A Conservative's blog

Costa Concordia Captain's lucky escape!

2012-01-19T00:31:00.002Z

Apparently Francesco Schettino, Captain of the cruise liner Costa Concordia did not abandon ship, he tripped and fell into a lifeboat.

How lucky is that? I mean what are the odds?

Rumours that he tripped over 3 disabled people and a small child have been strenuously denied.*

Meanwhile Captain Schettino has hired Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf as a public relations consultant to shore up his reputation and provide credible answers.**

The BBC has this.

*I made that up.
** That too. Should I become a journalist?

Cameron was wrong to use the EU veto for city interests!

2011-12-14T01:25:00.001Z

We have heard allot about David Cameron wielding the veto in European negotiations for the UK's national interests as far as our financial sector was concerned. It was wrong to wield the veto for that reason.

It is true, that were they the only reason to use the veto, I would have done it, however a better reason is that the deal on the table, whether it involved us or not, was wrong for the following reasons:

It does nothing to actually address the Euro's sovereign debt crisis, which was the purpose of the summit. Crucially there is no stated mechanism for the ECB to become the lender of last resort.
It proposes a set of rules that Euro members promised to keep to last time, and most did not but the Euro countries promise to be really good from now on. It's not credible.
The rules allow a country to run up it's debt to GDP ratio in good times as well as bad, creating an automatic structural deficit if a recession hits. (Gordon Brown would have met those rules.)
It has too little flexibility in the event of an actual recession for those countries who have behaved well to borrow what they need to as a recession hits.

So, I don't disagree with the veto being used, but it should have been used because the deal does not fix the problems of the Euro zone, it makes them worse, and punishes the UK for it.

What we could do with though, is counter proposals. The French and German governments are busy trying to look like they are doing something useful, and forcing others to back them when all they are doing is coming up with quarter measures to keep their electorates on side. This will work in the short term. Sarkozy has an election next year. The problem is last weeks summit will only work until the new year, and then only if they are lucky. The ink will never dry on the last deal to be signed in March 2012 because it will be renegotiated at least twice before then.

The BBC has this on the state of the Euro. The Independent has this on the maths in the Euro.

Worlds smallest steam engine? No!

2011-12-13T17:59:00.001Z

The BBC has an article entitled: World's 'smallest steam engine' built in Germany, except if you read the article, it is obviously not a steam engine at all.

It is in fact a Stirling engine, originally invented by the Rev Dr Robert Stirling (and his brother) in 1815 as a safer alternative to steam engines because many of his parishioners had died in boiler explosions. It is positively not a steam engine and is nothing at all like one.

I know journalists love to bask in utter ignorance, but this is really irritating. You do have to wonder where else they talk compete and utter rubbish because they are simply ignorant of the facts.

That may sound like an unfair rant, and in some ways it may be. However the news media spread knowledge and information and it is dangerous when they get it wrong as they frequently do.

Nabila Ramdani twitter spat Another thought.

2011-11-24T13:17:00.001Z

I want to point that Nabila Ramdani seemed to make it her business as a French citizen of Algerian decent to keep popping up on places like the BBC claiming that Libyans were as a group, inflicted with a tribal mentality such that they could not get on without Gaddafi to keep them in some kind of line. Should he fall Libya would, by implication turn into some version of Somalia. Whilst Libyans were dying in numbers, it is unsurprising therefore that Libyans seemed to take some exception at being described as such and as a consequence may have described Nabila Ramdani in terms which were either less than charitable or possibly not repeatable in polite company. Given the nature of her comments, were you to cast Libyans as a race her comments would be racist and as such I can entirely understand their anger.

Then when Gaddafi met his fate, it appears she changed her tune a bit. (In part because spouting the same somewhat inexpert nonsense would not do her any favours.) Some began to speculate at he volte face and indeed possible motivation for spouting bile about Libyans in the first place and subsequently changing her tune. It is in this context that the tweet was made and the reply given which was retweeted by me.

The moral of the story is, calling 6 million people who are dying to overthrow a vicious dictator a bunch of tribal ingrates may not get polite responses from them.

If after reading what I have just written you think my actions are capable of any criticism I would welcome hearing why.

The Nabila Ramdani twitter spat update

2011-11-23T18:30:00.001Z

There is now a blog post over at the Telegraph here, by Katharine Birbalsingh who claims to have read my blog post but clearly had not properly (is she supposed to be a good teacher?).

It has had some of the more defamatory elements removed. However a comment by Andy Cooke here is a very good summary of the events so far, and it is here:

Hmm.
So, the facts of the case are:
1. Mr White (who, according to the blog linked above, grew up in the Middle East before his family fled the violence), was understandably interested in the Libya campaign and followed (and contributed to) the discussion on Twitter

2. Ms Ramdani also was involved in the Libya discussions, repeatedly opining (in wider media sources as well as online) that if Gaddafi were removed, Libya would fall into chaos and tribal warfare.

3. A number of people on Twitter (including Mr White) disagreed with and attempted to debunk her claims.

4. When Gaddafi finally fell, Ms Ramdani "popped back up saying that maybe Gaddafi deserved it and her tone changed"

5. Some of the people on twitter who had taken exception to her implication that Gaddafi's removal would be a bad thing for Libya, highlighted the sudden change of tone with an implication that she had had a financial interest in the issue. Specifically, the Twitter uses "LibyaNewDay" stated it in a disbelieving tweet that BBC news were broadcasting her, to which Mr White responded "Yes, but she did say that Gadaffi getting it was his fault ... maybe she isn't getting paid any more"

6. "LibyaNewDay" responded "Exactly what I was thinking, @NabilaRamdani has toned down her love of Gaddafi. No more paypacket #Gaddafiwhores", which Mr White retweeted.

7. Ms Ramdani blew the incident up to the police and papers, including writing an article for the Guardian accusing Mr White of calling her "an immigrant prostitute", claiming that they used a 'whore' hashtag and "spiced up their principal insult with as many sexual allusions as they could fit into the 140 characters that Twitter allows". the latter appears to be completely unfounded.

8. Ms Birbalsingh pops up and uses the spat - well, as seen in the article above, whilst claiming to have read Mr White's version posted on his blog (which, incidentally, contains links to the primary source (the Twitter feed) unlike Ms Ramdani's version.

I've seen plenty of discussions on the internet, and terms like "commentwhoring" and "karmawhoring" (aiming to write comments specifically to gain support rather than to engage in debate), and, of course, "attentionwhoring". None of them ever seem to be interpreted to mean that the person discussed (usually more frequently male than female) is in fact a prostitute.
Of course, anyone aiming to blow these comments up out of context to make a point unsupported by the facts would of necessity separate the "whore" bit (as Ms Burbalsingh did above) or drop off the rest of the word entirely (as Ms Ramdani has done). None of Mr White's comments even seem to imply anything sexual at all, let alone her being "an immigrant prostitute".

On the face of it, it seems that Ms Ramdani has used the incident to try to make a political point that isn't there, using it as an excuse to try to slam the Conservatives. An unkind observer would possibly suspect mischief on her behalf. Ms Burbalsingh has used the incident to lament the fact that such claims damage the chance of a full Tory Government in power, and baldly state that Mr White is guilty of "racist and misogynist behaviour". Similarly, this would seem to be playing into Ms Ramdani's hands - explicitly claiming that her accusations are true but trying to wash the Conservatives hands of Mr White.

Personally, if I were Mr White, I'd wonder if Ms Ramdani's statements were actionable, and Ms Burbalsingh's likewise - a number of the statements in the article above being apparently unsupported by the facts (which Ms Burbalsingh states she had access to via Mr White's blog and link to the relevant discussion) and heavily insulting of Mr White's character, yet repeated in a public organ with wide circulation. It does call into question Ms Burbalsingh's reliability on any article she has published.

Looks like a good summary to me. My previous article on the subject is here.

Police don't investigate Tory activist not calling woman a whore shocker!

2011-11-21T18:28:00.001Z

Police are apparently not investigating a Conservative activist (me) for not calling Nabila Ramdani a whore. That said you would not get that impression from the article on line at the Evening Standard here currently titled "Police investigate after Tory activist tweets woman is 'whore'" though its previous title which was even more defamatory towards me has been changed , or presumably from their paper edition.

What does appear to be true (though I am only taking Associated Newspapers word for it) is that the police/police watchdog are investigating why the police are not investigating. (Presumably because there is no crime, for there is none made out).

This stems from Nabila Ramdani presumably being short of work and therefore looking to raise he profile as some kind of victim of hate, misogyny and racism, which of course she is not.

I will start with the context, for here context is key.

I had been following the Libyan situation on twitter, primarily because it was the only way to keep up once the main stream media had got bored with it.

Nabila Ramdani kept on popping up as being some kind of Middle East/North Africa expert (Which she obviously isn't) and discussing the state of Libya as the war with Gaddafi raged. She took the position that in essence Libya would fall into chaos, tribal warfare etc without Gaddafi, that it was beset by tribal issues and so on. By implication it would be better if Gaddafi stayed.

Many Libyan's following the situation and I on twitter noted her "expert opinions" and from their knowledge denounced her statements. On the 20th of October Gaddafi was captured and then either executed or died of his injuries. On the same day Nabila Ramdani popped back up saying that maybe Gaddafi deserved it and her tone changed.

In this context I tweeted:

@LibyaNewDay @NabilaRamdani Yes... but she did say #Gaddafi getting it was his fault... maybe she isn't getting paid any more.

and @LibyaNewDay tweeted (which I retweeted)

@BenedictMPWhite Exactly what I was thinking, @NabilaRamdani has toned down her love of Gaddafi. No more paypacket #Gaddafiwhores

You can see the relevant time line here.

What is clear is that at no point did I tweet that Nabila Ramdani is a whore, and the tweet I retweeted had the hashtag #GaddafiWhore which clearly implies a non sexual use of the term in this context.

I will do some more digging later and add to this article.

Science is lies, religion is truth!

