What should the next government do?

In the Ukraine there is a large section of the population that is known as ‘the disappointed’ – people who have no confidence in either their country’s government or the opposition. I hope that the proportion of ‘disappointed’ citizens will not continue to rise in this country as well, but I have my doubts.
It is not so-called apathy that keeps people away from the ballot box – this term is insulting to people most of whom continue to care – rather it is deep disappointment with the closely similar, austere and uninspiring fare that is on offer.
Unless the opposition brings forward a plan that has real vision, is fundamentally different from the others and which will improve the character of our society and the quality of life and work for those who have been hardest hit, I fear that the number of ‘disappointed’ will continue to increase.
Recent newspaper correspondence and a few thoughts of my own voiced in earlier articles on this blog prompted me to draw together a (partial) list of policies and objectives that would refresh the political process and inject some positivity. Here they are, along with ideas for taxation and savings to pay for them:
Policies
Recognise that the public sector can deliver public services in ways that prioritise benefit to the public rather than private sector profits. Start by renationalising the railways. Guarantee no further privatisations, jettison PFI and put an end to existing contracts wherever possible.
Make payment of the living wage mandatory, outlaw zero-hours contracts and unpaid work.
Phase in a reversal of the benefit cuts.
Stop the interminable messing around with the NHS and stop the government’s disguised health service cuts.
Impose effective regulation on those utilities not renationalised, introducing effective penalties, capping prices and restricting or windfall-taxing profits.
Get to grips with fuel poverty and undertake a big drive on insulation to reduce energy usage.
Get a grip on the banks, support an international financial transactions tax and facilitate local authorities in re-establishing municipal banks.
While interest rates are being held at historic lows introduce a scheme to pay decent interest on the first £10k of savings. Stop forcing government backed savings and investment schemes to parrot the private sector.
Crack down on payday lenders and other usurers.
Roll back increases in tuition fees.
Invest in a consistent and effective low carbon energy strategy including a tidal barrage.
Encourage domestic agriculture and the local sourcing of foods.
Prioritise manufacturing and ensure government purchases of British rather than foreign produced goods.
Support fair trade and gather support to roll back globalisation.
Stop ruining Local Government, reverse most of the cuts, devolve something other than cuts and costs and help with the millstone of unfunded equal pay legislation.
Increase the public funding of political parties to remove malign influence, policy bias and other favouritism associated with big financial donors.
Outlaw lobbying.
Implement Leveson.
Taxation
Apart from a new financial transactions tax noted above, increased revenue to support the listed policies could be gained from:
The increased tax revenue from the higher level of economic activity that would result from implementation of these proposals.
Ensuring that rich individuals and companies actually pay taxes. This will in part require international collaboration on abolition of tax havens and the introduction of a globalised tax regime.
Make National Insurance contributions flat rate. Something like 7% on incomes without upper limit would bring in as much as the present system which favours the rich. A higher rate would bring in considerably more.
Restore the 50% top rate of tax.
Make more frequent use of windfall taxes on excessive profits.
Allow local authorities to introduce two extra bands of council tax.
Savings
Major saving would follow from reduction in the number of Trident submarines.
Cancel HS2, spend half (i.e. £21.3bn (official), £36.5bn (Treasury internal) or £40bn (external experts) depending on which guesstimate you take) of the saving on improvements to existing lines and local rail schemes and use the remainder to support capital elements of the above proposals.
Take an axe to the use of private sector consultants by national government.