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.

How much did it cost the UK poor tax payer for Osborne's futile challenge?

Ask Hays if he can get the figure from Party CO.


=======

“I’m not going to spend taxpayers’ money on a legal challenge now unlikely to succeed. The fact remains these are badly designed rules that are pushing up bankers’ pay not reducing it," the Chancellor said.

Regarding Labour MP's and Scotland, yes they will stand to lose around 40 MP's, but in any resulting coalition the SNP are going to be a powerful source imo.
2517

d4
That's right. The EU rules specify bonuses not greater than salary. To give bonuses that are high then salaries have to rise to be able to give a bigger bonuses. City bankers are already being lured to Asian banking markets in advance of the rules. The rules are likely to damage London as one of the premier finance centres

Why aint you on the stump Haystack?

Michael Gove ‘100% convinced’ no more Tory MPs will defect to Ukip

"Any more defections, following those of Mark Reckless and Douglas Carswell, will provoke a crisis in the Conservative party"................................ends

Ohhh Yeah, DREAM ON BUDDY.

Michael you arent by any chance putting up to be the next leader of the Conservatives are you???.

THE NASTY PARTY AT WORK AGAIN.20/11/2014

Iain Duncan Smith laughed at rape victim’s plight

How much longer must we tolerate this spiteful little thug?

From LabourList: “A victim of domestic violence – for her own safety, she’s known only as A – is taking the government to court. The reason? Because she’s being hit by the Bedroom Tax.

“The ‘spare room’ that the government want to penalise her for having is a specially adapted ‘Panic Room’. It’s there to provide a safe space for her and her child if her abusive ex-partner – who has raped and assaulted her – tries to cause her further harm. It has been specially adapted as a safe and secure space by the police.

“And yet the government want to hit her with the Bedroom Tax, because – as far as they’re concerned – she’s not making full use of her ‘spare’ room.

“Unfathomably, Iain Duncan Smith is defending the DWP and the government – having argued (without success) at a hearing in June that it should be dismissed.

“Today Ed Miliband rose in the chamber to challenge David Cameron on this grotesque case – the cherry on top of the disgusting Bedroom Tax cake. And what did the Prime Minister do? He defended the decision. He claimed that money had been made available for such cases.

“And yet if that’s the case why is A having to go to court to defend her own home? To defend her own safety? To defend her child?

This government are willing – way beyond the point where any rational person has departed from their argument – to argue in favour of the Bedroom Tax. The lives ruined and the families crushed under the weight of this draconian legislation are collateral damage. And all because they’re unwilling to accept that there simply aren’t enough affordable homes in the UK – or do anything about this fact.

“And how did Iain Duncan Smith, the villain (quite literally, a villain) of this piece react to Miliband’s questioning? According to Labour MP Fiona O’Donnell, the response of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions was to laugh.

Laughter.

As Ed Miliband spelled out the horrendous case – which this government are responsible for, caused and defends – of a woman trying to stay safe from her abusive, rapist ex-partner, Iain Duncan Smith laughed.

If you were trying to sum up the ills of this government in one simple act, that laughter might just be it.

Half of all benefit claimants sent on placements turn up to work

Claimants face having their benefits stopped for not turning up to training and work placements


By Holly Watt, Whitehall Editor

2:23PM GMT 20 Nov 2014

Follow





Only half of all benefit claimants ordered to go on work placements or training actually turn up, according to new figures released by the Department of Work and Pensions.


The claimants face having their benefits stopped for failing to turn up to four-week work schemes or training.


The Employment Minister Esther McVey said that it was vital that jobseekers attended the placements to “hold up their end of the bargain”.


Job Centre staff have been given the power to force anyone claiming unemployment benefits to take part in “mandatory work activity” designed to get them used to working from nine to five.


Most of the placements are with charities or involve a form of community service, such as helping to maintain parks. Those who refuse to take part or fail to turn up have their £67.50 benefit halted.


However, the new figures show that of the 251,200 people told to undertake the “Mandatory Work Activity”, only 105,610 started their placements.

Of the 899,760 told to turn up to “skills conditionality” training, only 492,980 attended. Some people may be waiting to take part in the training or work placements.

“The majority of jobseekers do everything they can to find work - and that’s reflected in the record levels of employment we’re seeing across the country,” said Miss McVey.