2011-09-23T01:42:00.002+01:00

That might sound like an odd statement for a rational person to say who has studied Physics to university level, but it is true.

Today we learn that a theory that proved Newton's laws of motion were wrong* is possibly in itself wrong because neutrinos may in fact have travelled faster than the speed of light, fired from CERN to Italy. (The BBC has this)

This is not actually either a surprise or unusual. Real scientists (Not Richard Dawkins) are always finding out that what they believed last week was not quite right and so knowledge progresses. There can be no truths in science, because if there were it would become a religion and so not gain further knowledge. That said parts of the science community do turn religious in their dogma holding things up for a while.

Religion on the other hand is truth. This is not because it can be proven in a scientific sense but because it tells us something beyond fact about ourselves, our relationships with others, the world and our responsibility over it. Religions vary, but most contain some parts which many people would call a truth.

On the other hand with science you must always be testing and breaking the current position or else it does not move forward.

*I am being a bit hard on Newton's laws of motion, they work quite well at the level of practical human experience.

VAT increase to cost families £450! Did I hear that right?

2011-09-14T22:50:00.001+01:00

I am just watching BBC's Newsnight. Ed Balls has just said that the VAT rise from 17.5% to 20% will cost the squeezed middle £450. Did he really say that as a sound bite?

The thing is, that if you work it out, to get taxed £450 more by the VAT increase you would have to spend £18,000 on VATable goods that are taxed at the full rate. That excludes most food, vegetable plants and seeds, books, children's clothes, rent, mortgage and of course newspapers.

So who spends £18,000 on luxury items a year who is in the squeezed middle?

So why is UK growth so sluggish?

2011-07-27T00:23:00.002+01:00

Well, that is a whole matter of debate, but what I can say is this: Birmingham is no longer quite the industrial hub it once was.

The problem is this: A lot of our industrial output, like cars particularly (but not exclusively) Nissan (capacity 340,00 cars per year), Honda (250,000 per year) and Toyota (137,000 per year) are reliant on parts made in Japan. UK manufacturers have also been affected as they are also reliant upon Japanese imports which have been cut short by the tsunami. In short, 0.2% growth is fantastic under the circumstances.

Now lets get back to the phrase "under the circumstances". It's actually quite important. Making cars in the UK is quite cheap particularly if you only have to deal with one union but making components here is less so when you have to deal with the tax office who want you to write off plant long after you have had to scrap it because it is cost-efficient. This is something for which the whining Ed Balls was responsible when he was telling Gordon what to do, but it was also the case before Labour got into power in 1997.

The boss of Nissan UK thinks he wants to buy more parts in the UK. Good. Get that past the Treasury and we are in a win win situation.

Meanwhile, Japan is recovering from the tsunami and so will our production. Growth next quarter will be 0.6 to 0.9% of GDP which will make Ed Balls look a bit silly.

That said, looking at tax rules on plant would seriously help in growth without being too costly.

The BBC has this.

NOTW to close: 200 innocents pay whilst guilty keep their jobs

2011-07-07T18:00:00.002+01:00

So, in a move to deflect growing anger of the News of the Wor;ld phone hacking scandal, 200 innocent journalists are to lose their jobs whilst Rebekah Brooks can keep hers, as the News of the World will publish it's last edition this Sunday. You can read James Murdoch's statement here. The BBC has this.

This is disgusting. What's more it looks like Murdoch will be starting a paper called the Sun on Sunday, possibly as soon as the following week. In fact the domain names for thesundaysun.com and thesundaysun.co.uk have already been registered. In fact there seems to have been a plan to make the Sun a 7 day week operation (See The Guardian here).

What will be interesting to see if there are claims for unfair dismissal.

So, if the editor and staff of the News of the World want to start a new paper put me down for £100 in share capital. If I can spare more I will.

Should there be a public inquiry over phone hacking?

2011-07-06T01:20:00.003+01:00

No. That would cost the taxpayer millions.

What taxpayers should do is just boycott the tabloids, and anyone who advertises with them.

It would be much quicker, more effective and very very cheap.

So ... boycott News International and the tabloid press. Job done.

I also have this on the original story, and this on how the News of the World got Milly Dowler's mobile number.

How did the NOTW get Milly Dowler's mobile phone number?

2011-07-06T00:09:00.002+01:00

As readers will know from my last article I had an opinion of journalist that was low, of print journalists doubly so and tabloid ones quadripartitely so to a point that it could go no lower. I have now had to revise that and my opinion has dropped to depths I had hitherto thought impossible.

However a question sprang to mind which is ... how exactly did the people at or working for the News of the World get hold of Milly Dowler's mobile phone number in order to hack it? After all their families home phone number was ex directory and the NOTW got hold of hold of that by unlawful means.

So how did they get it?

From the family? Well, they couldn't get the families home number so I really doubt that they could of got it from the family.

Friends of Milly? Well how many would they have had to have asked to get the number, and if but one friend asked was concerned, that would have blown the operation out of the water so they would have had to have got lucky first time. Does anyone think they would have risked it?

The telephone companies? Well which one? The phone was a pay as you go mobile phone, need not have been registered, and the NOTW would not have known which provider to ask, so would have had to have worked their way through several.

So who then? Well... we do know one group of people who would have had the number and according to Rebecca Brookes in evidence to a parliamentary committee have form for selling information to journalists and that is the police. Seems to me to be the easiest most secure and least likely to backfire method available.

So the police have huge amounts to answer for and indeed this also explains why they have been hitherto completely lax and uninterested in investigating any further than they have been pushed. After all the investigation was and is bound to lead directly to them.

The story has now got much worse, with the Telegraph leading with a story that victims of the July the 7th bombing had their phones hacked as well as the family of the Soham murder victims Jessica Wells and Holy Chapman. (The comments above about how phone numbers were obtained also applies to these cases).

Just how disgusting can this get? Just how up to their necks in it are the police and is that why they have been dragged kicking and screaming to investigate? In fact you have to ask, how can we be sure the police are the right body to investigate?

Milly Dowler: Boycott News International!

2011-07-05T00:42:00.005+01:00

I have a very very low opinion of journalists, from the fantasist (Robert Fisk) to the great fictional writers (Johann Hari), the faux I hate the privileged, but privately educated immensely privileged and overpaid staff at the Guardian, the venal distasteful tabloid journalists and not forgetting the editors on all media who decide what sells papers and frequently decide what the news is and fit the facts to the story not decide what the story is based on the facts.

I was not prepared to have such a low opinion and low expectations lowered still let alone by the degree and manner of the Milly Dowler phone hacking story (Lest we not forget, reported to us by the over privileged, over paid Champagne socialists at the tax dodging Guardian media group).

Lets get this straight. They hacked a 13 year old girls mobile phone message service. Just how low can you go? They deleted messages when the mailbox was full, possibly interfering with a police investigation, in order to get fresh copy to sell more newspapers. This action caused the family to have hope where there was none, and may well have diverted the police investigation.

This is behaviour more disgusting than even I could have imagined. Not surprisingly none of the tabloids mention this on their front pages, because one suspects they would have done the same, if that is, they did not try.

So I call for a boycott of all News international outlets, especially the newspapers, The Sun, The News of the World and the Times (and the Times on Sunday) and if possible Sky News.

I would also ask people not to buy any tabloid. They have kept silent on the phone hacking story, I suspect because of a guilty conscience.

Ryan Giggs named as super injunction footballer!

2011-05-23T17:47:00.002+01:00

Ryan Giggs has been named as the footballer who took out a super injunction (via Schillings, lawyers to the rich and dubious) to prevent details of his alleged affair with Imogen Thomas.

He was named as such by John Hemming MP in parliament this afternoon. John Hemming later justified his actions because he was concerned that tracking down lots of people from Twitter and jailing them would be wrong particularly as many of them would not have the means to defend themselves.

My understanding is that Ryan Giggs took out the injunction because he was concerned about the affect on his family and in particular his children. Whilst this is an admirable aim, were he that concerned he need not have had an affair in the first place. Even if you are wealthy things things do eventually come out.

On a wider note there is something odd about super injunctions, particularly those concerning corporate bodies such as Trafigura. Whilst they are legal individuals they are not real individuals within the scope of section 8 of the human rights convention and are not entitled to a private family life.

The BBC has this.

World has not ended shocker!

2011-05-21T23:51:00.002+01:00

Apparently the world has not ended. It certainly does not seem to have ended here in Mid Sussex on the 21st of may.

(Well, to be fair if you were/are a Liberal Democrat it may have ended on the 5th or 6th of May)

Why do people go in for this end timer rubbish? Matthew chapter 25 makes it clear that we will not know "when the Son of Man commeth" therefore any such prophesy is a false one, and it follows that Harold Camping is a false prophet, albeit one who has made lots of cash from deluding people.

Israel's 1967 borders are indefensible!

2011-05-19T23:47:00.002+01:00

Is the argument that is often proffered by the Likud in the Israeli Knesset and the Ultra Likud who sit on Capitol hill in Washington.

This is given as an excuse for both not moving forward and indeed in many ways moving backwards particularly in settlement building.

Where this all falls back though is a brief examinations of the facts. Firstly it is proposed that a Palestinian state be de militarised. Secondly Israel defended the 1967 borders in the 1956 Suez war (which it started) and the 1967 war (which it also started by pre-emptive strike). In the latter example it expanded it's military sphere of influence.

Israel now has an equal or better superiority in fire power over it's neighbours than it did then.

So what is the conclusion?

Israel has defended the pre 1967 borders, and in one out of two cases expanded them therefore they are clearly eminently defensible so that argument is clearly rubbish.

When is a rape not a serious rape?

2011-05-18T23:34:00.004+01:00

Not for the first time, Ken Clarke appears to have been at the centre of some controversy, so I thought I would ask the following:

All of the following are legally rape, but do you regard them as equally serious?

1. A boy of just over 16 has sex with his just under 16 year old girlfriend, and they both want to do it so there is no complaint of rape.

