I haven't posted in a while. I've been very busy but also been wondering why I run the blog and why I post.
I'm becoming convinced that this isn't a good way of reaching people, but then again I'm not sure what is!
Wednesday, 14 July 2010
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Come on Dave
I am really disappointed that David Cameron isn't standing up a bit more for BP than he is. Of course it's an environmental disaster and of course some of BP's public reaction has been a bit crass, but come on Dave - you need to be telling Obama to tone down his rhetoric a bit - in public as well if need be.
The French are very good at standing up for the National interest - why can't we?
The French are very good at standing up for the National interest - why can't we?
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
What can the Lib Dems do?
I've been looking at the coalition agreement between the Lib Dems and the Conservatives and one thing stands out. It's the 55% super majority required to pass a vote of no confidence and break the coalition in advance of the 5 year election timetable.
Now 55% of 650 is 358 (rounded up). So an anti coalition initiative would need 358 votes to collapse the coalition and provoke an election. But if the Conservatives have 306 seats, then its impossible for the Lib Dems to pass a vote of no confidence with the other parties. Together, the other parties could only ever muster 344 votes.
The 55% rule is planned to be enacted in the reform bill that covers the fixed term parliaments and the referendum on proportional representation. I wonder if it will survive once Lib Dems realise that the maths appears to take away their opportunity to walk away.
Now 55% of 650 is 358 (rounded up). So an anti coalition initiative would need 358 votes to collapse the coalition and provoke an election. But if the Conservatives have 306 seats, then its impossible for the Lib Dems to pass a vote of no confidence with the other parties. Together, the other parties could only ever muster 344 votes.
The 55% rule is planned to be enacted in the reform bill that covers the fixed term parliaments and the referendum on proportional representation. I wonder if it will survive once Lib Dems realise that the maths appears to take away their opportunity to walk away.
Friday, 7 May 2010
Election Thoughts
Back on April 6th I made some rather rash predictions about the election. Time to fess up and see which ones came true.
1. The campaign was negative in places, especially the treatment of Nick Clegg and the Conservatives and Labour calling each other liars. However turnout went up, which I guess is due to the effect of the debates. I'd give myself 50% here.
2. The Greens won a seat, although UKIP and the BNP did not. No marks here for me.
3. There are certainly legal issues around postal votes - and there may well be issues around the closure of poling stations at 10pm with queues still trying to vote. Too early to tell whether this will make a difference to the result, but I give myself 75% for this one.
4. The Conservatives are the largest party but short of an overall majority - 100% as I suggested.
5. Gordon Brown has not resigned and is desperate to do a deal with Nick Clegg - except that Clegg won't talk to him! 100% again.
6. It's too early to draw any conclusions about the position of England in the Union, save to say that it looks like a Conservative - Liberal Democrat coalition has a fighting chance, so perhaps we'll never know.
In total I make it that I was about two thirds right, with the last question still open. Not too bad I suppose.
1. The campaign was negative in places, especially the treatment of Nick Clegg and the Conservatives and Labour calling each other liars. However turnout went up, which I guess is due to the effect of the debates. I'd give myself 50% here.
2. The Greens won a seat, although UKIP and the BNP did not. No marks here for me.
3. There are certainly legal issues around postal votes - and there may well be issues around the closure of poling stations at 10pm with queues still trying to vote. Too early to tell whether this will make a difference to the result, but I give myself 75% for this one.
4. The Conservatives are the largest party but short of an overall majority - 100% as I suggested.
5. Gordon Brown has not resigned and is desperate to do a deal with Nick Clegg - except that Clegg won't talk to him! 100% again.
6. It's too early to draw any conclusions about the position of England in the Union, save to say that it looks like a Conservative - Liberal Democrat coalition has a fighting chance, so perhaps we'll never know.
In total I make it that I was about two thirds right, with the last question still open. Not too bad I suppose.
Thursday, 29 April 2010
Interclean
I've spent the last week in Amsterdam for the Interclean Trade Show. It's the biggest trade show in the world for the cleaning industry and a great chance to meet up with people from every continent.
Hopefully there will be some new members of the CSSA and new attendees to the WFBSC Congress in New Zealand as a result of this!
Hopefully there will be some new members of the CSSA and new attendees to the WFBSC Congress in New Zealand as a result of this!
Wednesday, 21 April 2010
There's an election on - honest
You really wouldn't know there is an election on at the moment.
