Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

Well, if house prices keep on rising, even Cameroon is in with a chance.


Even better if they dumped him and got Boris on board.

Newsnight tonight exposes Big big rift between Osbourne and I D Smith.

Now we know why Osbourne HAD to make the speech about the long term unemployed today.

I D Smith knows its a stupid policy and not cost effective ie, turning up at job centre every day. He knows hes already had to put back Universal Credit 4 months and computer system is in a real mess.

Ohhh dear.

Boris Johnson Tells Nigel Farage's Wife Not To Vote Ukip
UK NEWS
Ned Simons   |   30/09/2013
Boris Johnson has revealed he was invited to speak at the Ukip party conference in London - by Nigel Farage's wife.

Addressing a rally for activists at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester on Monday evening, the mayor of London said he had received a "really heartwarming letter" from Kirsten Farage who he suspected was the "brains" and the "power behind the throne", but had decided to decline the offer.

"I was very flattered and amused. My instinctive reaction was to say yes. But then I thought, no. No, no, no. This is the moment to lash my self to mast and resist the siren song of Kirsten," he said.

"With a general election less than two years away, there is only one relevant fact, there is a risk the party she supports would deprive [people] of the chance to have a vote in a EU referendum because they would help put Miliband back in power."

Boris was speaking one the same day that Farge [Nigel] had been attempting to draw attention away from the main conference centre by taking part in three fringe events outside the secure zone. Including one which clashed with the timing of Boris' rally.

"My message to the charming Mrs Farage," he said. "Is don't vote for Ukip, don't even think about it, because we will see this country sleepwalk into a Labour government".

Conservatives Narrow Gap To Labour In New Poll
UK NEWS
David Hobbs   |   30/09/2013
People believe their families would be better off under Labour but back the Conservatives to keep the economy growing, a new poll has revealed.

The findings also suggest Labour's lead over the Tories has dropped from six points to four despite the Opposition revealing manifesto pledges at its party conference in Brighton.

Ed Miliband spoke last week of his plans to reduce the cost of living, including proposals for a Labour government to freeze gas and electricity prices for homes and businesses for 20 months after the 2015 general election.

But the ComRes survey for the Independent shows Labour attracted support from 37% of those questioned, unchanged from August, while the Conservatives received 33%, up two points.

The Liberal Democrats received 11% of the vote, down one point, and the UK Independence Party gained one point to 11%, with the other parties receiving 8%, down two points.

Spend 35 hours a week at job centre or lose your dole
Benefit claimants suspected of working while collecting unemployment allowances will be required to spend 35 hours a week in a job centre, Iain Duncan Smith will say.




By James Kirkup, Political Editor
9:50PM BST 30 Sep 2013

The Work and Pensions Secretary will announce that claimants will be told to demonstrate that they are seeking work.

The Conservatives have toughened their rhetoric on welfare. George Osborne, the Chancellor, today set out plans for some long-term claimants to be forced to carry out community work.

People who pass through the Work Programme, aimed at getting claimants into work, without getting a job will face new requirements to keep their benefits.

Tens of thousands of claimants will be required to attend a job centre every morning and sign in for the day.

Many of those selected for the programme will be those who officials suspect of working in the black economy while claiming benefits. By forcing them to attend job centres, ministers hope to either force them to give up their claims or their illegal jobs.



More unworkable nonsense here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/10345759/Spend-35-hours-a-week-at-job-centre-or-lose-your-dole.html

This sort of tough benefits policy works in countries such as the US.

No it doesnt it failed miserably did workfare.

So the job centre is going to be full all of the week 35 hours per week with claimants LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL

Never heard of anything as daft in my life.

There is no reason to think, however, that the criticisms levelled at workfare won’t also apply to the new scheme. Is, for example, a person spending 30 hours a week picking up litter more or less likely to find a paying job? Research which looked at similar schemes in the US, Canada and Australia found that:

“There is little evidence that workfare increases the likelihood of finding work. It can even reduce employment chances by limiting the time available for job search and by failing to provide the skills and experience valued by employers. Subsidised (‘transitional’) job schemes that pay a wage can be more effective in raising employment levels than ‘work for benefit’ programmes. Workfare is least effective in getting people into jobs in weak labour markets where unemployment is high.”

http://www.jrf.org.uk/blog/2012/02/workfare-how-about-some-evidence

BREAKING: Full OMB memo ordering the shutdown
4:47 AM

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BVdk-7dCUAAtyWE.png

Institute of Trading ‏@Instutrade 2m

RUMOURS: US NFP number could be released earlier, possibly today, instead of the typical first Friday of the month

James Hughes ‏@James_AlpariUK 16m

Estimates say shut down could hit GDP in the US by as much as 0.3% which in a tentative recovery is a lot. S&P, Moody’s are you watching!?!?

