31/07/2010 by admin.

I’m going to talk about tax credits after it has been reported that overpayments are set to soar. I think we all know of someone who after being given money by this incompetent Revenue and Customs department has had to give some of it back later. You are playing with peoples lives here, what you do affects them dramatically, ok a few quid you think, but that can be the difference between heating your home or not, eating or not. It can make people unwell and tip the balance leading to phychological problems. When will this government stop bashing the poor, every day I hear some sort of legislation designed to claw money back from them. This government are going to get a reputation just like the old heartless Thatcher government. Don’t they realise that the Poll Tax riots nearly led to a revolution in this country. I don’t see this Coalition going for criminals and tax cheats with the same fervour. I fear social unrest and all this has to be said by someone.

Posted in Finance | 4 Comments »

26/07/2010 by Dandy.

I found out some amazing figures, 27% of entrants to primary schools are now overweight or obese in the UK! WOW! What is happening? But trust Marks & Spencer to cash in on this fact by selling over-sized school uniforms. The range, which is currently sold online, caters for ages 3 to 16 year olds, with trouser and skirt sizes going up to a 41-inch. But the government have consistently refused to regulate the food industry. If Marks and Spencer sell more food to families then they can later sell bigger clothes . . . supermarkets seem to win - all ways.

Posted in Finance | 2 Comments »

21/07/2010 by JohnB.

The consequences of England underperforming in the world cup rumbles on. After 11 years Nationwide have pulled out of sponsoring all football in the UK. The Football Association (rather stupidly) turned down a £20m 4-year partnership offer from Nationwide to sponsor England because they thought that England would do better at the world cup and therefore would encourage more lucrative offers. Once again the FA have been found incompetent. Is there any way some unemployed people could take over this decaying institution then possibly it would have a reason to exist!

Posted in Finance | 3 Comments »

16/07/2010 by admin.

I watch BBC’s Question Time religiously every week but on last night’s programme I was amazed at David Dimbleby. He had a coughing fit early on in the programme which might have upset his rhythm but I thought that he was interrupting too much again, he has been getting consecutively bad at this with every episode. Andy Burnham picked up on a mistake about “tweets” “tweeting” “twittering” or whatever and from then on Dimbles was clearly rattled and had a couple of goes at Andy Burnham (who I thought by the way was excellent). I am glad that this series of Question Time is coming to an end, it is clear that Dimbles needs some sort of long expensive holiday on his over inflated wages (paid by us, licence fee payers) to calm him down. Also for some reason or another since the Coalition have taken over government the programme has lost something, can anyone suggest what?

Posted in Finance | 1 Comment »

14/07/2010 by Fin.

The Financial Services Authority wants to ban some self-cert mortgages with new rules to stop lending without proof of income. This was talked about in the eighties when it was found that people couldn’t afford their homes and repossessions went through the roof. It was said at the time that the Thatcher government had been to blame and were slow to react, they also got a pasting from the media. I see a deja vu coming on here, why won’t politicians ever learn from the past or is their always something underhanded going on in the housing and mortgage market?

Posted in Finance | 2 Comments »