2. A boy of 16 or 17 has sex with "his" 10 year old "girl friend" and there is no complaint from the girl of rape.

3. A man of 30 has sex with "his" 13 year old "girlfriend" and there is no complaint from the girl of rape.

4. A man and a woman having spent all evening together, consuming much drink go to one or others home and have sex which turns out to be non consensual.

5. During an evening in a bar a man slips a "date rape" drug into a drink for the woman he is talking to then takes her home and has sex with her.

6. A man jumps a woman he has never met in an alley, drags her away, threatens violence, and forces sex.

7. A man breaks into a house in the middle of the night, uses violence, and the threat of violence, forces sex.

Are they all as serious as each other?

Please note that in all the cases above the perpetrator is always male because the legal definition of rape involves sexual engagement with a penis. Anything not involving penetration with one is not legally rape but may be a sexual or serious sexual assault.

Mid Sussex massive win for Conservatives!

2011-05-06T19:43:00.003+01:00

We have taken wards that were safe as houses for the Liberal Democrats!

In short, Conservative hold in Mid Sussex with increased majority.

More later.

Update. 19:57.

So far the Conservatives have 40 seats, Labour 1 and the Liberal Democrats 7. That looks like 14 losses for the Liberal Democrats.

Update 23:01

Final result:

Conservatives: 45 (+15)

Liberal Democrats 8 (-15)

Labour 1 (No change).

Fred Goodwin, mentioned in Parliament.

2011-04-20T22:49:00.002+01:00

Apparently Fred Goodwin was mentioned in parliament on the 10th of march by John Hemming.

He apparently objects to being referred to by his previous profession, and so got a super injunction according to the speech in Parliament.

Well, I don't think of him as one of those, but a w*nker. And no that is not rhyming slang.

A footballer on question time?

2011-01-20T23:34:00.003Z

Ridiculous!

Except Clarke Carlisle makes some intelligent and articulate points. Well done!

How hard does the VAT increase hit?

2011-01-05T00:01:00.005Z

Well the short answer is it depends on how much you spend on what.

However I have seen some fascinating rubbish on the issue.

VAT is going up 2 and 1/2 pennies in the pound, but this rate does not apply to food*, rent, mortgages, domestic gas and electricity, children's clothes, books and newspapers. It does apply to petrol, cigarettes and alcohol**, food at restaurants etc.

So how much do you spend on VATable goods a week that will be going up?

To give you some idea, to beat the £1.30 a week extra some are claiming the poorest would have to pay in VAT you would have to be spending £52 a week on goods and services which attract VAT at the full rate. This does not include heating, lighting, food, children's clothes.

Some say it will hit the "average" family by £300 a year. That is paying £5.77 a week extra in VAT or, in terms of spending on VATable goods and services, £231 a week. This is where I really start to scratch my head as I just can see that level of income after I have paid for things like the house, the bills council tax and food all of which is not vatable. In fact if you look at it, that applies to a household income of £23 K (presumably after tax) which equates to a weekly income of £442. Is anyone seriously suggesting that a household with that level of income is blowing well over half of it on VATable goods? That would leave only £211 a week (£915) to pay for the house, council tax, utility bills (excluding telephone which is charged at the full rate) and food. Credible? I don't think so.

The BBC has this.

That said I would rather tax wasn't going up, but then I would rather not have had 13 years of a Labour government flying the economy into the ground whilst pushing up public sector inflation through the roof.

Tenant's finances to be checked after two years!

2010-11-20T23:55:00.003Z

Apparently tenant's finances are to be checked after two years, and if they don't need or rather qualify for social housing they will be asked to move on.

Great plan, should free up lots of social housing. In fact Labour came up with a similar very stupid idea before the election. They also ditched it, because whilst on the face of it, it is attractive, it is also very very barking mad.

If you are going to check someone's finances and on the result of that check make them move, then they will never breach what arbitrary number you have set. We already have this problem with the rest of the welfare state where people can't afford to take jobs because they would lose money doing so. The net result will be a very anti Conservative squashing of aspiration which is one of the driving forces of the party.

It does however get worse. If, as intended people who succeed move on, and those who don't stay, then estates and housing stock will fill with a homogeneous lack of achievement and ambition further stifling aspiration and ambition and directly counteracting the effect of allowing council house tenants the right to buy which broke up estates of despair.

The government wants to help the 1.8 million households on the waiting list. That is easy, we no longer have a dismal Labour government which utterly failed to build as many houses as any other government so anything will be an improvement.

The BBC has this.

The great big cyber security threat!

2010-10-18T23:39:00.002+01:00

Apparently, according to a review of national security, there is regular massive attacks, with 1000 malicious emails targeted at government a month! See the BBC report here.

I laughed my head off. I see that on some clients systems (depending on how you count the stats) either in 1 second, and certainly in one day. With a bit of luck they refer to very carefully crafted and directed attacks, not the run of the mill stuff than business face daily, because law enforcement is not that interested in combating cyber crime.

Apparently these threats can bring down air traffic control, the national grid and other critical systems. True, which is why these systems should be nowhere near the internet, should not have USB ports or CD drives, and also be tied down tighter than a very tight thing. They should be able to operate autonomously if their interconnections break, and then their communications should not be over the internet or lines of communications that could be compromised by a cyber attack.

All that is easy to say though, the problem with the internet though is that it is easy and cheap.

Should Alex Salmond and Kenny MacAskill appear before a US senate committee over the early release of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi?

2010-07-23T00:01:00.000+01:00

Well... they have appear to have refused.. according to this BBC article.

But should they have appeared?

NO!

They are the elected representatives of the Scottish parliament, and answerable to them alone. They are, as is The British Prime minister accountable to their own house, and in no way, shape manner or form are they accountable to any other house.

Can you imagine George W Bush being, former President of the USA being called before a select committee of parliament?

Ridiculous.

UK politicians are in no shape, way manner or form accountable to the USA, and therefore should refuse on principle, refuse to appear before any committee of any elected body there. The same applies to appearing before the EU parliament or any where else. The reverse is also the case, I would expect an elected US politician to refuse the same.

Labour lies over "unfair cuts"

2010-06-17T23:15:00.005+01:00

So the detail of the cuts begin..

Except of course that the NHS was preparing for £20 billion of cuts under Labour, and many projects and services were already cut under Labour.

Labour are now crying foul over "spending cuts". This is rank hypocrisy because they were cutting anyway (except in Ed Balls department because he was pally with Gordon Brown).

However, lets be clear, £1 in £4 that is being spent now, is not my taxes or your taxes, it is in fact the taxes to be paid by children STARTING primary school now. The public debt will not be brought down to 40% of GDP until 2031. So if you have a child of 6 years old, then they will be paying taxes when they are in work, not to fund schools and hospitals that they need, but to fund the utter fecklessness of the previous Labour government.

That Labour government started with doctors who were well paid by OECD standards, and much better paid that French doctors and made them the best paid in the OECD.

That Labour government spent billions on countless reorganisations that followed so fast one after the other that no one in the public services could tell what was going on.

That Labour government spent millions refurbishing government offices.

That Labour government gives handouts to families earning over £50,000 a year.

That Labour government pays more to feckless families who have never worked and have no intention of working than I earn in a year, and yet I pay taxes.

The Labour party hark back to the "disastrous declines" of the 1980's and 1990s! How full of rubbish are they? The 1970's were bleak, unsustainable and had Britain as the sick man of Europe. The 1980's and 1990's were tough, but they returned the country to sustainability, and crucially growth in the private sector.

This coalition is like a camel!

2010-05-27T23:24:00.002+01:00

This coalition is like a camel.

Some say a camel is a horse designed by committee because it is ugly, cantankerous and uncomfortable to ride.

Thing is though..

When the US cavalry tried camels over horses, they moved faster because the camels could carry all their supplies, the horses needed supply wagons which moved slowly, whilst camels were as effective as horses in battle.

Top that off with the fact that we are in a desert, what would you rather have? A horse or a camel?

Drastic cut for armed forces!

2010-05-27T13:17:00.006+01:00

There will be a drastic cut for our armed forces at 8PM on Friday the 28th of May!

I am having my hair, pony tail and beard cut off to raise money for Help for Heroes.

There will also be an auction to see who gets to cut my pony tail off.

It will now be at the Wheatsheaf Inn, Broad Street, Cuckfield in Sussex.

You can donate online here.

Please Give generously!

Please support our wounded servicemen and servicewomen.

Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of Dunkirk, 70 years ago this week

2010-05-26T22:17:00.000+01:00

From the 27th of May to the 4th of June 1940, 338,226 allied service men were evacuated from the port of Dunkirk and the beaches near by.

This turned the absolute disaster of the battle of France, where the French and British outnumbered Nazi Germany in terms of tanks, troops, artillery and naval power but were wiped out in less than a month in to some sort of moral victory.

And it was!

On the 26th of May 1940 prayers were said in both churches and synagogues for the safe return of our troops, such was the danger to our armies.

Operation dynamo kicked in, and in what has to be marked as an incredibly heroic effort, of the Royal Navy, the Merchant marine, private boat owners and the die hard troops, French and British that fought to the last man to hold lines, defend the indefensible and generally hold up the Nazi advance whilst those men were lifted from the beaches.

Particular mention must go to the crews of the 200 small craft that were lost, the French 5th core who held Lille with little point other than tying up German armour and infantry as well as the defenders of Bolougne and Calias who did the same.

May their souls rest in peace and perpetual light shine upon them. I will remember them.

Hair and beard shaved to raise money for help for heroes!

2010-05-12T22:51:00.000+01:00

I will be having my hair shaved to a grade 3, and my beard shaved off to raise money for Help For Heroes. I have not had a hair cut since 1993!

I will be having it done at 8 PM on Friday the 28th of May 2010 at the Talbot inn, High street Cuckfield Sussex.

There will also be an auction for who gets to cut the pony tail off on the night!

If you can't make it there, then you can donate via my just giving site here.