“But there are still many claimants our advisers identify who will benefit from extra support to improve their skills, or who could find their feet by spending a few weeks in a workplace - which is why it’s vital that jobseekers work with us and hold up their end of the bargain.”

Miss McVey pointed out that there are 680,000 vacancies in the economy.

“We work closely with businesses to design our programmes so that they get the skills and employees they need, and I’d remind the tiny minority who wilfully refuse the support on offer that taxpayers expect them to do so in return for benefits,” she said.

The system was launched after a pilot scheme four years ago found that one in five who were ordered to take part in four-week community projects stopped claiming immediately. Another 30 per cent never turned up and had their Jobseekers’ Allowance axed.

Government officials were said to have been shocked by the figures, which they believed proved that a core group of claimants have no intention of working. Officials strongly suspected the no-shows were people already working on the black market.

The trial was deemed so successful that the scheme was rolled out nationwide in May 2011.

post removed widening thread for some reason.

Labour shadow minister accused of 'contempt for working classes' over white van tweet

Emily Thornberry was attacked after she tweeted a picture of a white van outside a house draped in the St George's Cross with the caption 'image from #Rochester'


By Georgia Graham, Political Correspondent

4:38PM GMT 20 Nov 2014

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A Labour front-bencher has been forced to apologise after being accused of holding working class voters in "contempt" by appearing to mock a terraced family home draped in England flags.


Emily Thornberry, a close ally of Ed Miliband and the party's shadow attorney general, was on the by-election campaign trail in Rochester and Strood when she Tweeted a photo of the house accompanied by the caption "image from #Rochester".


Mrs Thornberry, who lives in a £3million home in Islington, North London, told The Telegraph that she thought that the image was "remarkable" because she had never seen a house "completely covered in flags before".


However, three hours later she issued an apology after Ed Miliband intervened and made it "very clear" that he believes people should be able to fly the England flag with pride.


She faced public backlash and was even criticised by members of her own party for posting the image, which will fuel concerns that Labour has lost touch with working class voters.



Image from #Rochester pic.twitter.com/rOjTgpskmF
— Emily Thornberry MP (@EmilyThornberry) November 20, 2014

Twitter reacted with fury:




What's that sound? It's every Labour Parliamentary Candidate in the country facepalming. Henceforth called "The Thornberry Reaction"
— Martin White (@martinwwhite72) November 20, 2014




Emily Thornberry will probably get a Tetanus jab when she leaves Rochester.
— Ben (@Jamin2g) November 20, 2014




It's around now that Ed Miliband will remember meeting a white van man draped in England flags while walking on Hampstead Heath, #Thornberry
— Justin Dunn (@justindunn) November 20, 2014




Ahem, Labour MP Emily Thornberry tweets her contempt for the working classes live from Rochester #ukip pic.twitter.com/UpZamPMtlP
— Seat of Mars (@seatofmars) November 20, 2014




"@EmilyThornberry: Image from #Rochester pic.twitter.com/ppurXZPUXV" MP never seen a white van or national flag before. A tad out of touch?
— Christopher Gage (@ChristophGage) November 20, 2014

She was offered some advice:




Emily Thornberry should just say I thought it was great to see such a display of patriotism. Lot of inference of what she meant.
— Lewis James Brown (@LewisJamesBrown) November 20, 2014

And even some measured support:




Not a smart move from Thornberry, but for what it's worth Pickles is wrong. St George's Cross isn't a unifying symbol.
— Ian Dunt (@IanDunt) November 20, 2014




So, we've just decided Emily Thornberry was being nasty based on... what? She's tweeted a bunch of bland pics, what makes that one so bad?
— Charlie Lindlar (@charlielindlar) November 20, 2014

But for the most part people were just annoyed.

Simon Danczuk, the Labour MP for Rochdale, told Mailonline: "Everyone will know exactly what she meant by that comment. I think she was being derogatory and dismissive of the people. We all know what she was trying to imply.

"I’ve talked about this previously. It’s like the Labour party has been hijacked by the north London liberal elite and it’s comments like that which reinforce that view."

Eric Pickles, the Local Government Secretary said: “Whatever one’s class, colour or creed, the St George’s flag is a unifying symbol for our nation. Don’t knock it"

Others said the message represented a "insight into the minds of Labour."

A Labour spokesman initially said that he did not see the problem with the picture.

Mrs Thornberry told The Telegraph shortly after posting the image: "My point is that it's a remarkable image of a house completely covered in flags. I grew up on a council estate and I have never seen a house completely covered in flags before. There's three of them."