KEVIN MAGUIRE COLUMN

Conservative conference verdict: George Osborne is Mr Bumble AND Billy Liar
1 Oct 2013 00:00

Singing the Tory traditional tune of Bash the Jobless to deflect criticism of his own economic failures is scapegoat politics

George Osborne started the day as Mr Bumble and finished as Billy Liar.

In the morning he echoed Oliver Twist’s workhouse beadle, accusing the undeserving of wanting “something for nothing” and demanding they toil for gruel.

Shameless Osborne either lacks self-awareness or this wealthy Conservative, born with an entire silver dinner service in his mouth, has undergone an irony bypass.

Because he’s a posh poster boy for the very “something for nothing” culture he claims to detest, in time a baronetcy will come his undeserving way.

Sensitive soul, Sir George. He likes to dish it out but doesn’t like to take it back.

A Tory spin doctor insisted it was unfair to portray him as calculating and heartless. Double tough.

Singing the Tory traditional tune of Bash the Jobless to deflect criticism of his own economic failures is scapegoat politics.

Just when I thought Osborne couldn’t get any worse, he changed to Billy Liar.

The Treasury fantasist thinks he’s engineered an economic miracle.

I don’t know what they smoke his end of White-hall but it’s left him delusional. History’s slowest recovery a sensational achievement?

Did he forget he was down-graded after running out of credit, stripped of a Triple-A stamp?

If plummeting living standards are success hallmarks, I shudder to wonder what he’d call failure.

Behind the security fences here, champagne corks are popping.

Braying Tories party as if austerity is over for them as Osborne prepares 10 more years of misery for everybody else.

Deceitful Sir George is reviving the Con in Conservative.



Check out all the latest News, Sport & Celeb gossip at Mirror.co.uk http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/kevin-maguire-conservative-conference-george-2325512#ixzz2gSGQuWWL

can't be arsed to read the above diatribe, but i certainly do not understand at all how anyone who is unemployed - leave the parameters to one side - is meant to be able let alone afford to report to the dole office on a daily basis

that said, if the alternative is an obligation to carry out (supervised) community work, then i'm all for it .... i'm sure some bodies will claim it's unfair or some such, but i fail to see why

A possible danger could be that some lowly paid full time employees carrying out menial jobs may feel that their jobs are vunerable to the even lower paid benefit claimants doing community work which may encompass their work.
2517

possibly, but there seems to be an awful lot of "community work" that remains to which long-term unemployed could be directed - e.g. stuff that may perforce be done on a charitable basis

Yes I can agree with that cynic, just thinking unscrupulous employers that's all.
2517

he majority of the British public support making the long-term unemployed work full-time for jobseekers allowance and a tax-break for married couples – while Help to Buy is supported by half

In the run up to David Cameron’s conference speech tomorrow the Conservatives have revealed at least three flagship policies. A ‘Help to Work’ scheme requiring those unemployed for two or more years to do full-time community service in return for benefits; a three month early rollout of the second-phase of ‘Help to Buy’ (extending the scheme from new builds to all homes worth under £600,000 ); and a £1,000 transferable tax-free allowance for those married or in civil partnerships.

New YouGov research for the Sun finds majority support for two out of the three policies.

68% of British adults support ‘Help to Work’ - making the long-term unemployed undertake 30 hour per week community work or have their jobseekers allowance taken away, making this the most popular of the three policies. Only 21% oppose while 10% are not sure.

With all the policies around the so called "unemployed" is the detail of valuation of what their input into society should be.

But even when employed on rotational bases for the "servicing" of "society" or "society's environment" they should receive payment in excess of what they would draw on the "dole" and revert to the level of the "dole" when or if they return to that position.

Also, I think it is Pie in the Sky with the rate of technological developments that "full employment" will ever occur and there seems to me more of danger from over production than maintenance, or reorganisation of production.

Basing a "society's" future "happiness" on ever growing GDP seems fatuous.

==================

Cameron's latest U-turn.

He loves Boris and wants him back, but if he comes back Cameron is locking his wife up.


----------------

Forgot, although it has taken 3 years, Cameron and Hunt do another U-turn on NHS.

Paying their mates the doctors another cheque, but trying to remove themselves from their own reorganisation.

Shoot the Hunt and bring back another. Lansley, where are you?

george - if it's (supervised) community work, unscrupulous employers (local gov't excluded!) wouldn't come into the picture