Christmas Tree

On a personal note, my wife works as a community midwife for the NHS and the ammount of courses, meetings and various managers she has to have dealings with is rediculous. Each of these trusts / pcts have massive "head offices" were a lot of empire building goes on which results in managers constantly having to come up with great new ideas to justify their positions. These then get rolled out all over through trainers so staff are constantly dragged away from the frontline to learn the new big thing. Then, another manager decides they havent really got the time to implement the new big thing and it gets put on the scrap heap. This process continues and continues and continues. An example is Baby massage. A great idea and very useful for new mums in lots of ways. Millions spent training the trainers, training the staff, advertising it to the public etc etc only for someone else to say, " very nice but we aint got the time / money". This is just one story that I remember relating to one person. Times this across the whole of the NHS / Public sector and you have massive waste. Lets also not forget the 3000 or so that Peaspus said were sitting at the revenue with basically fuck all to do.

The bottom line is both estimates come from the same people at the treasury. I wonder why the Guardian wants overplay one and underplay the other.

I take it then that the actual story should read budget will create 1.2 million jobs Guardian.....What a shit rag

Just when you thought Liam Byrne had done enough this year with his "theres no money left note", to piss everybody off, this afternoon he went one better I was watching Sky live coverage of Camerons statement to the commons about the G20 summit. Cameron then sits down and Harman stands up to reply. While she's waffling on, most red blooded males will have been watching what looked liked a gorgeous young lady (Bridget?) behind Harman waring a very short red dress. The planets alligned and live on TV she decided to cross her legs, Sharon Stone style, revealing her manifesto when....... Fucking Bald Byrne sticks his head in the way Luckily it was on Sky Plus so here is a photo of his crime. Sorry I cant get it the right way up (mods) What a Cunt!

What do you reckon Capello did wrong though? He had very limited options in too many areas. Getting rid of the manager is just papering over the cracks imo. I think he might walk anyway like. A lot of pundits and the like are arguing that the system was wrong and that it would have been better playing gerrard off rooney. Even if Capello felt 442 was better, there should have been a plan B when it wasnt working. And why swap a striker for a striker when your chasing a game in knock out football. I also dont buy this very stern authoritarian approach. Im sure with fannies like we have, a Keegan / Harry arm round the shoulder jovial bit of carry on might have helped. Agree with the first bit being an argument but that may not have worked (should have been tried earlier perhaps). But he's undoubtedly one of the best managers in the world so I think it's a case of the players not being good enough in certain areas, bad luck with injuries and a lack of form from key players. Putting them 3 right and playing a different system and we still wouldn't have won it like. If the players go into the huff because of a bit of discipline though they don't deserve a thing. I must confess being a tad older and having lived through the pain on many occasions, I didnt get carried away by the over hype this time and sort of new what was coming as the tournament stumbled on. I agree a lot of those things have a bearing but cant help thinking Capello should have had more in his locker to change personell or tactics from half to half, never mind game to game. He's gotta go for me.

What do you reckon Capello did wrong though? He had very limited options in too many areas. Getting rid of the manager is just papering over the cracks imo. I think he might walk anyway like. A lot of pundits and the like are arguing that the system was wrong and that it would have been better playing gerrard off rooney. Even if Capello felt 442 was better, there should have been a plan B when it wasnt working. And why swap a striker for a striker when your chasing a game in knock out football. I also dont buy this very stern authoritarian approach. Im sure with fannies like we have, a Keegan / Harry arm round the shoulder jovial bit of carry on might have helped.

There will be lots of hand wringing and investigations but at the end of the day we had a manager who froze at tournament level and as Alex says, a bunch of fannies on the field. Basically, the manager has to carry the can......Its time for Harry.

The meaning of life! Everything else is dressing.

Brilliant mood! Was expecting to be at work and instead on the lash at Sunderland dogs.

I haven't heard anyone really seriously forecasting a depression like

Plenty of nice tarts about though, eh

Simply brilliant

I think that the lack of idealogical differences is a bit of a myth, and I think it is promoted by the right as cynicism helps undermine"do-gooders" and those with a progressive agenda. Apart from the early par of the New Labour the Tory Party has always been very succesful at defining the language political argument is coached in, which was a big part in the very efficient election winning machine they once were. I'm obviously not claiming New Labour or any of the current candidates has a strong traditional socialist agenda - that idealogical battle is over. The Labour years have brought in the minimum wage, improved funding and improvement to the NHS and education which are far too easy to decry. I am fairly certain the next few years will illustrate the idealogical differences all to clearly -though the Tory Party will be claiming every decision they make is 'unavoidable'. Damn those unavoidable decisions... Pensions increased and index linked Family tax credits up NHS protected from cuts Free cancer drugs fund Capital gains tax increased Bank levy put in place One million lifted out of paying tax Nissan grant Business incentives to open in the regions In just 7 weeks and off the top of my head

I must confess to becoming a little bored with focus on "double dip". The difference between being in recession and not is minuscule, a set of percentage points. We've just being officially in recession for 12 months however we all know it has been very tough in the 2/3 years prior and months since. Even if we officially go into it again, it won't really make a great deal of difference to everyday life. The way some talk about double dip is like Armegeddon!

