Brexit, for once some facts.

[oldgroaner]

Only a few days ago on here we had our resident right wingers defending the skill and superiority of Conservative Governments over Socialist ones, and now we have this.
from the Telegraph
"
Counting the costUp to 30,000 businesses owed around £1bn after Carillion liquidation - with many expected to go under

And in the Express
Brexit's Main culprit says this
"
Boris Johnson admits Brexit NHS claim 'WRONG' - real figure could be EVEN MORE than £350m
FOREIGN Secretary Boris Johnson has said the NHS could receive even more money after Brexit than the £350million previously promised by the leave campaign during the EU referendum.

what planet are they living on?

And in the Daily Mail a surprising response
"
ALEX BRUMMER: A giant Ponzi scheme that deserved to go to the wall... even though Carillion's collapse shames capitalism and puts the wind in Labour's sails

"What is unconscionable in all this is that over the past two decades, before its troubles emerged, Carillion paid out vast sums in dividends to shareholders (seeking to keep them sweet) and bonuses to fat-cat directors — including former chief executive Richard Howson, dismissed last July — yet allowed the pension fund deficit to balloon to an officially estimated £900 million.


Shames Capitalism?
Droll comment of the day,
How can you shame something that despicable?

Let's face it the "Shame" from the Government's point of view is the scam failed "Bigly" as someone over the pond would say.

 

[oldgroaner]

Here's one to tickle tilson's fancy from the Independent.
"
Benefit fraud 'witch-hunt': 280,000 public tip-offs led to no action taken due to lack of evidence
Exclusive: New figures obtained by The Independent have led to critics suggesting members of the public should not have a role in identifying and investigating fraud within the welfare state
Overall in the year 2016-17, nearly 174,000 allegations were closed and 149,450 – or 86 per cent – were incorrect allegations.

The data appears to show that members of the public are overestimating the issue of benefit fraud in Britain and that the Government’s policy of using tip-offs is much less effective than many are led to believe.

It seems that one of the main supports of a Fascist regime,that of encouraging Denouncing your neighours, doesn't work all that well here.
It also implies strongly that the amount of benefit fraud is greatly exaggerated for political purposes.

 

[SHAN]

The numbers of e-bike sellers who've failed over the last two decades greatly exceeds those who remain, and currently two very experienced trade members agree that at least three more will fail this year.

I think in the UK often a very dodgy investment indeed.
,

It shouldn't be. From my point of view, and the same has happened with motorcycles, one major problem has been an initial influx of rubbish products, and rubbish retailers (I've experienced both at caravan and camping shows). This, along with ridiculous claims has done much to taint the market. Also, from the point of view as a strictly form of personal urban transport, like everything else in life, e-bikes I see being offerd where i live are unnecessarily technical. Coupled with that old "British" , "your not a real man if you have an electric bike."

 

[oldgroaner]

Only a few days ago on here we had our resident right wingers defending the skill and superiority of Conservative Governments over Socialist ones, and now we have this.
from the Telegraph
"
Counting the costUp to 30,000 businesses owed around £1bn after Carillion liquidation - with many expected to go under

And in the Express
Brexit's Main culprit says this
"
Boris Johnson admits Brexit NHS claim 'WRONG' - real figure could be EVEN MORE than £350m
FOREIGN Secretary Boris Johnson has said the NHS could receive even more money after Brexit than the £350million previously promised by the leave campaign during the EU referendum.

what planet are they living on?

And in the Daily Mail a surprising response
"
ALEX BRUMMER: A giant Ponzi scheme that deserved to go to the wall... even though Carillion's collapse shames capitalism and puts the wind in Labour's sails

"What is unconscionable in all this is that over the past two decades, before its troubles emerged, Carillion paid out vast sums in dividends to shareholders (seeking to keep them sweet) and bonuses to fat-cat directors — including former chief executive Richard Howson, dismissed last July — yet allowed the pension fund deficit to balloon to an officially estimated £900 million.


Shames Capitalism?
Droll comment of the day,
How can you shame something that despicable?

Let's face it the "Shame" from the Government's point of view is the scam failed "Bigly" as someone over the pond would say.

The usual dislike from Zlatan
Don't you like the truth? are you saying you approve of what the management of Carillion have done?
What is your problem?

 

[Wisper Bikes]

David Miall has always been pessimistic about the chances of his competitors.

Not only is that offensive, it’s absolutely untrue. I simply report what I see ... honestly and without bias. One brand has already been bought out by their suppliers, I know of another who are saying to thier dealers “if the market does not dramatically pick up for us this year we are out”. A third and fourth have said to me directly that if the ADT is imposed they will close.

Interestingly we are the only UK based independent electric bike specialist manufacturers exhibiting at the Bike Place this week, last year there were three. There are other ebike sellers but they are either agents for other brands or have one or two Ebikes in their range.