David Cameron is Prime Minister so let the blood letting begin

2010-05-11T22:51:00.002+01:00

So David Cameron is Prime Minister, and incidentally made a good speech.

This was, politically a good election to lose. There is much unpleasant work to be done and people will not be happy.

However I, and everyone I know in the Conservative party is in politics for the good of the country.

We did not win a majority. We wanted one, and we worked hard for it. We did not get it. The people have spoken, and what they have said is unclear.

What is clear is that this country needs a stable government capable of doing the unpleasant work that will need to be done to build a better future for our children and grandchildren.

The only way to achieve that was a Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition. There was no other way to form a stable government.

I think that the Conservative and Liberal Democrat party have behaved in a statesman like way, put party interests aside, and indeed are prepared to take the hard stuff on the chin.

As a Conservative, all I can say is well done to the Liberal Democrats.

So to the blood letting.

There are many who will tear up their membership cards, of both parties. Then labour will attack the Liberal Democrats for not being "progressive". Well the term is asinine. All parties make progress, and in terms of social mobility the best times have actually been better under Conservatives.

Being in politics is a business that requires a thick skin especially when you actually win an election.

Gordon Brown resigns as Prime Minister and leader of the Labour party!

2010-05-11T19:22:00.003+01:00

Well, Gordon Brown has announced he will resign as prime minister and leader of the Labour party tomorrow.

So there will be a Conservative government, probably in coalition with the Liberal Democrats.

From GOATS To COAL!

2010-05-10T19:54:00.002+01:00

It looks like Labour, having formed a GOAT (Government Of All the Talents) which did not work out that well will now try to form a COAL.

That is a Coalition Of All the Losers.

Fantastic.

And with that many parties in it, it will be about as stable as a blancmange.

On the announcement of formal talks between Labour and the Liberal Democrats, after the close of the UK markets, the pound having gained 0.8 cents on the day fell by a whole 1 cent.

If there is a coalition between Labour and the Liberal Democrats and various other parties it will be unstable and will collapse relatively soon.

Mid Sussex votes for positive campaigning!

2010-05-08T10:59:00.002+01:00

After having posted the results of the Mid Sussex constituency in the General Election, I thought I would comment on my view of what it means.

The campaign run by Serena Tierney was frankly a nasty personal one attacking Nicholas Soames in disingenuous ways.

Well, that meant that the Liberal Democrats did squeeze Labour, but it also pushed up the Conservative vote by 4564, increasing Nicholas Soames majority and getting him over 50% of the vote.

I also note Serena Tierney's behaviour at the count. Her team had been working hard throughout the election and worked hard at the count.

Serena turned up half an hour before her result was announced, and left immediately afterwards leaving the Liberal Democrat activists to watch over the by election count on their own.

Contrast that with Nicholas Soames who arrived about the same time I did, around 11 PM during verification, and left when I did at 7 AM after the last result was announced.

Where is the evidence that "the people" want electoral reform?

2010-05-08T10:25:00.002+01:00

I have heard many people claiming that the electorate want electoral reform.

Where is the evidence?

69% of people voted for parties that have been traditionally hostile to changing the voting system.

If there were a referendum, it would be lost.

So where is the evidence that the UK wants PR?

Gordon Brown squatting in No 10 Downing Street

2010-05-07T22:50:00.002+01:00

Some people seem to be whinging about Gordon Brown squatting in No 10 Downing Street.

Why?

Whilst it is clear that he has lost the election, it is not clear how a winning coalition could be formed either.

What is clear is that it is unclear how a government will form.

In the meantime our constitution provides that the Primeminister remains until replaced.

Seems fair to me.

Someone has to run the country after all. Anyone got any better ideas?

West Sussex County, East Grinstead South and Ashurst Wood, Conservative hold

2010-05-07T07:03:00.000+01:00

John O'Brian, Conservative 2878

Catrin Ingham Liberal Democrat, 2771
Robert Wall Ind. 328

Mid Sussex District, Hurstpierpoint and Downs, Conservative hold

2010-05-07T06:51:00.000+01:00

Anna DeFilippa Conservative 2362
Rodney Jackson Liberal Democrat 1848
spoilt 48.

Mid Sussex Dirtict, Haywards Heath Heath Liberal Democrat Gain

2010-05-07T06:41:00.000+01:00

Ruth DeMere, Conservative 1310.
Sue Ing, Liberal Democrat 1350
Alan Yates, Labour 221
Spoilt 23.

Well,you can't win them All.

Mid Sussex district High Weald result

2010-05-07T06:28:00.000+01:00

Conservative hold,

Simon McMenemy 1670
Anne Marrie Lucratf 922
Paul Brom (Green) 922

Mid Sussex District, Cuckfield,Anstye and Staplefield result

2010-05-07T06:16:00.000+01:00

Conservative Hold,
Robert Salisbury 1597
Stephen Blanch 1362.

Mid Sussex result, Con hold with an increased majority

2010-05-07T05:35:00.000+01:00

Nicholas Soames has increased his majority getting 28,329.

Serena Tiereney got 20,927 squeazing Labour

The Mid Sussex view

2010-05-06T22:05:00.002+01:00

Well, there can't be much surprise that Nicholas Soames will win. Serena Tierney has thrown the kitchen sink at the campaign, but the nasty Liberal Democrat campaign has not gained traction.

The reception on the doorstep has been both good and warm.

I also think we will have done well holding our by elections.

That said, if I am wrong then I will have to eat humble pie.

Exit poll predictions

2010-05-06T22:02:00.003+01:00

The exit polls predict:

Conservatives 307

Labour 255

Liberal Democrats 59

Others 29

Now this is based on UNS and does not include postal votes so I am not sure if it will be as accurate as 2005.

Exit polls are pointless!

2010-05-06T20:46:00.000+01:00

with the number of postal votes out there, I can't see the point of it. Afte all sampling them is difficult.

BBC article on blogging

2010-05-06T13:00:00.000+01:00

The BBC have published an article on political blogs here.

It covers my views and the views of 4 other bloggers on the election. They are:

Bob Balls

Thinking Muslim

Malc in the Burgh

Opinions of Tobias Grubbe

There is even a picture of me on it!

The longest day!

2010-05-06T10:26:00.000+01:00

Spare a thought for all party activists. Polling day involves a lot of hard work before and after polls close.

Also spare a thought for the people running the boots and counting.

Liberal Democrat housing policy does not add up.

2010-05-02T20:00:00.000+01:00

On the one hand the Liberal Democrats want to set a target to build 1,500,000 new homes, and on the other hand they want to add VAT to new homes.

How is increasing the cost of new homes by £15,000 going to help when money is already tight?

For more see policy diffusion here, or some others here.

Liberal Democrat Godfrey Newton- a strong voice for Worthing West!

2010-05-02T16:59:00.004+01:00

Liberal Democrat Godfrey Newton- a strong voice for Worthing West, the only problem is that he is the Liberal Democrat candidate for Horsham, where one suspects they might like their MP to represent them!

Oops.. You can see the details here.

Gordon Brown warned on banking collapse in 1997

2010-05-02T11:42:00.001+01:00

Gordon Brown was warned that the changes to the banking system he was bringing in, in particular removing the role of bank regulator from the Bank of England and putting it into the hands of the FSA would lead to a systemic banking failure.

When discussing the bill that passed the changes to the banking system the Conservative Shadow Chancellor, Peter Lilley said:

With the removal of banking control to the Financial Services Authority--the "super-SIB"--it is difficult to see how and whether the Bank remains, as it surely must, responsible for ensuring the liquidity of the banking system and preventing systemic collapse.

And further:

We have no objection to the objective of trying to bring greater simplicity and one-stop shopping to the business of financial regulation, but we fear that the Government may, almost casually, have bitten off more than they can chew. The process of setting up the FSA may cause regulators to take their eye off the ball, while spivs and crooks have a field day. We shall observe closely what is going on in the development of the proposed legislation.

You can read the whole section of the debate here (several pages), the quotes were drawn from here.

Now that Gordon Brown has admitted some liability for the banking collapse it is interesting to see Labour spinners, and indeed Gordon Brown lying about how the banks were run before his disastrous changes. They allege that the banks were self regulated before Labour came into power. This is, of course wrong. Barclay's did not regulate Barclay's, nor did Lloyd's regulate Lloyd's, the Bank of England supervised them all, keeping a close eye on balance sheets and risk which as we know is a movable feast. Previously they had taken failing banks over and had them restructured in a weekend.

You can read more articles on the Bank of England here.

I would seriously recommend reading the whole debate. Robert Chote gets quoted quite a lot!

BBC biased on immigration

2010-04-30T22:19:00.002+01:00

I have just watched the BBC 10 o'clock news, and it discussed immigration, and specifically how much was immigration from the EU and how much was from outside of the EU.

They then picked 2008, when the economy was beginning to suffer and based there report on that.

That was disingenuous in the extreme. The fact is that between 1997 and 2007 three quarters of of net inward migration has been from outside of the EU, not, as the BBC said from inside. The BBC simply cherry picked the year.

Burning our money has this.

Gordon Brown calls Labour voter a bigot!

2010-04-28T13:54:00.004+01:00

Gordon Brown called Labour voter Gillian Duffy a bigot after a very smiley type of conversation, because one of the subjects she raised was immigration.

What gets me about this is that he did not disagree with her on camera but insulted her behind her back.

You can see the original video here, her response here, and Gordon's apology here, though what I suspect he is apologising for is not calling her a bigot but being caught.

A lot of people are worried about immigration, and whilst Labour talk tough on immigration they clearly think people who are concerned about it are bigots. It is not bigoted to be concerned about immigration.

Iain Dale has this.

IFS spending cuts worst since the 1970's shocker!

2010-04-27T23:57:00.004+01:00

The main news, and rightly so, is that the well respected Institute of Fiscal Studies has produced a report that says that all the main parties are not telling the truth about spending cuts. The BBC has this.

