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.

Further more from the report..........

In fact, as well as finding "no systematic evidence on the impact of increased supply" and that "hypotheses of its potential effects are not based on robust evidence", the report found that food bank use is "a strategy of last resort". People are proud, the evidence shows, and will tend to use them only once they’ve cut back on everything they can, and exhausted all other possible avenues of support.

And yet we have Cynic making snidey complaints about this thread ALL WEEK and then we get as per norm the usual non researched and idle none sensical bull shit from him as per his piece on food banks.

Time you took a good look at yourself cynic.

Lets face it the 2 threads YOU have created are falling apart its only intervention by myself and Fred today that as got some action going on them at last.

no i didn't make any of that up .... i was listening to a balanced discussion on radio 4 yesterday morning, which was assuredly much more interesting (because it was balanced) than very occasionally reading the rabids' diatribes

as for your other comment - you really are or even have become a puffed-up, egotistical ass
please revert to your former more personable persona asap

Hey GF...... take a look at post 117 on COOK thread:-

Haystack - Rice bran oil has almost the highest smoking point. It is mild and relieves hot flushes in menopausel women. Give it a go, might calm you down you tart. :O)

Wealthy Chinese interested in moving their riches out of the country are doing so with help from an unusual cast of characters: sculptors, painters and calligraphers.
Fine art buys are all the rage in the shadowy world of Chinese offshore money laundering

really!
i am staggered; they'll be telling us next that all these massive mansions being built in certain "unnamed" locations for russian clients are also a means of laundering
i suppose buying launderettes, now almost disappeared, was the original format of choice

Somerset floods: we need to learn the right lessons

For Germaine Greer it’s not the government that’s got the flood response wrong, it’s the British public



Water works: the Dutch have a long history of adapting to life below sea level, making profitable businesses out of 'green’ power – as well as protecting themselves against extremes of weather Photo: Frans Lemmens / Alamy



By Germaine Greer

7:00AM GMT 22 Feb 2014





Human beings should by now be used to the behaviour of winds and waters, and by and large they are. The Dutch have learnt to live and run profitable agribusinesses at below sea level and the British have in the past been happy to learn from them, whether in East Anglian fenland or on Canvey Island. Though the current prolonged wet weather may be unusual, excesses of wind and rain and accompanying tidal surges are nothing new. The existence of a flood warning system presupposes precautions that can be taken, but the story we are being told over and over again is that householders in flood-prone areas didn’t take them. They thought – and think – that the government should have done something. The government is not expected to protect householders from other kinds of weather. Those of us who have had tiles ripped from roofs, chimneys torn down, conservatories crumpled and gates torn off their hinges by the recent gale-force winds will have to fund the repairs ourselves.


In other parts of the world the inhabitants might take precautions against extremes of weather but not the British. Just as British explorers used to take pride in setting out with insufficient equipment to keep them alive in any but optimum conditions, British householders ignore the power of nature. Americans might “winterise” their houses every year, but the British will not invest even in a small generator to provide an emergency power supply for when the power lines come down, though come down they will when the west wind corkscrews trees out of the ground.


Besides financing the repairs to our own properties, the rest of us will also have to fund the making good of flood damage to other people’s houses, if insurance companies are prevented from raising premiums for insuring flood-prone properties, because the cost will be met by raising premiums for everybody. The CEO of Aviva has already suggested that insurers be entitled to insist that flood defences be installed as a condition of securing cover, though to hear flood victims tell it there was nothing they could do.




More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/weather/10651422/Somerset-floods-we-need-to-learn-the-right-lessons.html

FLOODING - question
to have put in place effective flood defenses would have required the expenditure of say £150/200bn, with that decision being made 10/15/20 years ago and work starting shortly thereafter

1) do you know of any uk government or even party that would have promoted that idea, even with hindsight?

2) do you really think the uk public would have deemed such a scheme to have been money well spent? .... we can't even make up our minds about the cost and benefits or otherwise of HS2, yet that is a much simpler concept


in your dreams!
even in the aftermath 1953, which is when the dutch took their decision, no one could ever have dreamt that this year's flooding in uk would have happened

Cynic quickly moves away from the GOVERNMENT commissioned report on food banks.

STRANGE how the government have

1. sat on it for up to a year

2. lied through their teeth in both the commons and the lords knowing what was in the report

3. knocked it out at half term on a friday morning when parliament is in recess.

And as for Cynics radio station were they not aware of this report????????? or as Cynic just overlooked a few very important points.

