Thursday 19th February 2015

[Tubby Isaacs]

The DT responds!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/tele ... aders.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This newspaper makes no apology for the way in which it has covered the HSBC group and the allegations of wrongdoing by its Swiss subsidiary, allegations that have been so enthusiastically promoted by the BBC, the Guardian and their ideological soulmates in the Labour Party. We have covered this matter as we do all others, according to our editorial judgment and informed by our values. Foremost among those values is a belief in free enterprise and free markets.

Utterly graceless.

I wonder which one of the Barclay brothers dictated that one over the phone to the hapless editor in chief?

Even the Torygraph subbers are going to see that as the crock of shit that it is.

I think Hodges or Alison Pearson did it.

[rebeccariots2]

Richard Andrews ‏@reandrewslab 4m4 minutes ago
When will this disgraceful nonsense of talking about “unemployed people” as if they are social lepers end? Stigma does nothing good. #bbcqt

[TechnicalEphemera]

This is amusing.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/po ... 57853.html

[ErnstRemarx]

I believe this happened a few weeks ago, but just in case, this is for the plane lovers among us


http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/559104 ... wall-coast

I don't suppose I should say so, but I think the 'Bear' is a beautiful aircraft...

http://www.airforceworld.com/bomber/eng ... mber-2.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I get what you say. Saw one flying at the RIAT a few years back (a few? Just checked, and it is 21 years ago. Jeez I feel old.) and that is one very impressive piece of kit!! And as somebody said elsewhere tonight (sort of) the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Well it is beautiful, and the Lightning was cobby, in the smae way as the Sopwith Camel was. I don't know why, but those old Soviet reconaissance planes (they're not really bombers) look really lush to me.

[Willow904]

I still haven't been able to find out what the official school leaving age is, whether Labour's rise to 17 in 2013 and then 18 in 2015 has ever come into law. You'd think, even with my modest internet skills, this information would be easy to find.

Hi Willow

The school leaving age is still 16, but you have to remain in education or training until your 18th birthday. This says it's been implemented:
https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/ ... pation-age" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

and this has percentages of 16 and 17 year olds by LA and region with an offer of education or training as at September 2014 (and for each year back to Sept 2010):
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... -year-olds" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

92.8% have had an offer made (although it doesn't say how many take the offer up, drop out, etc), and there are some LAs with a surprisingly large number of children that they have no information on. Overall, 5% had not been contacted (because they had moved with no forwarding address) or had no offer made, which is about 60,000 children.

In September 2010, the figure was 93.9% with only 1.6% not contacted, 19,000 children.

When a child up to age 16 changes school/moves from an LA, the LA has a duty to know where that child has gone. With the change in legislation, I wonder if that duty has been extended to 16/17 year olds? That is a big increase in children where the LA doesn't know where they are.

Thanks for the info, although I have to confess I'm more confused than ever. If participation in education or training for 16 and 17 year olds was 93.9% in 2010 and is now 92.8%, the policy to have all young people in education until 18 introduced in 2013 seems to have had the opposite effect than the one intended. Can that be right or am I reading it wrong?

[AnatolyKasparov]

The DT responds!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/tele ... aders.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Utterly graceless.

I wonder which one of the Barclay brothers dictated that one over the phone to the hapless editor in chief?

Even the Torygraph subbers are going to see that as the crock of shit that it is.

I think Hodges or Alison Pearson did it.

I can remember when she was good - which is more than can be said for DFH.

[pk1]

@britainelects: Plaid Cymru GAIN Hengoed (Carmarthenshire) from Labour.

WTF

All the more so since it was in fact a Labour hold - the Plaid "gain" was the concurrent Community Council (ie Welsh "parish") election

Oh dear, hope somebody told @BritainElects !

[TechnicalEphemera]

I don't suppose I should say so, but I think the 'Bear' is a beautiful aircraft...

http://www.airforceworld.com/bomber/eng ... mber-2.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I get what you say. Saw one flying at the RIAT a few years back (a few? Just checked, and it is 21 years ago. Jeez I feel old.) and that is one very impressive piece of kit!! And as somebody said elsewhere tonight (sort of) the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Well it is beautiful, and the Lightning was cobby, in the smae way as the Sopwith Camel was. I don't know why, but those old Soviet reconaissance planes (they're not really bombers) look really lush to me.

Tu-95 up to 15 Tonnes of missiles, including the option for multiple 150kt nukes.

That sort of reconnaissance could really ruin a persons day.

[AnatolyKasparov]

@britainelects: Plaid Cymru GAIN Hengoed (Carmarthenshire) from Labour.

