World Press Network

08 May 2009

"MPs' expenses: Four ministers who milked the system"

"The Daily Telegraph's files show that Barbara Follett, the Tourism Minister; Phil Woolas, the Immigration Minister; Ben Bradshaw, the Health Minister; and Phil Hope, the Care Services Minister, have exploited the MPs' expenses system"...

http://tinyurl.com/ptoous


7 May 2009

"More pensioners living in poverty"

"The number of pensioners living in poverty in Scotland has increased by 20,000, according to new figures"...

http://tinyurl.com/p8e9go

_________________
"What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite"
Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970) ... http://bigeye.com/foolisholdman.htm

May 24, 2009

"Peers claim thousands for mortgage-free homes"...

http://tinyurl.com/oub3kc

_________________
"What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite"
Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970) ... http://bigeye.com/foolisholdman.htm

26 May 2009

"The crisis gripping Parliament, as the Daily Telegraph has released details of MPs’ expenses, is being used by the financial oligarchy and their media spokesmen to shift the agenda of official politics to the right. Under cover of ringing declarations that corruption must be rooted from the body politic, a frontal assault is being prepared on the welfare state and the living standards of millions of working people. This is what, in reality, lies behind the calls by the Conservatives and sections of the media for an early election."...

http://tinyurl.com/ou2gvt

_________________
"What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite"
Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970) ... http://bigeye.com/foolisholdman.htm

Bournemouth MP John Butterfill has claimed £17,000 for "servants' quarters". Does this mean he will repay the money by sending a lackey round?

May 30, 2009

"The Arrogance of James Purnell"...

http://tinyurl.com/kvpa3r


"MP defends expenses"...

http://tinyurl.com/d2nr6u


"James Purnell's £20,000 tax trick"...

http://tinyurl.com/davlhp

_________________
"What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite"
Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970) ... http://bigeye.com/foolisholdman.htm

This should be crunch week, at least as a temporary palliative. There will be a government reshuffle on Friday, assuming the Chancellor, Alastair Darling, survives till then. He is under enormous pressure over his housing allowance claims and financal advisers' fees. If he has to look for advice on his own finances, where does that leave the ordinary working citizen? As Chancellor, he has the grace and favour use of Dorney Wood, a country mansion. He is also expected to reside in 11 Downing Street, another free home. As an individual, Darling owns a luxury flat in London, which he rents out, plus the second home, which is covered by the allowance. He is accused of claiming allowances for both his London flat and his second home, despite the fact that he has no real living expenses as such, being resident in Downing Street and fussed over by lackeys and chauffeurs all day long. Other Ministers in strife at the moment include Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, Hazel Blears and "benefit claimants basher" James Purnell, who has milked the system for all it is worth, whilst vowing to imprison any unemployed, sick, needy and disabled citizens "falsely" claiming their £60 a week largesse on whch they not only have to live, but also pay tax. The nauseating hypocrisy of this New Labour regime is breathtaking. Hardly surprising, though, since one of the first things Blair did in government was tear up Clause 4 of the Labour Party constitution, which was the central tenet of Labour beliefs, to support and champion those who labour by hand or brain. The recent history of New Labour has been toadying up to multi-millionaires, swanning about with the super-rich on yachts around Corfu and bending the rules for donors of large sums to party funds. Keir Hardie must be getting really dizzy.

Paraphrasing George Galloway : New Labour moved to non-Labour, then to anti-Labour. They are Maggie's children.

That Gordan Brown is explicitly saying he will stay as PM even if his cabinet asks for him to resign shows extreme arrogance and selfishness (now expected of MPs). I suppose he hasn't fully served his Zionist masters. That he is not proposing an immediate vote on Proportional Representation (or other major electorial reform) which could save Labour from a total wipeout at next election shows he is NOT thinking of Labour's interest -- but actively planning against it.

With talk of storming Parliament by a people's mob, the Queen should realise how serious this is, and pull the plug on this corrupt government and force a new General Election immediately -- but unless we have PR, we will get a Tory fascist right wing government (i.e. no real change then).

Well said. Brown was interviewed on TV over the weekend and asked if he would resign for the sake of his party. Answering any kind of question is beyond his intelligence, so he kept on about how he was dealing with all the problems, changing the usual pronoun from "we"" to "I". As you say, completely self-centred, particularly as all recent polls put labour in third place. One poll even puts Labour third to UKIP (which is committed to withdrawal from the EU). His tacit support of his Chancellor was half-hearted, with the usual platitudes. But with his usual verbal alacrity, George Galloway has said it best, in the quote you cited above. Expenses issues aside, the problem in Britain now is that there is no party that stands for the majority - the ordinary, working (or unemployed) man and woman, who used to go for Labour by rote, but from whom Labour has shrunk away. Thatcher's decimation of the unons should have been reversed swiftly by an incoming Labour government, New or not, but nothing has ever been done. New Labour has been too busy wooing millionaires. The baffling conundrums are why left-wing MPs, like Dennis Skinner, (can't really think of another) stay loyal to Labour, New, worn, used or old, and why the trade unions continue to pour millions of working folks' contributions into the party coffers. There is only one way to reform UK politics, and that is to introduce the long-overdue system of proportional representation. That should put an end to the iniquity of "safe" seats, which are a mockery of democracy, make every vote meaningful, and make those elected perpetually watchful of their arses. The problem we have right now is downright complacency, in the knowledge that whatever politicians do, they'll get away with it, even perhaps after a little flutter of publicity. The British public have no political teeth, even though there is plenty to bite at. This week's elections to the European Parliament and local councils will be a predictable barometer, but are not signinficant in overall terms.

Ditto .. Well said.

Faced with such a stark political vacuum, we have a glass half full/half empty situation. It's the fertile ground for independents and small parties. That means parties like Respect, and independents like Richard Taylor. But it also means parties such as the ultra-right BNP (Hitler was a Nationalist), some daft religious candidates and the UKIP mob, basically an isolationist and low-key nationalist party that wants Britain out of Europe. Add to the mix "celebrity" candidates like Ester Rantzen (sometime TV show host) and possibly actress Joanna Lumley, and the melting pot starts to become multi-coloured. Small parties of any hue have no chance in the "winner takes all" voting system, and it takes very exceptional candidates, like George Galloway, to beat the system single-handed as an independent. Even if Respect (of which I am proud to be a member) does field a good number of candidates, the fate of the Lib-Dems in recent elections shows how the cards are stacked. Unless there is a cataclysmic revolution in the UK Pariament this week or next week, the chances of PR being introduced are nil. But it is the only way forward for true democracy, which would be a novelty for the British people.