You make your own minds up.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear we now have the truth about Cynics post on foodbanks........

from the very same radio prog he reckoned to get his material for his food bank post.....

BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today Feb 21
Families turn to food banks as last resort, 'not because they are free'

Families turn to food banks as last resort 'not because they are free'
Review for Defra was passed to ministers in June but not published, creating speculation findings had been 'suppressed'

Low incomes, unemployment and benefit delays have combined to trigger increased demand for food banks among the UK's poorest families, according to a report commissioned by the government (pdf).

The report directly contradicts the claim from a government minister that the rise in the use of food banks is linked to the fact that there are now more of them. It says people turn to charity food as a last resort following a crisis such as the loss of a job, or problems accessing social security benefits.

The report concludes that, while there is some evidence that welfare changes have contributed to increased demand, it is difficult to make a clear and robust link.

The review emerges as the government comes under pressure from church leaders and charities to address increasing prevalence of food poverty caused by welfare cuts. The End Hunger Fast campaign has called for a national day of fasting on 4 April to highlight the issue.

The review, written by a team of food policy experts from the University of Warwick, was passed to ministers in June but has remained under wraps until now, creating speculation that the government "suppressed" its findings.

Examining the effect of welfare changes on food bank use was not a specific part of its remit, says the report, which is understood to have undergone a number of revisions since early summer at the behest of the Department for Food and Agriculture and the Department for Work and Pensions.

The researchers found that a combination of rising food prices, shrinking incomes, low pay and increasing personal debt meant an increasing number of families could not afford to buy sufficient food.

Benefits payment problems – either administrative errors that can leave claimants without cash for weeks, or the temporary withdrawal of benefits as a result of sanctions –are a factor in the increase in demand for food aid, the report says.

Ministers have repeatedly said there is no robust link between welfare changes and food bank use, while the welfare minister Lord Freud claimed the rise in food bank use was because there were more food banks and because the food was free.

But the Warwick researchers explicitly reject Freud's claim in a statement accompanying the report: "We found no evidence to support the idea that increased food aid provision is driving demand. All available evidence both in the UK and international points in the opposite direction. Put simply, there is more need and informal food aid providers are trying to help."

The report says that, while food banks such as the Trussell Trust collect data on the numbers of people using its services, it is impossible give an accurate estimate of the numbers of people fed by food aid providers in the UK.

The review warns ministers that, while food banks and thousands of other voluntary food aid providers do an important job of coping with short-term hunger problems, government cannot rely on charity to tackle rising food insecurity.

"Increasing numbers of households are having to deal with changes in circumstances which are potentially having negative impact on their food security in the immediate – and possibly longer – term," says the report.

It adds: "Some see it as appropriate for local groups to meet short-term food needs through temporary, non-governmental provision, but the evidence from international food security research suggests this is likely to be of limited effectiveness.

"A broader approach to sustaining food access, which takes account of longer-term and underlying dimensions to household food insecurity is needed."

A government spokesperson said: "Charities such as food organisations have always provided a valued service to those in need in their communities, in addition to the safety net provided by governments, and we should welcome the help they provide."

"That is why this government has given Jobcentre Plus advisers the ability to say to people who need help that they can go to a food bank.

"The literature review published today was commissioned as part of Defra's general work on food in the UK to see what information was available on the issue."

Professor Elizabeth Dowler, who headed the Warwick research team, said: "We are delighted our report has been published. We urge the government to learn from it and from those living in harsh circumstances, and to find creative, fair ways to enable all in this rich country to have enough money to be able to eat healthily. This work is urgent."

Niall Cooper, of the charity Church Action on Poverty, said: "The publication of the Defra report, coinciding with the launch of the End Hunger Fast by over 40 church leaders today is a timely wake up call to government and society at large.

"The report confirms the growing demand for food banks is driven by people facing crises, and directly refutes the governments claims that it is caused by the growing number of food banks.

"The truth is that, since the 'snapshot' last March, the situation has dramatically worsened, with many food banks reporting a doubling or trembling in demand since April.

The Defra review follows the publication of a Scottish government report last month which explicitly connected the rise in food bank use with the impact of welfare reforms such as the bedroom tax. The nine week Defra review, called a Rapid Research Assessment, comprised of a study of peer-assessed research in the UK and overseas, plus a series of interviews with food aid volunteers, professionals and studies of food aid projects.

Separately, an all-party group of MPs launched an inquiry on Thursday into the causes of UK food poverty and food bank use. The inquiry will be headed by the Bishop of Truro, Tim Thornton, and inquiry members include Labour MP Frank Field and Tory backbencher Laura Sandys.