Don't know if anyone knows this already....... Upgraded to os 4 the other day and when you go in to view the photos it now gives you the option to view by map. Basically it brings up a map of great Britain with red pin heads on indicating where shouts in the country a photo was taken, even though I have never entered any location details for the photos!!! It has my lake district photos all together, my Manchester ones etc etc. Talk about big brother.

Think of the poor souls who have bought one but can't use the video feature because they have no friends with I4's. Apple should set up their own IPhone version of chat roulette.

Dear me

Thats a pretty good take on things. Personally I dont think its good for the country to have a Labour party run by people like this and none of the candidates seem to have that special bit extra that you really need. (Havent seen much of Ed Milliband yet). They just need to look back at the Tory party to see what happens when you get a succession of dodgy leaders.

I thought Balls did fine tonight, giving Cable a good kicking for being a sad old hypocrite, in what way do you think he was using rhetoric? He got enough applause from the audience. I take a bit more into consideration as to whether the 40% labour split of the audience clap or not. Just opinions but he just didnt strike me as a he had what it takes to be a modern day leader. More a poor mans John Prescott, but without the conviction. Kep doing a bizzarre stare into the camera which looked odd as well. As for giving Vince a good kicking, my granny could give Vince a good kicking. The man is obviously very uncomfortable having to be accountable for his actions. Polotics is much easier when you can talk the talk but not have to walk the walk. He looks like he's heading for ill health. I must remember I am biased and you're completely objective, so you're right of course. Now your learning Didn't see Abbot, but did you see Will Hutton before this? Echoed everything Chez has been saying. It'll be on iPlayer if anyone is interested. I did, saying economists were split down the middle about whether the action was right or wrong and that economists are very good and explaining the past, but not quite as good as explaining the future. (Thats obejectivety btw )

Ed Balls On the question time panel tonight. Struck me as an extremely shallow horror of a man who had nothing but rhetoric and couldnt even deliver that sincerely. Diane Abbott Got an absolute kicking on This Week off Andrew Neil over remarks she had made justifying sending her son to a £10,000 a year school, claiming that West Indian mothers will go to the wall for the children. She refused to acknowledge that white mothers are just as caring as West Indian women and really ended up getting herself in a right mess.

I think the problem is that to call yourself objective AND a dyed in the wool Tory is a fallacy. I don't care if CT is a tory, it's that he espouses their policies, demonises anything Labour and then claims impartiality. it's the hypocrisy, not the bias. See your just making stuff up now Fish. I thought I would give you the benefit of the doubt and that you really do want to discuss politics, but your more interested in me than the budget etc etc etc. I have said many times there are lots than Labour has done I agree with and lots that the conservatives have done that I dont agree with. The fact that you choose to overlook this highlights your real agenda. Shame. Have you provided any examples to back up the bit in bold though? Im sure you of all people can go and get them should you wish

I think the problem is that to call yourself objective AND a dyed in the wool Tory is a fallacy. I don't care if CT is a tory, it's that he espouses their policies, demonises anything Labour and then claims impartiality. it's the hypocrisy, not the bias. See your just making stuff up now Fish. I thought I would give you the benefit of the doubt and that you really do want to discuss politics, but your more interested in me than the budget etc etc etc. I have said many times there are lots than Labour has done I agree with and lots that the conservatives have done that I dont agree with. The fact that you choose to overlook this highlights your real agenda. Shame.

Agreed, but politics these days is about the centre, not right and left therefore all parties and there policies are so much more the same than in years gone by. That is a fact. It should therefore be so much easier for anyone to look at an idea and judge it good or bad, without knowing or caring who thought it up. Over the last 20 years there are examples of great ideas / policies from both parties that most of us now take for granted and agree with.

You'll be telling passengers you know her well and what a sound lass she is no doubt Only after she see's sense and switches sides I did notice a moment between her at Cameron at PMQ's the other week. I am following her on twitter though to see what sort of stuff she comes out with. Hasnt knocked the budget yet. Must still be waiting for the email.

Bridget elected onto Home affairs select committee.