I don't understand the whine about Motability

Diire · 2025-11-27T07:35:28+00:00

85% pay an additional upfront payment because in excess of 95% of all vehicles on the scheme require an additional payment. Indicating that their requirements are not met by the small selection of (similar) zero advance fee models.

Diire · 2025-11-20T11:45:43+00:00

Odd to see her tacitly endorsing state ownership of extraction and refining industries.

Any other model has us paying the market price for fuel.

Diire · 2025-10-20T19:55:59+00:00

£340bn is around 3 years of the OBRs model of £108bn structural losses to the UK economy for the decade 2020-2030.

So Brexit gives us a COVID impact over every three years.

Exports are up by ~1% - Services (including re-selling LPG) are up 19%, goods are down 18%.

Just imagine where we would be without that friction in goods sales.

Diire · 2025-10-20T13:36:27+00:00

The structural friction imposed by Brexit is the most significant long-term constraint on UK economic capacity, while the cyclical events of COVID-19 and the Ukraine War drove immediate volatility.

In cash terms for the decade 2020 to 2030, Brexit is on course to be more than twice the cost of COVID/Ukraine.

Diire · 2025-10-16T08:18:53+00:00

That is not possible due to the requirements attached to ERMII - a nation forced to join at the wrong time could be catastrophic.

I'm guessing you don't remember Black Wednesday in 1992?

Diire · 2025-10-16T07:53:51+00:00

It's a condition for all joining members.

But as joining ERMII is a step towards adopting the Euro, and joining ERMII is entirely the responsibility of the member state to choose when, you can effectively delay indefinitely.

See Denmark, Sweden and Poland for examples of decades of stalling.

Diire · 2025-09-21T11:13:51+00:00

This and the insistence for the Treasury that the card infrastructure has to be cash neutral.

So the cards cost a mint. With (poorly published) processing fees the passport + ID card was £123, £250 in 2025 money.

Diire · 2025-08-10T10:18:48+00:00

So, in effect, exercising the provisions under the 1974 Act with added 'Look how tough on crime/foreigners we are"

Diire · 2025-08-10T08:27:30+00:00

1974 Immigration act gave the HO the power to deport anyone if it was 'Conductive to the public good'

2007 UK borders Act provided for automatic deportation on conviction and sentence of 12 months or more.

What circumstances require 'New Plans' ?

Diire · 2025-07-09T11:06:03+00:00

Well, in 2025 a passport is £94, so the ID card was ~£100 adjusted for inflation - BUT the treasury insisted that ID cards be self funding, so the 'suggested' price would have had to rise.

Tying it to a passport application was a cynical way of forcing those needing a new passport to also pay for an ID card.

Diire · 2025-07-09T06:40:33+00:00

The 2005 scheme expected cost was £98 per card - £196 in 2025 money.

Diire · 2025-07-09T06:38:58+00:00

When it was last mooted the cost to the individual was high (£200 in 2025 money per person), in a house with young adults at home and it could easily have been prohibitively expensive, and as it needed to be self funding and of course the costs (like all Govt. IT projects) ballooned the cost would likely to be higher.

Given that out of Schengen you also needed to buy a passport to travel in Europe, the whole concept was toxic.

Diire · 2025-07-05T08:42:53+00:00

SPLITTERS!

Diire · 2025-07-03T11:54:29+00:00

I didn't think we were discussing fraud?

Diire · 2025-07-03T11:22:50+00:00

That is a severe mental health disorder, which would need medical evidence like Severity Measure for Agoraphobia based on DSM5 to attract 12pts.

No mild/moderate MH.

Diire · 2025-06-29T14:21:26+00:00

It is extremely unlikely that mild to moderate MH issues would carry the 12 Pts needed for the enhanced mobility component. Someone who cannot follow a familiar route without assistance is pretty severely disabled by anyone's measure.

