually do something, with them?

Just another nail in the UK coffin, IMO.

I just read somewhere that the UK granted 150.000 workpermits last year to foreigners?

Now I have no idea if they are unskilled people but my gues is that they will work for a bit less then a UK person.

Same for Holland where they invited lot's of Polish workers and promised them that incase they loose their job they will get

a monthly allowance from government. The UK has not much it can export other than perhaps militairy stuff?

This hole globalisation and so called free trade deals are another big scam if you ask me.

As you said about skilled workers, if the UK goes back to manufacturing things, these people need to be retrained and that

can take a long time before you have things going again, I don't see it happening quickly, a recovery I mean.

Too many signals there is more bad news coming.

12DM, do you lay in your bed at night fretting about new problems you dream up for the British Economy?

I'm an engineer, I work for the UK office of a major international engineering company - Bush's war on Terror brought a huge increase of work to our office (work that otherwise would have gone to the US). We are now awash with projects coming our way as a direct result of the weak pound - To put this in perspective, the project I'm working on right now is over £10 Billion. One of four similar sized projects here in Saudi Arabia and we are bringing similar sized projects in from around the world - the weak pound is helping us greatly.

As for engineers leaving the UK. While I and a large number of my colleagues are on assignment overseas, my employers are recruiting engineers and technologists in the Global Market (Globalization at work) - To put that in perspective our UK office has over 200 different languages spoken as 'mother tongue'.

It gets better, 'Greening' the world's energy markets is already bringing in more work - Environmental legislation is going to produce its own engineering boom.

And in the meantime Engineering has seen something of a revival as career choice for young people, I'm working with a bunch of 2nd year graduate trainee engineers who I can only say are a pleasure to work with, bright, professional and incredibly dedicated to their careers.

Don't rush to nail the lid down just yet - UK engineering is still very much alive and kicking.

After a few beers I very seldom have an inspirational idea, but this has just dawned on me.

The full effect of the globalisation of markets, manufacturing, finances and labour is not understood. We are well into unknown territory.

The GBP has been devalued and Brown is hoping that this will make the UK more competitive with manufactured exports. Well, who is going to provide the knowledge and skills to provide this? Yes, engineers and teachers. The world does not need more estate agents, bankers, paper pushing civil servants. With the devalued Pound, already 30% down, where are these guys going to be looking for jobs? Yep, you've got it, not in the UK.

There is already an exodus of teachers moving to educate the world in the still well regarded British system. Surely this will accelerate and also take the engineers, the guys who can actually do something, with them?

Just another nail in the UK coffin, IMO.

You said it and this one was no different

UK is in no worse state than rest of them. Refer you to Moody's rating affirmation this week.

12DM, do you lay in your bed at night fretting about new problems you dream up for the British Economy?

I don't have to dream up new problems, they are already there.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11...s-collapse.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/...dit-crunch.html

It gets better, 'Greening' the world's energy markets is already bringing in more work - Environmental legislation is going to produce its own engineering boom.

And in the meantime Engineering has seen something of a revival as career choice for young people, I'm working with a bunch of 2nd year graduate trainee engineers who I can only say are a pleasure to work with, bright, professional and incredibly dedicated to their careers.

Don't rush to nail the lid down just yet - UK engineering is still very much alive and kicking.

Giss a job. I can do tha