(Historic document) How this can be achieved.We have first to forget about national competition, about sharing out slices of the cake, and instead look at allowing as many people as possible to play an active part. The islands, as we have said will have a standard interface, and standard services, allowing each to be independently designed and constructed. We propose, as some point, to offer development licenses for each of the main services we require, telecommunication, TV channels, Radio, water, waste, etc. Each of these licensees will be offered on the basis of a registration fee, and an annual license fee. They will be renewable on an ongoing basis providing the companies have met agreed minimum criteria and are making progress towards the agreed goals. We propose regulators rather then excessive competition. We will likewise look to license developers of the outside wall units, who will agree a joint specification, and pricing arrangement. Developers or development companies who want to take on the development of islands, will do so on the basis of building two islands of similar specs, plus paying towards the cost of wall units. One unit they will own, and can sell or rent out units, and the other similar island they will give to the state of New Atlantis. This will be used to provide, schools, hospitals, offices, sports facilities and also allow some units to be rented out providing the state with an ongoing income. These development companies will be extremely profitable, as the properties they will develop will be considerably valuable and of course unlike land developments there is no land cost. There will be special arrangements for companies that want to develop in effect green field sites for further development by others and other special arrangements. We for example will not need two airport units so we will need to discuss if the state should have a 50% stake in the airport, or if an equivalent collection of smaller islands or another larger island should be provided. The objective is at all times to be flexible, to look and consider all options in all cases. We will be looking for new and exciting designs and techniques but will also be looking at all times for a safety redundancy to be built in so that if the structure should fail in any way people are not put at risk. So what about the inhabitants of this new kingdom, they will be multi national, and we will look at welcoming anyone who likes the idea of New Atlantis. We will see people with skills, companies attracted for tax and similar reasons, high tech, recreation, and of course the construction and support. We will need shops, banks and all other types of business, but from the beginning the wide band internet connections will be provided throughout the islands, and internet purchase and delivery will be standard practice. Banks licensed to operate in the Kingdom will a have to agree basic criteria, such as allowing any citizen who wishes to open a bank account, providing each client with a payment card, although they do not have to provide credit to people who cannot handle it. Likewise they will have to offer companies transaction processing services at agreed rates, and have their charging structures approved. Likewise Insurance companies will have to agree to work in an honorable way and will be monitored closely, with their license being withdrawn if they fail to meet the standards. The administration will comprise a central government provided by New-Atlantis, and community councils run by the citizens of islands or groups of islands. There will be some islands that come directly under the New-Atlantis administration, so that people have another choice. The laws of New Atlantis will be restricted in volume to what could be printed in a standard sized A4 ring binder in standard sized type and written in plain English. The theory of this is to be basic, sensible and easily understood by everyone. There will be no court system, but community councils will deal as a first level, with appeals being possible to a committee established by the president and finally to the president. Priority in these will always be towards agreeing a sensible consensus. it will not involve an adversarial model. Where ultimately a person is unable to agree to the ultimate sanction to to be asked to leave the Kingdom and never return. We will have no prisons. In theory there is a risk of foreign criminals calling to do a single crime knowing that they will only get expelled, but we do not think this will happen and we can take measures to overcome it. Many of the problems originally envisaged have disappeared over time, for example communication is now available by satellite links and the exact position of the Kingdom will be known at all time.We feel we have now moved from overcoming problems to offering opportunities, and the continent can be built. A new web site is being set up so as to coordinate the development and construction this is www.Build.New-Atlantis.co.uk. |