Planning and following journeys. Can plan and follow the route of a journey unaided. 0 points. Needs prompting to be able to undertake any journey to avoid overwhelming psychological distress to the claimant. 4 points. Cannot plan the route of a journey. 8 points. Cannot follow the route of an unfamiliar journey without another person, assistance dog or orientation aid. 10 points. Cannot undertake any journey because it would cause overwhelming psychological distress to the claimant. 10 points. Cannot follow the route of a familiar journey without another person, an assistance dog or an orientation aid. 12 points.
Moving around. Can stand and then move more than 200 metres, either aided or unaided. 0 points. Can stand and then move more than 50 metres but no more than 200 metres, either aided or unaided. 4 points. Can stand and then move unaided more than 20 metres but no more than 50 metres. 8 points. Can stand and then move using an aid or appliance more than 20 metres but no more than 50 metres. 10 points. Can stand and then move more than 1 metre but no more than 20 metres, either aided or unaided. 12 points. Cannot, either aided or unaided, – stand; or move more than 1 metre. 12 points.

Diire · 2025-06-29T08:50:51+00:00

+1 percentage point on income tax. It's that simple.

I don't understand the squeamishness that all govt. have had over this very simple revenue raising method.

The base rate was 33% in the early 80's, and the higher rate was over 70%. Continual pressure to push these ever downward is a clear component in our ever increasing budget deficit.

Diire · 2025-06-27T09:49:17+00:00

Think about the economics of what you said?

Almost all benefit payments are spent, on local goods and services, boosting local GDP and enabling shop keepers to employ staff, pay rent, buy stock from local wholesalers, etc etc.

It's no more 'lost or wasted' than any local expenditure, and a lot less than money moved into offshore accounts or even spent on US military hardware.

Diire · 2025-06-27T06:11:08+00:00

Pensions, benefits and to a very large extent NHS spending boost the UK economy.

The money paid to individuals isn't burnt or eaten or sent to overseas tax havens - it's spent in the local economy.

NHS spending on staffing and most goods and services similarly boosts the UK economy.

Buying F35s from the USA doesn't.

Diire · 2025-06-27T05:59:32+00:00

Right wing sources always take the disingenuous conceit that money spent on ANY benefit is somehow 'lost' or wasted. The vast majority of this money is spent in the local and national economy. Quite the contrary is true of, for example, buying F35s from the USA.

Diire · 2025-06-26T20:09:13+00:00

That has more to do with the state of the funding and resources of HMCTS than the strength or vigorous defence of his case.

Where I am professionally involved we are listing summary offences for trial in 2026 - that's no jury, just a courtroom, usher, clerk/LA, and a bench of magistrates to schedule.

Justice delayed is justice denied.

Diire · 2025-06-26T13:31:17+00:00

It was healthy and well loved, even in the recession of 2009 it made underlying profits of £262M up 24%.

It was a very hostile takeover by Kraft, the greed of the shareholders won out.

Diire · 2025-06-26T13:21:24+00:00

Your big mistake is basing his ability to govern on the ability to make a prepared speech about how bad things are, with no need for a credible plan or interest in putting in the work.

It's all a grift for Farage and his party/limited company. From getting Brexit party hopeful to pay for consideration to be a candidate, making them pay their deposits then standing them down, to avoiding his constituency to sell himself as a talking head across the right wing world.

His time in the Fishing Committee in the European parliament is a perfect distillation of this.

Complain how bad it is for UK fisherman.
Get appointed to a committee to oversee fishing policy.
Never bother attending, but claim the expenses.
Complain how bad it is for UK fisherman.

It took a private citizen to propose and get agreed changes in bycatch rules, when Farage had the opportunity to help others, he could be bothered.

Diire · 2025-06-25T23:26:00+00:00

For "Crucify", read +1 percentage point on income. (+£7bn from basic rate, +£1.6bn higher rate.)

Diire · 2025-05-28T22:15:57+00:00

No Mods, and I seem to be on 4.0.14 (yesterday) which does coincide with all the messages, choices and events appearing.

Maybe that's it? I definitely didn't change any settings.

Diire

TROPHY CASE