WTF

Plaid are pretty strong in Carmarthenshire. Labour not very well liked in some quarters because of some council shenanigans similar to Pembs CC. Not that surprised by that.

You don't read my posts, then

In reply to pk1 - they have airbrushed out all evidence of the offending tweets

[LadyCentauria]

https://speye.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/ ... nny-saved/


"The general election HB figures released – Welfare Reform costs MORE and not a penny saved"

Have I understood this article correctly, please?

IDS has used his position as DWP minister to move, through legislation penalising housing benefit recipients for something never existing prior to current government fabricating it ('spare room subsidy'), 200,000 social housing sector tenants out of the social housing sector. This has cost more in every way possible. 200,000 former social housing sector tenants are no longer in social sector housing. They're now in private sector, Tory MP landlord accommodation everyone pays more for than prior their exodus. Out of London & into private sector housing.

Is that about it? Is this correct?

That'd be about the shape of it. I'm paying the Under-Occupancy Penalty on the 2-bedroom flat I live in. The council have a massive shortage of 1-bedroom properties – especially accessible ones - so, if I moved, I'd need to either wait years for one to become vacant (with me at the top of the list) or move into the private sector. One-bedroom places (accessible) in the private sector in this area (even looking at areas miles away) cost considerably more than my current full rent. Even a room in a shared house would be more expensive. Crazy, isn't it!?

[GetYou]

It's been clear for a few years now, so I'm hardly surprised at the findings. It was always going to cost more money, given the paucity of available dwellings, and therefore would always cost more than leaving be.

Any sensible government would not have made it retrospective, but might have tied it to new lets, whilst building council/social housing like fuck to accommodate demand.

Absolutely this Ernst. The way the lack of supply was treated as a minor inconvenience rather than a fundamental flaw in the policy is appalling.

[ErnstRemarx]

I get what you say. Saw one flying at the RIAT a few years back (a few? Just checked, and it is 21 years ago. Jeez I feel old.) and that is one very impressive piece of kit!! And as somebody said elsewhere tonight (sort of) the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Well it is beautiful, and the Lightning was cobby, in the smae way as the Sopwith Camel was. I don't know why, but those old Soviet reconaissance planes (they're not really bombers) look really lush to me.

Tu-95 up to 15 Tonnes of missiles, including the option for multiple 150kt nukes.

That sort of reconnaissance could really ruin a persons day.

OK, fair point, you've got me bang to rights guv. But, you'd have to concede, in the 80s (think 'Threads') you only ever saw them as reconaissance planes, inevitably being escorted away from UK Airspace by a Tornado or similar. I believe Alison Moyet and the pop group U2 were quite big around that juncture too.

[rebeccariots2]

Just read a post on UK Polling Report which has some lovely bits in it. So I will leave you with an extract from it and go to bed on a lighter note having seen it:

MRNAMELESS
I went to see Neil Kinnock in Sheffield tonight (he insists nobody ever brought up the rally until eight days after the election). I would never have thought a 73 year old man could retain such a level of energy while doing public speaking.
Probably his best line of the night was “We’re in the last two minutes of the football match, with no extra time, and we’re ahead. We’re just ahead despite the referee and most of the linesmen being crooked, and a couple of team members who’ve forgotten what jersey they’re wearing”.
He also opened with quite a bit on the Green Party (the event being in Sheffield Central), which was surprisingly not as combative as the rest of the speech, and more on the lines of a plea for unity. He spoke of the way that both Labour and Green hearts go out to the same degree and in the same way for the very poor in Britain, that they both feel the same about climate change, and drew a comparison with the 2002 French election where a badly split left led to the runoff between Chirac and Le Pen.
Interesting speech whatever your view, and he can still get them laughing and crying in the space of two minutes. Packed house, and I won a book in the raffle too.

[rebeccariots2]

@britainelects: Plaid Cymru GAIN Hengoed (Carmarthenshire) from Labour.

WTF

Plaid are pretty strong in Carmarthenshire. Labour not very well liked in some quarters because of some council shenanigans similar to Pembs CC. Not that surprised by that.

You don't read my posts, then

In reply to pk1 - they have airbrushed out all evidence of the offending tweets

I do AK - but after I'd posted my response - which I then looked at and thought - it still stands, Plaid are strong in Carmarthenshire - and Labour have blown it on certain council matters there ....

[TechnicalEphemera]

Well it is beautiful, and the Lightning was cobby, in the smae way as the Sopwith Camel was. I don't know why, but those old Soviet reconaissance planes (they're not really bombers) look really lush to me.

Tu-95 up to 15 Tonnes of missiles, including the option for multiple 150kt nukes.

