The British state has become a “self-serving, greedy master of the people”, a Reform UK MP said as he called for quantitative easing to be prohibited.
Rupert Lowe argued that MPs should be given the right to block the introduction of new money into the supply by the Bank of England, under his Quantitative Easing (Prohibition) Bill.
As he walked to present the Bill in the Commons, Mr Lowe was jokingly dubbed “future leader” by another MP in the chamber who could be heard shouting out.
It came after US billionaire Elon Musk appeared to endorse Mr Lowe as a replacement for Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, claiming he “doesn’t have what it takes”.
“I have not met Rupert Lowe, but his statements online that I have read so far make a lot of sense,” the Tesla boss wrote in response to a post asking whether the former Southampton FC chairman should take over the top job.
The Great Yarmouth MP was also heckled on Wednesday by Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who said “absolute shambles” after Mr Lowe stumbled through the list of MPs supporting the Bill before having to repeat the names.
Presenting his Bill through a 10-minute rule motion, Mr Lowe said it aims to “prohibit quantitative easing, to prohibit the Government from indemnifying any losses that may result from quantitative easing, and for connected purposes”.
He added: “The purpose of this draft legislation is to ensure that the state is as economically accountable to the people as the people are to the state.
“To do this means terminating the state’s ability to debase the value of money through practices such as quantitative easing, which are not an option for the individual.”
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX (Kirsty Wigglesworth/PA)
He continued: “In rather the same way as early Weimar Germany, Britain finds itself heavily indebted and continuing to run multiple deficits, making matters progressively worse.
“Our moral decline is clearly evident, as true capitalism has been undermined by regular intervention, increasing state regulation, and the growing, bloated and inefficient state.
“It is interesting that Weimar Germany’s revival started with the dismissal of many civil servants and social welfare spending was massively cut.”
Mr Lowe added: “Governments can confiscate – secretly and unobserved – an important part of the wealth of their citizens. In doing so, the size of the state inevitably grows and becomes a self-serving, greedy master of the people they should be serving.
“Common sense, logic and human relationships among working people are inevitably undermined, and there is a general moral decline in society.
“Taxes should be transparent, justifiable and simple. The costs of government should be covered by taxes alone, which limits the growth of excessive statism.”