 

[tillson]

From the Independent
"
Carillion bosses face inquiry after protecting ‘exorbitant’ £4m bonuses ahead of collapse
Inquiries launched as firm goes bust risking 20,000 jobs and an array of public services
The newly appointed Minister for the Cabinet Office, my counterpart and the person leading on the Carillon crisis, David Lidington, has form here. It was he who, as Justice Secretary, published a controversial tender that proposed giving private security firms the power to arrest UK citizens. There are few more shocking examples of an extreme commitment to outsourcing than giving big business the power to deprive people of their liberty.

It seems that for the Conservatives nothing is off the table when it comes to doling out contracts to their friends in the private sector..

This is the world of Brexit where Corporate power replaces democracy, and incompetence is so rampant that even the biggest go bust despite a fog of lies.
No less that three Profit warning still led to three major new contracts.
And this Government has the future of the Nation in it's hands?

If you voted for Brexit you really need to think again, where are you going to end up?
What possible future can there be if you are gullible enough to trust the Tory Government?
Meanwhile County Councils are reacting

"But in areas where Carillion provides services to schools, contingency measures are in place. Oxfordshire County Council said it will “take over services provided by Carillion, including meal provision in 90 schools”. And as an additional measure, the fire service is “on standby to deliver” school meals. Although not needed yet, this highlights the extent of the crisis."

Just about says it all
"the fire service is “on standby to deliver” school meals. "

What a country! we are the laughing stock of the Entire Planet.

Stop moaning, there is good news as well a bad news here. The boss will still get his obscene wedge of cash! How good is that?

The company will most likely be sold to a foreign investor for £1and if we ask the new buyer nicely, they will allow the UK taxpayer to retain the company’s debt and pension deficits.

You have no faith in the UK government’s negotiating skills

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

I suspect that the coffee situation in Vietnam is more convoluted than your analysis, and the short table might suggest. Traditionally Vietnam would have had significant coffee production, a lot of it going into generic instant coffees and not into branded products. As an agricultural product all the steps in the production are labour intensive. Fabrication of electronic products on the other hand, is where the items are produced elsewhere and then assembled into the completed product in the low taxed economy. I would take the economic value of hi tech goods .. phones etc with a grain of salt. The multinationals engage in transfer pricing magic , so the values quoted and the amount of real activity underpinning it may well be different....

The table about coffee consumption in Europe may also be out of date. The sheer number of outlets in any of the highstreets is incredible. Every second shop is either a pub, a coffee shop or a retailer selling coffee as an add on. There are suggestions that coffee is the second most valuable global commodity, and the volume of transactions lead me to think they are not far wrong.. we must be at peak caffeine.

Clearly data is going to be a bit out of date, but that was the best I could find last night when I had a quick look.

I've found this from 2016 now, which shows, Brazil is still more than Vietnam.

http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/EDN-20170929-1

Interestingly the amount imported into the EU is only up 10% on 10 years ago. So the amount of coffee we're drinking doesn't seem to be going up dramatically... just perhaps the way we drink it and the amount we pay for it.

"In 2016, the European Union (EU) imported almost 3 million tonnes of coffee from abroad, 10% more than 10 years ago. The imports were worth €6.9 billion."

 

[Woosh]

Not only is that offensive, it’s absolutely untrue.

David, if you find my remark offensive, put yourself in the place of other Chinese bikes importers.
Rumours like those don't do much good to the rest of us.

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

The numbers of e-bike sellers who've failed over the last two decades greatly exceeds those who remain, and currently two very experienced trade members agree that at least three more will fail this year.

I think in the UK often a very dodgy investment indeed.
,

I think you'll find the UK is often a very good investment, its eBikes that are often a very dodgy investment.

 

[tillson]

More good news. It’s looking increasingly likely that the UK’s shortage of doctors can be resolved quickly and cheaply. You can now buy medical degrees AND post graduate qualifications in such specialisms as paediatric emergency medicine, anaesthetics and psychiatric medicin. It’s all run from a call centre in Karachi!

The government are considering reducing the length of time it takes to train doctors, but this solution is even better, there is no training required at all! It’s so simple. Sometimes the simple answer is the best answer. I bet Jeremy Tcun is relieved.

 

[oldtom]

I sometimes wonder what it would take before tory voters gain a spark of humanity and show some sympathy for those less well off. The attitude displayed by those who pontificate in these pages bemoaning the shortcomings of the underclass in society while worshipping at the alter of capitalism appal me.

The current disaster created by corrupt capitalist tories, which will lead to more poor families and further resort upon foodbanks is hardly a surprise as Carillion was born out of rampant, exploitative capitalism, encouraged by a tory government and thoroughly endorsed by a tory Chancellor, using 'Twitter' to spread the news:



The problem that the tory-voting scum just cannot get into their thick heads is that the capitalist system in the UK has always been a giant tax-avoidance scheme for the rich and the self-employed, meaning that the burden of tax revenue to support the functions and responsibilities of state like pensions, welfare, health care, etc, rests solely with the poorest in the land, indeed only those people who have no control over their tax bill as it is deducted from income at source.