At best we have the worst spending cuts since the 1970's (worse than Thatcher) and at worst, since the Second World War (It is not clear how much worse the latter is than the former however).

In defence of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, the IFS does point out that they have no numbers to work from in terms of detail because there has been no spending review. Labour have said that this is because public finances are uncertain. True. However as the IFS point out, that will continue.

What is the biggest lesson of this?

Well there are two.

One is that we need more honesty in political debate, without the "they want to murder babies" sort of debate that we get especially with Ed Balls talking.

The "They want to murder your babies" style of debate really hinders honesty, and is currently best exemplified by the cancer scare Labour party political broadcast ripped apart here. In essence it is a very narrow pointless scare story over a stupid target which achieves nothing.

The other thing it really does say is that the increases in public spending by Labour over the last 13 years have been unsustainable and irresponsible.

Labour started in government with doctors who were well paid by OECD standards, and finish it with doctors being the best paid in the OECD. I never thought doctors were on the poverty line.

Lastly though, there is thankfully for you, the main three political parties and I, a "hole" in the IFS's figures, and that is the dividend payments from our shares in Lloyds TSB and indeed RBS as well as the potential profits from the sale of those shares. That could be worth a few billion a year. After all Lloyds TSB expects a profit this year.

More on Peter Harvey, the science teacher who snapped.

2010-04-26T22:15:00.004+01:00

At the time of the incident where Peter Harvey attacked **** ********** I wrote this.

Well, his trial has started, for Attempted murder. The BBC has this.

Firstly I am surprised he is not claiming diminished responsibility. He is merely pleading guilty to GBH.

From the trial it really does appear as if his class was a living hell for him. Given that he had been off sick because he feared he might hurt someone, you do really have to ask what support he was given. Many of these points I made in the original article.

One thing this does draw in to sharp relief though is school discipline. Clearly this needs fixing.

I feel very sorry for all those involved.

Update 14th of May 2010 to reflect a section 39 order I have been made aware off.

Liberal Democrat councillor defects to Conservatives

2010-04-24T20:36:00.004+01:00

Prominent Mid Sussex Liberal Democrat district, West Sussex County and East Grinstead town councillor. you can read the full details here.

In a statement she said:

I have become increasingly disillusioned with the Liberal Democrats who have little positive to offer people in East Grinstead and locally are running a campaign full of negativity and personal abuse.

Interestingly many Liberal Democrat activists get fed up with their relentlessly nasty campaigning and leave. You can read about another former Liberal Democrat here, who went left for the same reason and then got smeared when he stood as a Green candidate.

There have been many defections of activists from the Liberal Democrats to the Conservatives in Mid Sussex since Serena Tierney arrived a few months before the 2005 general election. I expect many more.

So the next time you hear Liberal Democrats claiming to be nice, you will know they are not. They are by far and away the worst of the 3 main parties.

Anything you say will be taken down...

2010-04-24T01:16:00.002+01:00

Misconstrued, misunderstood, distorted and twisted beyond credibility.. and then used against you.

In this case I am talking about what David Cameron said in the Paxman interview for Panorama today, what Michael Crick said about it, and indeed what the press in the North East and Northern Ireland have said about it.

What David Cameron actually said was that the public sector was too large a part of the economies of several parts of the UK (In Northern Ireland the public sector accounts for 68% of GDP and in the North East 63%) and so the solution is to increase the size of the private sector. Obvious really.

However this has been turned on its head into swinging cuts in both areas. This is not what he said, meant or intended. It is a clear distortion.

Iain Dale has this.

Serena Tierney slammed in national press shocker!

2010-04-22T19:52:00.000+01:00

Something most people don't realise about the Liberal Democrats is that they are the truly nasty party. Their campaign tactics are very unpleasant. Well, Serena Tierney's tactics have made it into the Daily Mail (Yes I know, not a paragon of any kind of virtue, but then what news paper actually is?)

The story leads with one of her local campaign tactics, which is to accuse Conservative councillors of deserting a sinking ship, because there is going to be 4 local by elections.

Well, one died, (Brenda Binge), one's husband's Parkinson’s disease has taken a turn for the worse so she has less time available to be a councillor, one has moved away and the other is about to.

Perhaps Serena thinks they should stay in post pocketing their allowances for doing little. Perhaps it is what Liberal Democrat councillors would do. Here in Mid Sussex, the Conservatives on the other hand do not.

Of course other Liberal Democrat nastiness is also covered in the article, and none of it surprises me.

If you have a story about Lib Dem campaign tactics, leave them in the comments or email them in.

Saint Vince Cable is skewered on his record

2010-04-22T00:43:00.002+01:00

Much is made of the sage powers of Vince Cable. However as the Liberal Democrats are up in the polls, there record, or rather what they have said over the last few years have come under scrutiny.

Here is the result:

You decide.

Hat tip to Guido Fawkes, via Iain Dale.

The dangers of a hung parliament.

2010-04-19T22:40:00.001+01:00

There is much discussion of what the dangers or benefits of a hung parliament would be. Apparently many people would like a hung parliament.

Well, today the DUP issued their manifesto, relishing the prospect of a hung parliament. The SNP and Plaid Cymru (The part of Wales) also relish this, as their small number of seats will give them much influence in Westminster.

This is, in the United States of America, called Pork barrel politics, and results in those with disproportionate influence getting disproportionate funding for their area. In fact both the SNP and Plaid Cymru are insisting that there need be no public service cuts.

The bottom line is this. We have had a Labour government, therefore we have not only run out of money, but run up obscene debts, and not only that, but will continue to run up these debts for years to come. Times are going to be tough, and frankly a hung parliament means that while most pay for Labour's mistakes, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland will get of Scot free.

Personally I think we are all in this together, we will all need to tighten our belts, and no one should be hit so much harder because some hold disproportionate influence.

Ask not what your country can do for you

2010-04-13T23:15:00.002+01:00

- ask what you can do for your country.

So said John F Kennedy in his inaugural speech on Friday the 20th of January 1961.

Fundamentally that is what the Conservative manifesto is about.

What you can do, and how you can get involved in running your country.

You can read the manifesto in full here.

A Future fair for all?

2010-04-13T00:28:00.002+01:00

Labour's manifesto is entitled "A Future fair for all".

Apart from the fact that is a vacuous motherhood and apple pie sort of statement*, you do have to ask what is meant by "fair".

Is it fair for example, that a family where no one works that has 5 children can get as much on state benefits as one where only one adult works full time on average pay**?

Is it fair that the education of a whole class can be put in jeopardy by one or two disruptive pupils whom the teachers can't deal with?

Is it fair that after 114 years of universal primary education, so many people leave school with out the ability to read, write or do arithmetic?

Is it fair that someone who works 100 hours a week only may only earn 4 times the before tax equivalent of someone who has never had a job?

Is it fair that you can pay a professional*** good money to do vital work for you, only to find out that they may be working 100 hours a week, and frankly are no good to anybody after 70 hours a week?

So what does fair mean exactly?

*Who wants an unfair future after all?

**That is mean average, not modal average.

***That means lawyers, accountants, tax advisers and of course doctors. Who would want to be operated on by a surgeon who had not had enough sleep?

Where did they get the data?

2010-04-11T11:18:00.000+01:00

Iain Dale and Dizzy cover an article in the Sunday Times about Labour's very very dirty tricks in the campaign as far as cancer is concerned.

Basically they have sent out personalised cards 250,000 people who have had cancer treatment. (At least one of whom had died). These cards were very specifically addressed it seems.

Apart from the fact that they misrepresent the Conservative policy on cancer and its effects, preying on the very ill and vulnerable is a very low tactic.

From the Sunday Times article Labour deny using confidential information:

"Labour sources deny that the party has used any confidential information. However, the sources admit that, in line with other political parties, it uses socio-demographic research that is commercially and publicly available."

The question has to be how did they get the data that Mr Bob Smith has had some cancer treatment, and not his next door neighbour or his brother down the street?

Many months ago now I had an accident. I tripped up over something in the kitchen and seriously banged my knee. A few days later I had a checkup with my GP so mentioned it to him. He looked at it and said it was nothing to worry about. Shortly afterwards I received a marketing text from a claims handling agency saying that I could claim (from me presumably, so I did not take up the offer).

This all begs the question, is our confidential medical information being sold to the highest bidder and is therefore commercially available because this Labour government sold it, or are Labour just misusing special access to it? Either way it is wrong.

Could you imagine what would have happened if someone had had a cancer scare and decided not to mention it to their family? Their confidential medical information is then posted through the door on a postcard every one from the postman to partner picking up the card.

I do hope the Main stream media press on this issue. What goes on between a patient and doctor is supposed to be confidential, not sold to the highest bidder or used for political purposes.

Is Brown going to call an election tomorrow?

2010-04-05T20:52:00.001+01:00

There is so much in the press and indeed on the airwaves about Gordon Brown calling an election for May the 6th, which means going to the Palace to see the Queen.

The thinking is as there are elections on May the 6th, Gordon must go then as to have two elections in consecutive months would be expensive and would annoy the electorate.

Whilst all that is true, and there is an encouraging poll from ICM*, Gordon still will not do it, as he does not possess the required courage. There will be a reason to dither, and he will take it.

The actual election is in June**, the last possible date being the 3rd apparently though I always thought it would be the 10th.

*According to Politicalbetting.com there is an ICM poll in tomorrows Guardian putting the Conservatives on 37% and Labour on 33%. This could even give Labour more seats. The only down side to this poll from Labour's point of view is that it was conducted over a Bank holiday weekend, (worse still a double!) so you may as well ignore it. There is another poll with the Conservatives 10% ahead, though for the same reasons that is dubious.

**I am preparing to eat my hat in the morning. If you disagree, prepare to eat yours :)

Update 23:00 BST.

Well it has been announced that Gordon will go to the Palace in the morning and the election will be on May the 6th.

I don't actually own a hat.. so I will make one out of rice paper :)

On Education

2010-02-22T23:46:00.002Z

I watched the second in the dispatches series on children and maths. I was pleased to see much progress in the school, with many of the children improving considerably.

