More hilarity with the Homeys at City AM...

The great defender of monopolies spake thusly (on the topic of fracking):

"the big flaw in the UK’s zero sum game planning system: no mechanism exists to allow the winners to pay off the losers. We need radical reform, and fast.."

Well, duh.

Of course such a mechanism exists: it's called Land Value Tax (or Domestic Rates or Business Rates).

Land which benefits from an externality (a new railway station, a fracking licence etc) pays more LVT; and land which falls in value (near a noisy train track; fracking activities next door) pays less LVT.

It's the free market solution to a monopoly situation and a much better source of revenue than taxing output and employment i.e. real wealth creation.