MalcolmW

Surprising, as the thread is less than 6 years old.

So what was Cameron's Operation Cygnus in 2016 about? A pandemic nowadays can be expected every generation or so, due to the global village effect of modern life. What cannot be predicted is when one will occur.

Falconer was due to be selected as prospective MP for Dudley North, but the selection panel refused to endorse him because his children were being privately educated and he refused to consider changing even if state schools improved under Labour. So Blair ennobled him as soon as he got power, and appointed him as Solicitor-General straght away.

BoJo appears before the Committee of Privileges next Wednesday (22nd) at 2pm till 6pm. Available livestreamed on Parliament live.tv or on catch up.

Falconer and Blair shared a flat as young barristers. The Judicial Pension scheme has been watered down (just like the Fire, Police, etc were) so many retired early to escape the changes, leading to a shortage of suitably experienced candidates. (Labour can no doubt bring in some TUC stars to fill the gaps).

GPs are not leaving the profession, but many of the 59% or so who are female can avoid higher-rate tax by working 3 days a week, and spend time with pre-school children. So long as their partner is also a high earner it gives a healthy work-life balance for the GP (pity about the patients though).

Companies are under pressure from Government t reach high targets for smart meter installations. In reality there is no prospect of meeting the targets and maybe the deadlines will be eased. In the meantime company CEOs don't relish the thought of appearing before a parliamentary select committee inquiry, so they waste effrt and manpower on trying to achieve the impossible. I take my readings on the 1st of every month (plus whenever EDF request them, which seems to be quarterly. Our usage has dropped 10% on a 12 month rolling usage over the last 6 months, with a reduction every month.

I knew Joe Galvin - he was a nice chap who, as sad above, devoted his life to Leigh Harriers. In my competitive days LH owned the Charles Street track, backing onto Holden Road, which was a 371 yard pre-First World War cinder track. The infield was overgrown to over a foot above the track, and there was still one set of rugby posts in place as Leigh played there for the first season after WW2. I was in a Warrington team which must have set a world best for 4 x 185 and a half yard relay. Indoors it's a safe tactic for favourites to set the pace and Keely's 200m splits in the semi were about, 28, 29, 30 and 33 and then in the final 28, 29, 30 and 31. Despite was was said she is not competitive nationally over 400m, and maybe should try 1500s at some stage in domestic championships.

My state pension for 2023-24 exceeds my personal allowance for the first time. It is paid gross but is liable to tax. In previous years the remainder of the personal allowance has been applied to my main defined benefit scheme pension with my long-term employer. Now this pension exceeds the full scope for the basic rate band of income tax, so the excess of my state pension over the personal allowance will be taxed alongside the DB pension (increasing the effective rate above 20%), with all the other bits and pieces taxed at 40%. Oh, and my main scheme increase for the year was capped at 3.6% below the relevant inflation figure because that exceeded the scheme's maximum increase limit (similar will apply to almost all company scheme members, with only public sector pensions being paid at full rate as they are underwritten by taxpayers).

Budget Day s 15th March. JSL

Don't forget your UK state pension is frozen if resident there.

I'm certainly not defending Truss but ... When she became Foreign Sec the FO staff told her that the Nazarin woman could not be released. Several previous holders of the job had failed, etc, etc. She made it her number one priority and succeeded by overriding CS advice. It was said to be costly but in fact the money had already been paid into an escrow account and all that was short was the ever increasing amount of interest. Come the top job and she believed she could again ignore advisers. But the government owes money and has to carry the lenders with it to succeed. She didn't, and the money markets went wild. Moreover as a supposed worshipper of MT she should have noticed that that leader held her party together during a difficult first term (saved only by the Falklands fiasco), and then won a clear mandate in 1983.

I've thought along those lines for a little while. The question is whether Bojo wants to take over before an election which he might well lose (but he has a very good record in winning London elections twice against the odds). I doubt he would relish a Parliament as leader of the Opposition, however. So in the meantime he is lurking in the foreground.

Telegraph, Independent, (Sottish)Daily Express. All in the last few days.

It gives her husband to step down from his role in the party. A new post with the UN would be an elegant step for her, and he might avoid the consequences of his maladministration.

Sale is the sort of place where footballers used to live, before megabucks led them to Alderley Edge. PS The village of AE was effectively named by the railways, as the station in what was then Chorley, Cheshire, was named after the neary landmark.

I can see a flaw in there.

This was the hotel that Chelsea stayed in in 2005 the night before their CL match at Anfield 3 days after their first league title for 50 years was clinched at the Reebok. (Think they trained at Blackburn's facilities the previous day, having stayed in the NW. It seems to have gone down some way in under 20 years.

While I was impressed by his oversight of the vaccines rollout I have always harboured doubts because of his association with Jeffrey Archer. He must surely rue the day he accepted the post of Chancellor, which enabled HMRC to pursue him more vigourously.

I've seen many well-intentioned changes in the last fifty-odd years which have had unintended consequences. Until the seventies pension rights ceased when you left an employer (or in some cases an industry). So people over about 40 felt pension tied. Maybe allowing frozen pension was proper. Maybe protecting them from inflation was proper, but the effect was to significantly increase the liabilities of company pension funds. In the eighties Mrs T thought the pension funds were too large and passive investors, so her government introduced 'pension freedoms' which enabled millions to opt out of company/industry schemes (subsidised by employers). Many of these were ill-advised and mis-sold, not least to those who chose to pay nothing other than diverting part of their NI contribution. So now those with the largest state pensions tend to have large private pensions as well, and the poorest -totally without private provision - only qualify for a percentage of the full state pension. Averages may look good but the distribution is unsatisfactory. As life expectancy has been growing steadily the pension age has been increased and is planned to continue to do so. But rest assured, if the after effects of covid and the breakdown in adequate GP and A&E services lead to a fall in life expectancy, no government would dare to risk reducing pension age.

He's agreed to pay "several millions" to HMRC following investigation. Meanwhile Brewster scored freely at Swansea (one for every two games), but has only scored 5 at Blades in two and a half seasons.

Two sets AND 5-2 down!

The main reason we have dodged a technical recession is that the World Cup was delayed to November & December.

Yes.

Only one club has beaten all other 91 members of the top four tiers ... (and it's not BWFC).