Building, or selling property on a flood plain should be with a "safety or health warning" on it.

The value of the object against the costs should be upon the decision of the purchaser.

However, one is left with the problems of communication, transport and safety of the general public through "flood zones" from A-B.

The disruption of such is an expense to and effects the whole of society.

Again, the consequences and costs of flooding to surroundings when considering sanitation and hygiene etc. has to be considered.

Fewer and fewer areas and even fewer communities are islands unto themselves.

---------

Nice not to be responsible and able to blame others for their incompetence.

Can anyone find anything from the Radio prog that anyway remotely ties up with Cynics food bank post!!!!!!!!!! .

ive checked it time and time again and Im dammed if I can.

So come on Cynic please explain how you got your findings from the programme so terribly wrong.

I dont know whats gone wrong with you this week Ive always looked upon you as an 'online pal' are you sure their are not side issues here at work effecting your personal life. Your certainly not the nice chap I used to know.

Perhaphs you need a break. I tired mind is a dangerous mind.

The review, written by a team of food policy experts from the University of Warwick, was passed to ministers in June but has remained under wraps until now, creating speculation that the government "suppressed" its findings.

GF - What exactly is your agenda here? You obviously feel very passionately about the food bank situation. If this is the case and you genuinely believe there is a government cover up or conspiracy why bother reporting it on a financial website inside a thread started by you called 'nowt'?

Surely as a self confessed multi-millionaire your efforts would be more worthwhile fighting your cause elsewhere. Can't really see the point of slagging cynic off can you? And so far the silence is deafening for any other posters to comment either.

Chris I spend 12 hours per week free time for an online charity helping out benefit claimants who are mostly claiming ESA JSA and other benefits. Its basicaly a free consulatation for their rights and guidance.

I used to be a civil servant for the DHSS so this kind of thing Im very much interested in.

It needs to be got over to the public of this country by whatever means that this present government are a party of liars. The WORST EVER.

It doesnt help when I see post like Cynics which is either not researched properly or is toeing the government line in lieing to us all.

As for taking it further yes we as an organisation are. We have secured a parliamentry debate next week on the 27th in the house of commons.

And to finish, Cynic this week as done nothing but make nasty comments about myself so Im fighting back.

You shouldnt make comments over the internet that you wouldnt make face to face.

GF - Good for you, good luck. Sticks and stones re cynic though eh! Sense of humour is harmless :O)

The Truth About food [ fat ] Banks


A mother of two with a fondness for Chinese takeaways and McDonalds has reportedly blamed the benefits system for her weight gain.

Helen Jobson, who has ballooned to 23 stone after existing on a diet made up of Chinese, McDonalds, and kebabs, told today's The Sun her £350 weekly benefits are allowing her to gorge on junk food.

The 44-year-old was forced to give up her two jobs as a barmaid and car four years ago because of "chronic regional pain syndrome" - and has since piled on four stone, according to the newspaper.

"People tell me it's my fault because I'm fat.

"But I don't see it that way. I'm fat because I comfort eat, and the benefits pay for it. If it wasn't for the benefits, I'd be forced to stop the trips to the kebab van.

The more benefits the government pay out to people suffering weight-related health problems, the less incentive they'll have to get back to work."

Around £160 of her benefits goes on takeaways and junk food, after she spends the day sleeping while her 14-year-old daughter is at school.

The newspaper also quotes her as stating she would like a gastric band on the NHS to help her slim down to 15st.

However, she says being on benefits has trapped her in a miserable vicious circle.

"The depression that comes with being on benefits makes me eat more, and receiving handouts has taken away all my self-esteem


Read more: http://www.essexchronicle.co.uk/Chelmsford-mother-23-stone-blames-benefits-making/story-20683879-detail/story.html#ixzz2u4Fz2JyA

I'm surprised she hasn't sued the DHSS.

sticky - i'm still the (not) nice chap i always was, but seemingly have a more balanced view on politics and life than yourself .... i confess i really cannot be bothered to wade through all the verbiage, but i still stand absolutely what i wrote/reported

you are welcome disagree with the bits/comment i attached, but that does not mean that i am wrong ... perhaps you'ld like to go back and actually read what i wrote, which may not be what you would like to think i wrote

Perhaps, fair comment is only when it applies to you or the leanings are in accord with your own personal evaluations.

But not all the world agrees with you or even with me.

Manuel.

Perhaps more to your taste.