That sort of reconnaissance could really ruin a persons day.

OK, fair point, you've got me bang to rights guv. But, you'd have to concede, in the 80s (think 'Threads') you only ever saw them as reconaissance planes, inevitably being escorted away from UK Airspace by a Tornado or similar. I believe Alison Moyet and the pop group U2 were quite big around that juncture too.

Never got Alison Moyet, but yes the classic Cold War. The Soviet Union response to regular incursions of US aircraft was to unceremoniously shoot them down.

I have a suspicion the modern day RAF are actually funding the Russian Airforce. Their shiny new EuroFighters have something to do at last.

[ErnstRemarx]

https://speye.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/ ... nny-saved/


"The general election HB figures released – Welfare Reform costs MORE and not a penny saved"

Have I understood this article correctly, please?

IDS has used his position as DWP minister to move, through legislation penalising housing benefit recipients for something never existing prior to current government fabricating it ('spare room subsidy'), 200,000 social housing sector tenants out of the social housing sector. This has cost more in every way possible. 200,000 former social housing sector tenants are no longer in social sector housing. They're now in private sector, Tory MP landlord accommodation everyone pays more for than prior their exodus. Out of London & into private sector housing.

Is that about it? Is this correct?

That'd be about the shape of it. I'm paying the Under-Occupancy Penalty on the 2-bedroom flat I live in. The council have a massive shortage of 1-bedroom properties – especially accessible ones - so, if I moved, I'd need to either wait years for one to become vacant (with me at the top of the list) or move into the private sector. One-bedroom places (accessible) in the private sector in this area (even looking at areas miles away) cost considerably more than my current full rent. Even a room in a shared house would be more expensive. Crazy, isn't it!?

And that was the absolute Achilles' heel. There wasn't enough alternative housing, and therefore there was no choice. Where any housing of sort existed (and let's not forget, 50s/60s council housing was built predicated upon families, hence multiple bedrooms) it would command a premium price. And it does. That's why 3-4-5 bedroom houses are lying empty in some areas. Why would you take a property up that would cause you such financial grief? It's an insane policy from an insane party, voted for by the gullible, stupid and greedy.

[HindleA]

"Necessary rooms for care /medical purposes deemed spare and penalised"

[thatchersorphan]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nh ... ay-5195393" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; thinktank civitas floats idea of paying an NHS levy

Civitas claimed there was a proven “public appetite” for increased contributions to the NHS.
It cited surveys suggesting 60% of the public would be willing to pay higher income tax, while 54% said taxes should be raised to pay for healthcare.

Note the public didn't say they wanted a £10 levy, that's just a civitas 'extra'

[LadyCentauria]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nh ... ay-5195393 thinktank civitas floats idea of paying an NHS levy

Civitas claimed there was a proven “public appetite” for increased contributions to the NHS.
It cited surveys suggesting 60% of the public would be willing to pay higher income tax, while 54% said taxes should be raised to pay for healthcare.

Note the public didn't say they wanted a £10 levy, that's just a civitas 'extra'

The Civitas £10 (a month) levy idea would create a two-tier NHS if any government was cruel enough to introduce such a thing! Great swathes of the population don't earn enough to get to the end of the month with any money left – and those in receipt of Social Security, in its many and varied forms, would also be unable to pay it – and they're probably thinking £10 per head, which would cripple the finances of many families. So millions of people would be unable to access the 'choice' that is already supposed to exist, unless they were given an exemption; but then that would create resentment amongst those who were paying the levy.

Much more sensible to consider a rise in general taxation. Trouble is that people often say they'd support an extra penny in the pound on income tax or National Insurance when surveys are carried out but if a party puts that in their manifesto, hey presto! it's a vote loser, or I'm pretty sure it was in the past. It still leaves everyone whose income is too low to pay income tax (or National Insurance which, I think, starts at a lower income level) not 'contributing' - except through the general taxes and duties that everybody has to pay. Now, I happen to think that those taxes and duties count as 'contribution' and I'm sure that many here do, too; after all, those monies all end up in the same general pot that everything, ultimately, comes out of. We just need to find a way to remind the public that everyone does contribute what they can to the general good, and that it's the honourable thing for those with more to contribute more. And we need to remind people how the general good (hospitals, surgeries, pharmacies, clinics, health visitors, GPs, nurses, etc., in terms of the NHS) benefits them, too – and how amazingly good our NHS is.

I took a little heart from succumbing to the 'click-bait' poll on that page and finding that 83% of those who took part object to the idea of a £10 monthly levy. They should have stuck in a second one on raising tax or NI but, perhaps, they're leaving that for another day.