Editor’s March commentary

The difference is not so much in the number of engineers as the use we make of them

While I fully agree with your editorial that we should be worried by the number of engineers produced by China and India analysis of the statistics quoted shows the validity of your quote about "lies, damned lies and statistics". China and India together on the figures given have 1 graduate per year for every 2778 in the population. For UK the figure is 1 in 2818. The difference is not so much in the number of engineers as the use we make of them. While the Chinese government includes a good number of engineers and has an appreciation of the need, the UK is deficient in that respect.

Ever since Margaret Thatcher decided we have too many civil servants, the administration has been getting rid of engineers and other professional expertise. The closure or privatisation of many research establishments and the Property Services Agency means that there is practically no professional expertise within the government. The result is that the government has ceased to be an intelligent customer. With the refusal to appoint an Engineering Advisor one cannot expect the government to lead in the right direction.

The article on page 4 on carbon tax shows the result of the long term neglect of manufacturing where management, politicians and banks have failed to maintain development and much of our industry is now owned by overseas organisations. It is then easy for them to shut down production in UK, especially when demand is low in a recession. On page 8 we find that the nation which invented railways has to get Hitachi to produce trains for us. We have failed to provide proper electrification so this is an expensive stop gap measure.

On page 5 we see an instance of this lack of forward thinking as a Swedish company is leading a development in tidal power while the work in UK on horizontal-axis turbines mentioned as its major competition had only reached the stage in 2009 of considering a demonstration project. I have not heard of further developments in spite of the fact that the UK is unique in having two high and low tides circulating at all times.

The editorial ended on a high note which I really hope is justified as the need is great.

A Reading, Surrey

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