I do hope the head teacher, whom I regard as brave takes note that there not only is nothing wrong with his pupils, but there never was, only an issue with the teaching provided. When it improved so did the children's maths.

It seems to me that primary education is overlooked, yet by the end of primary school many of our children's futures are set. If we were to make the right investments in primary education however, secondary education would be much easier, the children would get more out of it and in fact, we could spend less on it if that was desirable.

Do not get the idea though that I am advocating spending more cash. I am not. Far from it. One thing that this Labour government have tested to destruction and proved to be entirely false is the idea that if you throw cash at it, it will improve. They have also tested to destruction, and proved sadly wrong, the idea that some gibbering idiot in Whitehall can teach a child 50 miles away by bothering their teachers with endless bits of instruction.

We need to find a better way. It starts with teaching the teachers, and frankly some of them need it.

Education! Education! Education! What chance have our children got?

2010-02-15T22:44:00.001Z

What chance have our children got when the primary school teachers can't do maths?

I have just watched Dispatches on Channel 4, Kids Don't Count (Part 1 of 2), and did the test that they set 155 teachers here. Apparently only 1 out of 155 got what I would regard as the minimum mark required, 12 out of 12. Something like half got 50% or less.

Do we seriously expect children to get anywhere when the teachers can't do the maths?

Lets be clear here, a primary school teacher does not need to be maths geniuses, but they do need to be able to do the sort of questions their students are expected to do in their sleep. (The test above is aimed at primary school leavers).

The head teacher who allowed dispatches in was very brave, if useless at maths. Clearly we have a problem, and we need to test teachers on the basics and where they fail, they will need remedial training. If they still fail, they need replacing.

Ed Balls and Michael Gove were asked to take the test. Both declined. Pathetic. I took the test and got the 12 out of 12. That means I can do primary school maths. One would hope primary schools teachers could, and also that those who seek to run education could as well.

Harriet Harman to be charged!

2009-11-19T17:56:00.002Z

Harriet Harman is to be charged for various driving offences relating to her crashing into a park car whilst using a mobile phone and failing to leave any details.

Oh dear.

She ought to resign.... but probably will not.

Update:
The BBC has this.
Harriet Harman denies the charges... if she is convicted that will look very very bad.

We shall remember them

2009-11-11T11:00:00.000Z

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

For the Fallen, by Laurence Binyon

Remember Armistice day, and the millions who have given their lives to keep us free, from this country and throughout the Common Wealth.

Please also support the Royal British Legions appeal to mark Armistice day.

Government to regulate irresponsible lending!

2009-10-18T10:09:00.000+01:00

The news this morning, pre announced as usual is that the government is to regulate against irresponsible lending.

If ever there was a case of bolting the stable door after the horse has bolted, left the farm, and been sold off at market by someone else this is it because lenders are now being very very tight on their own lending anyway. What is more, adding regulation to the situation now may make things worse.

These regulations will not help the many thousands who have been irresponsibly lent to in the past and have either committed suicide or gone bankrupt as a result.

The curious thing is though, that this is a return to how things used to be. It used to be a principle of common law that lenders who lend to people who could not pay it back, and the lender ought to have known that they could not pay it back, lost their money, and quite possibly had to pay compensation as a result. I remember some cases making the news in the 1980's and early 1990's. I wonder which bunch friendly to the banks got rid of that, or if its lack of use is due to the fact that you can't get legal aid anymore.

The BBC has this.

Labour Spending cuts, Ed Balls speaks!

2009-09-20T11:05:00.000+01:00

Having gone from the ridiculous position of "Labour investment verses Tory cuts" to admitting that Labour will have to cut spending Ed Balls announced that he thinks he can save £2 billion in education. (The BBC has this here)

He does have some good suggestions, like cutting 300 staff in Whitehall who issue curriculum advice. This will have more than he thinks as well, as the rubbish they write has to be read by teachers and consumes an enormous amount of time for very little gain.

However where he is wrong is thinking that one head master can run several schools. The rational is there, because secondary head teachers used to be fairly well paid and are now ridiculously well paid, but the problem is a school needs a figure head and that is its head master/mistress. Having one super head over several schools and then a series of deputies will make a lot of schools feel rudderless.

Still, on the plus side, at least Labour no longer see our pockets as bottomless pits of cash that they can raid.

Interesting prison blog

2009-09-19T15:00:00.000+01:00

One of the interesting things about blogs is less blogs like mine which discuss what is going on and more blogs like Night Jack*, and NHS blog doctor which give you an idea of what is actually going on at the coal face.

Well, here is Prisoner Ben's blog.

I have read all of it and found it quite enlightening.

Prisoner Ben murdered a friend at the age of 14, handed him self in to the police and pleaded guilty etc and got a tariff of 10 years. He has been inside for 30.

*We can of course thank the Times for ruining that one, the useless nasty MSM.

Gender change at 12? And now 9? Has the world gone mad?

2009-09-19T12:30:00.000+01:00

Yesterday's Sun carried an article about a 12 year old boy who turned up o school dressed as a girl, and with a girls name.

Today the Sun has another story about a 9 year old in the same circumstances.

This is nuts.

If you read this website set up to help children and adolescents with gender identity issues you will note that very few of these cases are actually resolved by a gender change.

There is no doubt that these children are both confused and unhappy. Many "right on" people will think that it is great that they have parents and schools who are trying to be supportive. The problem is that these boys are just far far too young to understand the decisions that are being made. No one can make this sort of decision for them, and they are definitely far far too young to decide themselves.

When I said that the schools was trying to be supportive, I did not actually mean they were actually succeeding. They could not have announced it in a more cack handed way if they tried*. Meanwhile parents who are voicing concern on the Internet are being threatened by police. Its a bot of a shame there were none about to help out Fiona Pilkington and her family over 7 years of abuse, but then they were not a "right on" type of case.

Hat tip to Manwiddicombe for the link in the Sun.

Government spending cuts

2009-09-14T19:50:00.000+01:00

It seems the debate has moved on from the very facile "Labour investment versus Tory cuts" to the merely somewhat facile nasty Tory cuts versus Labour's caring ones.

The reality is this:

Labour have been spending money like it was water over the last 12 years and have now run out. Thing is, its our money not theirs.

They seem to have measured success less by what they have achieved and more by what they have spent. We now have the best paid doctors in the OECD and spend more per head on education than most countries in Europe to less effect.

Now up pops Lord Mandelson who claims Labour must be wise spenders not big spenders. Well, up until now they have been both big and stupid spenders.

Take for example prison policy. One day a prisoner will be released. In fact pretty much every day prisoners are released. You will bump into them. Someone was running a course on comedy in prisons. The project was cancelled when Jack Straw got to hear about it. Now ask yourself this: Could you rather an ex con told you a really good joke or mugged you?

See what I mean.

The BBC has this.

Germany invades Poland! The 70th anniversary.

2009-09-01T10:21:00.002+01:00

70 years ago today Germany invaded Poland, which started the second world war, the most destructive in history. One fifth of Poland's population would be dead by the end of the war.

Of course, the events that led to this point were already in place, like the annexation of Austria and the invasion of Czechoslovakia.

There are memorial services in Poland today.

The BBC has this.

A long slow fragile recovery

2009-08-13T05:00:00.000+01:00

So says Mervyn King the Governor of The Bank of England.

Why?

Well mostly because of the effects of massive public and private and corporate debt.

Well, government debt is getting larger by the minute and even if a government with some sense of fiscal control took over in the morning it would still be cataclysmically bad.

Labour now insist that they can't be responsible now because taking money out of the economy would lead to a worse recession.

The problem is that government spending is taking money out of the economy because money that the government has borrowed is not available for private industry or indeed consumers, to borrow.

Meanwhile whilst politicians are insisting that banks should lend more, including government ones, government is telling (via the FSA) banks to lend less to private individuals and to hold more government debt.

Labour tell an interesting lie about government debt. That is that is was lower when the recession started than when Labour took power in 1997. It is an interesting lie because it is absolutely true. We started the recession with government debt at 38% and in May 1997 it was 40% of GDP. It is a lie because it is used to hide a startling truth and that is that government debt going into the 1990/1991 recession was 20% of GDP, and paying for that recession added the extra 20%.

This is important, because that Labour lie covers up another big issue which is that Gordon Brown has been borrowing massive amounts of money whilst the economy has been growing, not saving up for what is now a very rainy day.

So much for prudence and no more boom and bust!

The BBC has this.

Iran show trials lambasted

2009-08-02T10:22:00.002+01:00

It appears that Mahmoud Ahmedinejad and his cronies think it is a good idea to put some protesters on trial for disputing the obviously rigged election.

The problem is that it will not stop the protests and if anything will harden opposition to him in the upper circles of power. The man is clearly having a laugh.

What is interesting is that despite putting some prominent people on trial, there is still prominent and open opposition to the result and indeed the trials.

This is not over, not by a long way. What is particularly daft is that it is possible that Mahmoud Ahmedinejad could have won fair and square but that does not matter any more as the result was so obviously rigged that even if a rerun were held no one would believe it if he did win fair and square.

The BBC has this.

Government Education cuts!

2009-07-26T10:30:00.000+01:00

After all the waffle and lies from Labour about "Tory cuts" and calling David Cameron Mr 10% now at least we have some truth!

Labour is cutting the funding of university teaching by £65 million.

The BBC has this!

Still, certain course can recruit more students, particularly ones teaching technology, they just can't have any more money!

The truth about Bank interest rates.

2009-07-26T05:00:00.000+01:00

Some people are having a go at the banks for the interest rates they charge, particularly as the Bank of England base rate is at 0.5%.

People claim that the banks are making a big profit by charging interest rates of 4.5% and above when the Bank of England rate is so low.

The problem is, as I have said before, that no one cares what the dreamers in the Bank of England set interest rates at, no one is lending at that rate, particularly to banks. They are not even close to that rate to the government. Banks are paying much higher rates for the money they buy in to lend so are charging more for it. It is as simple as that.