However, she was later forced to make an embarrassing climb-down. "I apologise for any offence caused by the 3 flag picture. People should fly the England flag with pride."

Michael Heaver, a Ukip Spokesman, Tweeted: "If you don't want snobby Labour MPs knocking on your door ahead of May's election, stick an England flag up."

Anyone tried deers penis like Kendra tonight on I'm a celebrity get me out of here. :-))

THORNBERRY resigns after bollocking from Ed Milliband and good god shes gone.

What a snob she is.

She should be with the Tories.

LOL! LOL! LOL!

Im a Celebrity pity that lad from Coronation Street has had to go.

Hasnt the egg women been in it before???????

I thought she had been in the show before goldfinger. She was in Strictly Come Dancing.

Miss McVey pointed out that there are 680,000 vacancies in the economy.




LOL !

Emily Thornberry resigns from shadow cabinet over Rochester tweet

Labour MP accused of snobbery after posting photo of house with St George flags and white van parked outside



Rowena Mason, political correspondent


The Guardian, Thursday 20 November 2014 22.40 GMT








Senior Labour MP Emily Thornberry has resigned from Ed Miliband’s shadow cabinet after being accused of snobbery when she tweeted a picture of a house decked out in St George’s flags.

The shadow attorney general, who represents Islington South and Finsbury, initially defended posting the picture, which she took while out campaigning in the Rochester and Strood byelection. She later posted a message apologising if she had caused offence.

However, hours later, she stepped down from her role in Labour’s top team, after party sources made clear that Miliband was furious about the tweet.

The row is set to create a media furore the day after the Rochester byelection, which is likely to show Nigel Farage’s populist insurgents Ukip triumph over the Conservatives and the other established political parties.




Another fat old labour rich bitch tells it all about the plebs
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/nov/20/emily-thornberry-resigns-rochester-tweet-labour-shadow-cabinet

Dont believe any figures from this Tory Coalition, they are the most Deceptive government ever, and IDS and his department are 100% liars.

Will more rats leave the sinking Tory ship? 20/11/2014


John Baron

According to the Daily Express, Six Tory MPs [will] defect to Ukip if it wins [the] Rochester and Strood by-election.

If it’s true, doesn’t it say everything you need to know about the kind of person who joins the Conservative Party these days? They’re not interested in helping anybody else. They’re not even interested in helping the party that got them into Parliament. They only want to help themselves.

The Express reckons John Baron, MP for Basildon and Billericay, might be next to cross the floor. If this is true, it will be just about the only thing he’ll have done that is worthy of public attention since he became an MP in 2001.

According to Wikipedia, he supported David Davis in the 2001 and 2005 Tory leadership elections (no fan of Cameron, then), and he has been consistent in opposing wars in Iraq and Libya. Then there’s this: “In June 2012, Baron delivered a letter, signed by over 100 Tory MPs, to the Prime Minister David Cameron urging him ‘to place on the Statute Book before the next General Election a commitment to hold a referendum during the next Parliament on the nature of our relationship with the European Union’.”

That’ll be the UKIP connection, then.

It seems a bit tenuous, though. Also, this is the paper that reckons 40 per cent of Labour voters are going over to UKIP, which is a bit surprising. Why would anyone support a party whose members like to call Labour supporters “You lefties”?

Look at what Mark Reckless, whose defection to UKIP triggered the by-election, had to say: “There are many Labour voters who would never have considered voting for me because I was a Tory. Now I am UKIP they are willing to vote for me to rep­resent them. The Tory label was holding me back. I feel now I have been set free.”

What a lot of bilge.

The verdict? Well, we’ll only find out if UKIP wins, won’t we?

UKIP WALK IT DESPITE TORIES THROWING THE KITCHEN SINK AT ROCHESTER.

3,000 majority.

Labour down just 11.8% and not the 15% the Tory Press expected.

Further defections for sure now was the word from the experts in the early hours of the morning after the results.

Remember ROCHESTER was nos 271 target on UKIP list.

Devious Dave will be shit-ing himself this morning.

This could open the floodgates.

Meanwhile labour are expected to appoint a new Attorney General today or this weekend.

A labour insider commented its good to see her go, she was too snobby for the position ,we need a top piece of totty taking her place.

It will have no material effect on our electability and will be forgotten in 24 hours whilst the Tories have one big head ache going up to the General Election.

news press........