Not only has the campaign been knocked out of the headlines by the volcanic ash story but is all seems to be so terribly lacklustre. Labour seem to have given up trying to win in favour of promoting a coalition with the Lib Dems. The Conservatives don't seem to be trying at all from what I can see. Even the Lib Dems, who have received a meteoric poll boost, aren't doing anything different, but merely benefiting from some exposure for their articulate leader Nick Clegg.
I think Michael Portillo has it right, the British people are treating this campaign like the X factor. They don't care about policy, they dislike politicians in general, so they are going to vote on an emotional basis. That is if they vote at all. I sense that disillusionment with politics is so high that millions won't bother - in which case we may get some very strange results on May 6th.
Not only has the campaign been knocked out of the headlines by the volcanic ash story but is all seems to be so terribly lacklustre. Labour seem to have given up trying to win in favour of promoting a coalition with the Lib Dems. The Conservatives don't seem to be trying at all from what I can see. Even the Lib Dems, who have received a meteoric poll boost, aren't doing anything different, but merely benefiting from some exposure for their articulate leader Nick Clegg.
I think Michael Portillo has it right, the British people are treating this campaign like the X factor. They don't care about policy, they dislike politicians in general, so they are going to vote on an emotional basis. That is if they vote at all. I sense that disillusionment with politics is so high that millions won't bother - in which case we may get some very strange results on May 6th.
Wednesday, 14 April 2010
CSSA on Channel 4 News this evening: illegal working
I was delighted to be approached to appear on Channel 4 news this evening and give the employer view on the shoddy enforcement of illegal working law in the UK. You can see the report and the political discussion afterwards here.
First the report:
Overall I thought it was a reasonable view of the situation. The headline about ISS employing a thousand illegal workers is grossly misleading, since it is an extrapolation of a much smaller number of illegals who have actually been found. The key point is that ISS, in common with all legitimate cleaning contractors, is the innocent party here - they have been duped by forged documents that, as Baroness Scotland has shown, are very difficult to detect. The point I made, on the basis of many discussions with cleaning employers, is that there is no effective sanction against the workers when they are found. They just go back into the merry-go-round until the pop up at another employer.
Now the discussion:
Phil Woolas was simply wrong. The report is not a "load of tosh". There is a queue of representatives of major companies forming to tell him he is wrong. Illegal workers are not being removed from the labour force, they are just being moved on.
Chris Huhne wasn't much better. His call for better enforcement against employers completely misses the point. ISS has been exonerated by UKBA. ISS complied with the law. It is not the employer who needs another kicking, it is the law that needs to be changed, and the enforcement action against illegal workers that needs to be firmed up.
Chris Grayling was also calling for tougher sanctions against employers, which again misses the point, although at least he agreed that more action was needed to get illegal workers out of the workplace.
So all in all, none of the three main parties has got a grip on this.
Finally, John Snow raised the issue of an "amnesty". Phil Woolas and Chris Grayling were very quick to rule it out, while Chris Huhne suggested something very minimal. My question to all the political parties is this.
If you are going to rule out a regularisation programme, how are you going to deal with the estimated 500,000 to 2 million illegal workers in the UK? Answers please in the comments section on this blog.
First the report:
Overall I thought it was a reasonable view of the situation. The headline about ISS employing a thousand illegal workers is grossly misleading, since it is an extrapolation of a much smaller number of illegals who have actually been found. The key point is that ISS, in common with all legitimate cleaning contractors, is the innocent party here - they have been duped by forged documents that, as Baroness Scotland has shown, are very difficult to detect. The point I made, on the basis of many discussions with cleaning employers, is that there is no effective sanction against the workers when they are found. They just go back into the merry-go-round until the pop up at another employer.
Now the discussion:
Phil Woolas was simply wrong. The report is not a "load of tosh". There is a queue of representatives of major companies forming to tell him he is wrong. Illegal workers are not being removed from the labour force, they are just being moved on.
Chris Huhne wasn't much better. His call for better enforcement against employers completely misses the point. ISS has been exonerated by UKBA. ISS complied with the law. It is not the employer who needs another kicking, it is the law that needs to be changed, and the enforcement action against illegal workers that needs to be firmed up.
Chris Grayling was also calling for tougher sanctions against employers, which again misses the point, although at least he agreed that more action was needed to get illegal workers out of the workplace.
So all in all, none of the three main parties has got a grip on this.
Finally, John Snow raised the issue of an "amnesty". Phil Woolas and Chris Grayling were very quick to rule it out, while Chris Huhne suggested something very minimal. My question to all the political parties is this.
If you are going to rule out a regularisation programme, how are you going to deal with the estimated 500,000 to 2 million illegal workers in the UK? Answers please in the comments section on this blog.
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