The fact that the Bank of England is in cloud cuckoo land will however cause real long term problems.

The BBC has this.

Harry Patch, Rest in Peace.

2009-07-25T20:16:00.002+01:00

The last man still alive, to serve to serve in the trenches in World War 1 died today at the age of 111.

He did not start talking about his experiences until he was over 100.

He was the last surviving man to have served in the first world war.

May he rest in peace.

The BBC has this.

Conservative Chloe Smith wins Norwich North with majority of 7,000!

2009-07-24T13:35:00.001+01:00

Well done to all who campaigned there, this is a fantastic result!

Chloe Smith got 13,591 votes, and a majority over Labour's Chris Ostrowski of 7,348 who got6,243.

That is a swing of 16.6%!

(Source Wikipedia here)

The BBC has this.

Henry Allingham, rest in peace.

2009-07-18T10:48:00.002+01:00

Henry Allingham, the oldest surviving World War 1 veteran and last surviving founder member of the RAF died today at his care home. He was 113.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

For the Fallen, by Laurence Binyon

We will remember him.

The BBC has this.

Peter Harvey, the teacher who snapped

2009-07-11T09:03:00.002+01:00

Peter Harvey was a popular and well respected science teacher at All Saints' Roman Catholic School in Mansfield, then one day he attacked 14 year old pupil **** ********** with a 2kg weight and injured two other pupils.

The incident happened because he was being taunted by the physics class he was teaching, with them singing man in the mirror changing some of the words to psycho.

He will appear before magistrates today charged with attempted murder.

Peter Harvey had just returned from sick leave having suffered a stress related stroke. Then someone thought it would be a bright idea to throw him back in the classroom on his own.

To me at least, this seems like lighting the blue touch and standing well back. If the stress of teaching was so bad it caused him a stroke he clearly was not coping before he was ill and so needed much more support which he did not appear to have. You do have to wonder if the duty of care the school owed to him and his pupils was properly discharged. Personally I suspect not.

The BBC has this.

Update 22:53

Having read some of the comments, I offer this from the Daily Mail.

I would point out that we have no reason to believe **** ********** deserved anything. According to the Daily Mail article, he may well have been a nice lad.

What appears to have happened is that a class got seriously out of control with a teacher who should have been better supported.

Update 14th May 2010, to reflect a section 39 order I have been made aware of.

A bonfire of the QuANGO's?

2009-07-07T05:00:00.000+01:00

A QuANGO is a Quasi Autonomous Non Governmental Organisation.

In principle, in their place they are no bad thing. For example they can be independent of government, albeit only to an extent. Only to an extent of course because those who run a QuANGO are usually picked by the executive and only really gain Independence when it is obvious that is likely to change, particularly if the head of said QuANGO decides now is a good time to give the existing executive a bit of a kicking.

As an example, we have the Office for National Statistics. This obviously has to be arms length and independent of government in order for there to be trust in the numbers it produces. However it is only as independent as its head, and he or she is only as independent as his next reappointment.

The ONS has given the government a bit of a kicking over things like immigration, but I personally suspect that is because the stench of death over this government is so clear you can smell it in Australia.

However there is another reason for creating an arms length QuANGO, and that is political cover for uncomfortable decisions. The Learning and Skills Council has crashed and burned in terms of setting up new collages and funding expansion of places (even here in Mid Sussex) but taken the heat for the calamity without it burning politicians.

You see, it gives political cover.

The Conservative party currently propose an independent NHS board to stop the NHS being a political football.

This is of course a fantastic aim, and is a bit like motherhood and apple pie (as our American cousins would say). You can't argue against motherhood and apple pie!

Except of course you can. The NHS consumes huge amounts of taxpayers cash. Enormous amounts of it. It will be something like £102 billion either this year or next.

Personally, I want to fire someone if they get that spending wrong. It is after all, a remarkably large amount of my cash.

And this is the problem with QuANGO's in general. They are a way of dodging political responsibility, generating headlines and pretending something is being done, whether it is or isn't.

The BBC has this.

State abduction of children and spam (Or unsolicited commercial email)

2009-07-05T23:51:00.000+01:00

This may be two subjects where you can see absolutely no connection what so ever. Fair enough. There is though, and I will get to it.

I read in today's Sunday Telegraph, of the case of a man who because he had security concerns about his circumstances asked to pick up his daughter from inside the school gates. This led to social workers turning up, refusing to show ID, and then him getting arrested and for a while sectioned.

Read the article, I really suggest you do. You can also read this from Manwiddicombe from whom I have got the link.

Right. Read those?

Now cast your mind back to baby P, or rather baby Peter. I wrote at the time that knee jerk reactions were no good.

The problem seems to be this: That if children die at the hands of parents then social services need to be harsher or if children are taken into care unreasonably they need to be easier.

This is where the link to spam comes in. One of the things the company for which I work sell is an anti spam solution. I personally do a lot of work on it.

We can move the goal posts in terms of score at which emails are considered spam or not one way or the other, catching more or less spam as spam and generating more or less false positives as a result.

Surprisingly* this is frankly not good enough. The customer who does not want spam does not want to lose an important email because it now score high enough. What the customer actually wants is more discrimination between what is unsolicited commercial email and what is not, rather than some individual binning their email on an arbitrary rule change.

Our response has to be raising our game to write better spam busting rules. The question then is, why can't the state? The case of baby Peter is instructive. He had half a finger missing. All you need is a medic or social worker who can count to 10 and do fractions and they would have noticed something amis. No need for harsher rules, just better discrimination between those that need intervention and those that do not.

*Actually, it is not that surprising at all really.

Hitler got things done?

2009-07-05T05:00:00.000+01:00

The Sunday Times have conducted an interview with Bernie Ecclestone in which he apparently laments weak leaders and says that Hitler got things done. He also says that Saddam Hussein should not have been overthrown because he was the only person who could hold the country together.

Oh dear.

Well it is true that Hitler got things done, one of which was to get Germany totally destroyed, and divided for 46 years.

He may well have made the trains run on time* but if it is a choice between punctual trains, and living in fear of a knock at the door in the middle of the night, frankly, I'll walk to work if that's all the same to Bernie.

The Saddam comment is also illustrative. He held Iraq together with nothing but fear. I would rather be free in a wreck of a country than live in constant fear in a "perfect" one.

*I have no idea if he did, but it is often said.

Remove the power of the Bank of England?

2009-07-04T23:35:00.002+01:00

There is an interesting article in the Times, by Jamie Whyte suggesting that powers be removed from the bank of England rather than given to it.

Specifically the power to set interest rates.

As it happens I think that the Bank of England should supervise banks, and have the power to do so.

That said Jamie makes a very powerful case for removing the power of the Bank of England to set interest rates. The only comment I would make though, is that it has already lost them. Many banks are paying much more than 0.5% for savings and lending at much higher rates as well, and Libor is much higher than 0.5% as well. In fact what the bank currently does with interest rates is mostly irrelevant.

Are the BBC this technically illiterate?

2009-07-01T15:54:00.006+01:00

Note the above picture in a question for GCSE technology on the BBC website. (Click to zoom in)

The part is correctly identified as an inverter although it could also be called a not gate. The text below says:

It's an inverter, which is an electrical device that converts direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC).

Oh dear. It is not that sort of inverter. Did someone technically illiterate at the BBC google it, or did someone setting the syllabus do that and the BBC not notice? Either way it amazes me just how ignorant journalists are.

Update 22:15

The BBC have updated the question to just say this:

CORRECT! It's an inverter.

Oh dear. You thought they could have looked up what sort of inverter that is!

Reform of MP's falling at first hurdle?

2009-07-01T06:00:00.000+01:00

It is no surprise to me that the reform of MP's conduct of MP's expenses and conduct is falling at the first hurdle, as the BBC reports here.

I have no doubt that Labour government figures will blame people, particularly Conservatives, for being against this ridiculous bill on the grounds that they must not want either reform or MP's to be honest.

The reality is of course starkly different. When apologists for this bunch of liars turn up on the airwaves to lie, I will call them liars, just like Ed Balls is a liar.

As I have already pointed out, MP's guilty of making false claims could (and should) already be prosecuted for fraud, or obtaining pecuniary advantage by deception and be imprisoned for 10 years so why let them off with a maximum of 1 year?

The bill also seeks to reduce the privilege given to parliament, whereby a nothing that a member of parliament says can be used against them in court. Members of parliament who understand these things are needless to say against.

Then the bill has to pass the house of lords, where they will take one look at this fetid pile of excrement and throw it out only for the government to huff and puff.

Ed Balls is a liar!

2009-07-01T05:00:00.000+01:00

There is no charitable way to put this, Ed Balls has been on the airwaves lying like there is no tomorrow.

Sue me Ed, if you dare.

As Fraser Nelson notes here, and then after the angry phone call here, Ed Balls has claimed that Alistair Darling's 2009 budget laid down plans to reduce the public debt.

Ed Ball's lied thus:

Alistair Darling in the budget set out plans which show the deficit coming down, national debt coming down.

The problem is that he is using a measure of debt most people would not use, and measured on a basis no serious economist believes.

The statement is true if you think reducing borrowing growth to a level where the economy is growing faster is reducing national debt. Basically if you imagine a household budget, you are still increasing your overdraft every year till 2017, but you will get pay rises every year till then of 3.5% and in 2017, the accumulated debt will look like less in percentage terms against your wages.

The problem is that this is still increasing debt in net terms, and the supposed real terms decrease on which the lie is based is founded on the idea that economic growth will start right now, be sustained, (no double dip recession) and then go on the serial above trend growth over several years of 3.5%.

It all comes unstuck there for two reasons. First of all most people would still regard continued borrowing as increasing rather than decreasing debt, but secondly and most importantly it relies on amazing growth figures for years to come.