There are decent people who can change that disgraceful anomaly - Jeremy Corbyn and his Labour party would raise the tax bill to the level of other major nations and ensure that tax avoiders face criminal proceedings.



As the tory media will not publish the Carillion story with vigour and will demonstrate no determination to find and prosecute those responsible, we need to look elsewhere to understand what is happening. To that end, we need to look at what the independent social commentators have to say about events in order to gain a balanced view of matters.

The web blog, AAV, provides a different slant on matters and this is the initial comment from Thomas G Clark:

should-tax-dodging-companies-be-winning.html

Many years ago, a man who spent many years in prison for his beliefs had this to say about corrupt government in his country:



Tom

 

[Steb]

Stop moaning, there is good news as well a bad news here. The boss will still get his obscene wedge of cash! How good is that?

The company will most likely be sold to a foreign investor for £1and if we ask the new buyer nicely, they will allow the UK taxpayer to retain the company’s debt and pension deficits.

You have no faith in the UK government’s negotiating skills

and that's before the good news of KPMG auditors giving the company the all clear six months ago (as valued at £2 billion) and so massively screwing pension funds and investors. corporate life in UK is almost as ethical as the politics.

 

[SHAN]

and that's before the good news of KPMG auditors giving the company the all clear six months ago (as valued at £2 billion) and so massively screwing pension funds and investors. corporate life in UK is almost as ethical as the politics.

Its "corruption" to the level of gross stupidity. In a past life, I ran a successful business directly linked to the civil engineering industry. The Carillon's of this country take 120 days plus to settle accounts, so I refused to deal with them, as should everyone else. No company should ever be allowed to be "awarded" government contracts on this level.

 

[Woosh]

I think you'll find the UK is often a very good investment, its eBikes that are often a very dodgy investment.

one could have said: there are more entrants to the e-bike business than leavers.
the fact remains that there are more e-bike sold and more brands if you compare 2017 against 2016, 2016 against 2015.

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

one could have said: there are more entrants to the e-bike business than leavers.
the fact remains that there are more e-bike sold and more brands if you compare 2017 against 2016, 2016 against 2015.

This is true, but I think you'll find the shift is from UK based chinese eBike specific brands that people set up to meet demand in the UK in early years, to big bicycle brands now having more and more of their range dedicated to eBikes.

The same will happen with shops (and is actually already happening) in the beginning there were dedicated eBike shops, but as the bicycle industry gets on board only a few of the dedicated eBike shops will survive. I'm not sure if its good of bad, but it is happening and we've been warning our eBike specific dealers about it for some time, the competition is coming and you need to have good brands and good business practice in place, or you'll be wiped out. The same can be said for brands I'm sure.

 

[oldgroaner]

Stop moaning, there is good news as well a bad news here. The boss will still get his obscene wedge of cash! How good is that?

The company will most likely be sold to a foreign investor for £1and if we ask the new buyer nicely, they will allow the UK taxpayer to retain the company’s debt and pension deficits.

You have no faith in the UK government’s negotiating skills

Unfortunately I have COMPLETE faith in the Government's negotiating skills when it comes to making sure that there is Profit for the Guilty and Poverty for the innocent!

 

[anotherkiwi]

Here's one to tickle tilson's fancy from the Independent.
"
Benefit fraud 'witch-hunt': 280,000 public tip-offs led to no action taken due to lack of evidence
Exclusive: New figures obtained by The Independent have led to critics suggesting members of the public should not have a role in identifying and investigating fraud within the welfare state
Overall in the year 2016-17, nearly 174,000 allegations were closed and 149,450 – or 86 per cent – were incorrect allegations.

The data appears to show that members of the public are overestimating the issue of benefit fraud in Britain and that the Government’s policy of using tip-offs is much less effective than many are led to believe.

It seems that one of the main supports of a Fascist regime,that of encouraging Denouncing your neighours, doesn't work all that well here.
It also implies strongly that the amount of benefit fraud is greatly exaggerated for political purposes.

In France a study showed that 2.15% of people on welfare commit fraud. Unless the UK is again "special" in this field similar figures should hold with you lot as well.

In 2009 the sum was about 540 million euros. That same year income tax evasion was estimated at around 15 billion euros...

 

[oldgroaner]

and that's before the good news of KPMG auditors giving the company the all clear six months ago (as valued at £2 billion) and so massively screwing pension funds and investors. corporate life in UK is almost as ethical as the politics.

"It's Ethical Jim,but not as we Know it" (raises an eyebrow)

 

[SHAN]

In 2009 the sum was about 540 million euros. That same year income tax evasion was estimated at around 15 billion euros...

The same situation probably exists here. Perhaps if the "sensationalist" fly on the wall television companies, instead of making "benefit street" type programs, made "tax evaders in Monte Carlo on yachts" That would be good.

 

[anotherkiwi]

I think this is a fairly balanced view of the situation:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/15/brexit-britain-third-country-eu-uk