That is not going to happen because overall debt (government, household and corporate debt combined) is running at 400% of GDP whilst real interest rates are near 5% (not what the Bank of England base rate actually is, but what lenders are actually charging for new loans) which means that this lot could cost us 20% of GDP every year. Quite a lot of that money is going abroad to foreign lenders. It drains money from the economy.

Whilst it is possible that there may be a strong bounce back in growth after a recession as inventories are built up, it seems utter fantasy land that such a bounce would last several years with this much debt.

Hat tip to Manwiddicombe for the links to Fraser's article.

Less UK born people in work now than in 1997?

2009-06-30T06:30:00.000+01:00

It is, it has to be said quite some claim. That is that there are less British born people in work in the private sector now than there were in 1997.

All those jobs that were created went to foreign born workers apparently.

Fraser Nelson of the Spectator has this preliminary article and this one with more detail.

The implications are of course staggering. I have always thought that the Brown boom was built on hideous amounts of debt and immigration. What is more of a concern is that worklessness amongst those born in the UK has stayed at around 5 million and is now set to climb. We simply have not addressed that issue for over 12 years.

Now we need to.

Local homes for local people?

2009-06-30T05:00:00.001+01:00

Well, it is kind of what people expected from local housing policy, at least for the most part. That is, that housing provided out of local funding would be primarily for people who had a connection with the local area.

As an example, a house in say Mid Sussex would be prioritised for a family with a good local link, not a family from say, Arbroath. The reverse is also the case.

Of course, if a family in Arbroath want to swap with a family in Mid Sussex, then there are (and always have been) exchange schemes available.

So now this is what this government is proposing.

What is interesting is how they, and the ridiculous left wing media treated this issue 10 years ago when Conservative councillors in Hammersmith and Fulham were proposing exactly the same thing. Now of course Donal Blaney would like an apology. He will not get one though, as he is dealing with mendacity at its best.

Labour promises 100,000 new teachers?

2009-06-29T05:00:00.000+01:00

I heard this on a BBC Radio 4 on Friday, but could find no written information on it, but today the Daily Telegraph steps in.

In its article it suggest that Labour and in particular, Gordon Brown will try and spend his way back to number 10.

So, what about 100,000 new teachers? What will they do? Well apparently they are a part of a child's right to learn. So if they are not getting on well enough in English or Maths they get one to one tuition.

What will 100,000 teachers cost?

Well, if they cost £20,000 each a year that's £2 billion. If, as is likely they cost £30,000 a year (take into account paying them, employers national insurance, desk space and admin fees and that is a conservative estimate) then that makes £3 billion a year.

Where is this money supposed to come from? £3 billion, in terms of the amounts that has been thrown away by New labour over the years may seem like small beer, but it is still £3 billion that would need to be borrowed or printed by the Bank of England.

However, I personally doubt the veracity of the claim or its ability to achieve anything useful. For a start it looks like they are going to claim it is a right, which means only switched on parents will claim it, and those will have more successful children, and so the cost will be less.

Then again the idea is not wrong in itself. Had it been carefully proposed a number of years ago you could make a great tax saving case for it, but only if it was not a right of the pupil, but the duty of the state. (How are we going to work that out?)

Prisons are full to bursting with the thick, mentally ill and unemployable. If you could treat the failed education system, then surely that would reduce the cost of the prison estate and hey presto the scheme would over time pay for itself. However as we are talking about New Labour education, A level history students appear not to know what a despotic tyranny is, so it is somewhat doubtful what 1,000,000 new teachers would be able to achieve.

Meanwhile in other news..

2009-06-26T01:06:00.002+01:00

Whilst it is sad that Michael Jackson has died, it has to be said that the way 24 hour news organisations cover this sort of thing is ridiculous.

If you were hoping to tune into something like BBC News 24 for catch up on such trivia as the death of Farrah Fawcett, continued demonstrations in Iran or the collapse of the UK economy, forget it.

The only news in town is the death of Michael Jackson.

Ridiculous.

Michael Jackson is dead?

2009-06-25T23:23:00.003+01:00

Rumours and reports are surfacing that Michael Jackson is died.

Confirmed reports indicate he was found not breathing, and was taken to hospital after having CPR administered.

This is very sad news. He may have been an oddball, but there is no doubt he was a great talent as well.

TMZ.com has this and the Los Angeles Times has this.

The BBC has this.

Bank of England Governor slams government borrowing!

2009-06-25T05:00:00.000+01:00

The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervin King said today that the governments plans to reduce the governments deficit were not ambitious enough.

In other words, spend less or borrow more. Possibly both.

Considering that Labour's published plans, based on possibly optimistic growth forecasts are not fiscally tight enough. The problem is that the governments plans on spending are harsher than Thatchers as it is.

Meanwhile the OECD thinks we are going to have a deeper recession than they previously forecast and much worse than the governments own assumptions.

In short, there are grim times ahead.

The BBC has this.

MP's to get an easy ride for fraud?

2009-06-24T03:00:00.001+01:00

One of this Labour governments great ideas for "reform" is to introduce a series of criminal offences specific to members of parliament the most notable of which is to "knowingly make a false claim", which if found guilty. could lead to a sentence of 1 year in prison.

This is reminiscent of section 112 of the 1992 Administration of Social Security act (possibly as amended) which supposedly deals with benefit cheats. These offences are mostly dealt with in a magistrates court on the assumption that the accused is also the guilty regardless of the facts, after all it keeps the proles in line.

This is a case of making laws to grab headlines. Fraud has been a criminal offence for a very long time, as has obtaining pecuniary advantage by deceit. Those sort of offences command a far higher sentence but no more intent.

So what is going on?

Well, as I have discussed at length (particularly with CaptainFF) it is a case of New Labour grabbing headlines with new laws making what was already illegal more illegal but with knobs on, though in this case, with a considerably reduced maximum sentence.

Not only that there will be a committee of the great and the good appointed to oversee MP's expenses.

Hold on, I thought we already had that, we the voters! All we need is the information, without all that black ink.

I do not want some patsy telling me that everything is OK. I will look at the raw data and make my own mind up.

The BBC has this, Guido has this.

No prayers for Iran's Angel of Freedom?

2009-06-23T03:00:00.000+01:00

Neda Agha Soltan was just someone in a crowd in Tehran, yet a sniper took her life. All this is now on Youtube.

She has become a symbol, and so the Iranian government dare not let her have a memorial service.

Are they that scared?

Apparently, yes they are.

Protests continue in Iran, and now even the Iranian government admit there were some "irregularities". Those include at least two districts with over 100% turnout (Impressive, but Saddam never managed that!) 4 at pver 90% and a level of switching between reform candidates and Ahmadinajad that is simply not plausable.
The Telegraph has this.

Good luck to Speaker Bercow.

2009-06-23T02:00:00.000+01:00

So John Bercow has become speaker of the House of Commons. I wish him luck. It looks as if he s going to need it as both the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph are attacking over his expenses already.

Still, he promises change. Lets see what he brings.

The BBC has this, Iain Dale has this. Apparently Quentin Letts is not impressed either.

Vanessa George, Angela Allen, female paedophiles and denial

2009-06-21T07:00:00.001+01:00

Something that irritates me is the way that people like Harriet Harman discuss issues like paedophilia and domestic violence as an issue of wicked evil men, for we men all are wicked and evil.

However as I have noted in the past domestic violence is a two way thing, carried out by women as well as men, though that is seldom talked about and seldom taken seriously.

Suddenly we have two cases of alleged female paedophiles, Vanessa George and Angela Allen, both aged 39. The police are investigating.

I would like to assure readers that unless there was clear and unequivocal photographic evidence, the police would not investigate. They simply don't because every one knows women don't do this kind of thing.

Except of course that they do. Paedophilia is an aberration, but it is one that affects men and women, just as domestic violence does.

Curiously before both cases cropped up there was an interesting magazine article on the BBC website about female paedophiles. To show how much in denial some women are I will quote one respondents comments.

Hang on, I think we need to put this into perspective here. Female sexual abusers are very rare. I'm not saying we should ignore their existence and deny the victims but lets not whip up a media frenzy and start fearing every old lady on the bus who hands out sweets to kids.

The problem here is this: Sally (for that is her name) seems to think female paedophiles are very rare, yet we have had two turn up in a matter of weeks. Perhaps they are very rare because people are not looking for them? Do we know if they are rarer than male paedophiles or not, and if so, by how much?

Iran: Another call for a general strike!

2009-06-21T04:00:00.000+01:00

From the twitter feeds, it looks as if things are gearing up again.

Mir Hossein Mousavi has called for a general strike if he is arrested.

What is interesting is that there were demonstrations today, and the demonstrators are gearing up for more.

My thoughts and prayers are with them.

Iran: Another day of protests?

2009-06-20T11:39:00.000+01:00

So the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has decread that the elections were fair, that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won and protests must stop.

Well, today we find out if anyone is going to take any notice. It is clear that if Mahmoud Ahmadinejad busses in support he can muster quite a bit of it. On the other hand Mir Hossein Mousavi doesn't have to primarily because he has support in the big cities and his supporters are more motivated.

The Bassij are already about on the streets, but curiously there are not many reports of the Revolutionary Guard turning up. That said one of the defeated candidates was a senior commander in the Revolutionary Guard, and Mousavi was and still is quite well connected.

The odd thing though is that the twitter feeds seemed to have slowed down or dried up. We know that the regime in Iran is trying to arrest as many people as possible including bloggers. Perhaps they are getting to them or they have gone to ground a bit to avoid being captured.

My thoughts and prayers are with the protesters.

The BBC has this.

Police to investigate MP's!

2009-06-19T19:22:00.000+01:00

I have to say that I was surprised that the police previously issued a statement saying that they would not investigate MP's expenses. As I wrote here there is clear evidence to suggest a very reasonable suspicion of fraud in some cases and they obviously should be investigated.

Well,now eventually, and far far far too late the police have decided to investigate, having given people the opportunity to get their stories and paperwork straight.

The BBC has this.