The Energy Rip-off

[Elgrande]

They also reinvested in ailing Steel, coal and BL.

[Poshgill]

Ah yes. The steel industry that is owned predominately by Indians in Tata steel or SSI now. Much like the rail industry I suspect that there probably wasn't much wrong with our nationalised industries that investment and political will couldn't have cured. In fact, a very senior exec recently told me that he admired former rail managers as they ran a railway well with ailing infrastructure and old rolling stock on a yearly budget that was continually decreased year in year. No benefit of 5 year plans or huge investment.

[Robpthegills]

Yes Posh....This govt is interested in people on benefits.

Because Labour promoted a country where young girls were rewarded for getting pregnant young, where people are allowed to live a whole life without working because others were getting taxed to death to pay for them. A country where it has now OPENLY admitted it encouraged immigrants in order to be seen as a totally multi cultural society. Albeit immigrants were rewarded with benefits that we dont afford our own pensioners.

This govt is now actively attacking the higher rate tax payers. Something Labour didnt do in 15 years. These Tax loop holes were mostly created during the Labour regime in response to simple offshore accounts not working. Both Blair and Brown were very clever with their accounting to hide enormous wealth whilst criticising the rich.

So maybe society is sick of people on benefits not being held responsible when everybody else is. I am being hit by higher vat, by higher petrol costs, by higher taxes......why should I brunt all of the changes, why shouldnt those on benefits have to cut their cloth accordingly as well.......... Biggest LCD or LED tv's you will find are on the poor estates.

I do charity work on the Vineries which is in the top 10 of depressed estates in Britain. Why are most of the parents poor.....because they Drink, they do drugs, they smoke...... OBVIOUSLY THIS is not everybody, but maybe we should be stamping down on people who use their benefit money to nurture habits that people who work cannot.

It is wrong that a young hard worker cannot afford to have a child, but having a child isnt an issue for some person on benefits.

As for LABOUR dealing with Utilities do not make me laugh. They fined them a few times a nominal amount when you look at the profit, but it was during Labours regime that the utilities companies started doing 5 year fixed rate deals to offer a solution to ever increasing prices.

Labour is a joke, it doesnt even know the word Austerity. It just hands money out whilst borrowing more to do so. It started several projects in Kent all costing Millions when it didnt have the money to do so, but hey ho lets not worry about if you can afford something lets just borrow more and more.

Labour cannot come up with even a half decent solution to anything all they can do is keep banging on about Thatcher because that brings out a cheer in all their old hard core constituencies.

[Poshgill]

Look. Lets get things straight here. Yes, the benefit system does need an over-haul. Yes, we do need a reasoned and sensible debate on immigration (without some sections of society screaming 'send them back') but we do not need a sledge hammer to crack a nut. Of course there are some people that are abusing the system and we all know people like it, but the sad truth is, these people are in a very small minority. The vast majority of people that are unemployed and on benefits are there through no fault of there own. They are hard working honest people that are desperatley trying to get back to work. Typical of a Tory govt, in times of hardship to not only target the less well off and vulnerable sections of our society but to actively promote propoganda to turn working people against them.

I suppose when you say that the Tories are attacking the higher rate tax payers, you mean by cutting top rate from 50% under Labour to 45%? Yes, that is a really vigerous attack. I bet they are quaking in their boots. And how many other companies are, thanks to George, not paying any tax? We all know about Starbucks and their not paying any tax for almost 2 years, but how many other companies are doing the same? The amount of money that big copmpanies or top earners are either not paying or paying minimal amopunts makes the alleged benefit fraudsters pale into insignificance.

I do agree with you about drink being an underlying problem, but it is a very complex issue. We need to understand why people drink to oblivion. I can't even begin to think wjhat it would be like to have Endless days weeks and years of no hope and no future.

As for Austerity. No, Labour do not know the meaning of the word and quite rightly too. Now is not the time to make stringent cuts. Now is the time for reinvestment. History shows that the only way to get out of recession is by getting the country working again. The recessions of the 30s, 80s and 90s have one thing in common. They were stopped when a brave govt decided to invest in infrastructure. Still, I suppose an Old Etonian with a personal fortune of £20m knows all about austerity!

[Garawa]

I agree to some extent Posh but in other recessions the country wasn't so badly in debt. A country must be run in a way that is not far removed from a household or a business. Once debt gets to level where it needs to borrow vast sums just to try to pay the interest, only bankruptcy can possibly follow. To make matters even worse, the credit rating agencies then make that even more expensive by raising the interest rate and you end up with a Greece style situation where the health service practically consists of donated medicines and doctors seeing patients after work.

Germany and France are deemed to be not too badly hit by the economic crisis and yet their credit rating has been downgraded, ours hasn't. Whilst almost every sector seems to be against the work being carried out, those that have the ability to crush the country into a 3rd world state appear happy with the measures taken so far.

I really cannot see any other way. Same with the benefit situation. I was furious when the papers reported about some of the cuts to the welfare system after regularly printing about how some abuse the system. Family X have 8 kids and live in a five bed mansion - outrageous! Torys plan to cap housing benefit at £26,000 and it will mean thousands being made homeless! I never once earned that amount of money in year even with bonuses! Diddums!

I see things being squeezed everywhere without it being crippling. I don't see any other way of reducing the debt. Yes boosting the economy would help but that costs even more money and at some point the line must be drawn. If I was £150k in debt, I wouldn't have a single penny left so borrowing more would be end of it all.

[Robpthegills]

Re investment.....so you mean more borrowing lol. Labour proved that didnt work during their 15 years.

Funny how you criticise an old etonian when you yourself believe everybody should have the ability to have that level of education.

The thing I believe you are in the wrong about is the benefit cheats being in the minority. They are now on part with those who are genuine.

If they all want jobs why is it that companies cannot find staff at the moment.

Go to Bluewater, every second shop is advertising for staff. In the Kentonline there was the story of a company in Rochester asking for staff for several months but couldnt find any.

My own company advertised at the Job Centre for 6 months. We wanted someone who could basically choose what days they wanted to work, choose the hours they wanted to work and yet
we didnt get ANY english applicants. We got africans from the universities who couldnt speak english and we got Polish people. The reason why I would prefer english/british applicants is because we want to teach them a basic understanding or law regarding will's and probate.

We were offering £10.00 an hour plus if you hit target (which was low) that would be £20.00 an hour.

Where were all the poor people wanting to earn some money.....they werent in the job centre looking for work. They were probably marching through london protesting about the govt whilst being paid to protest by those of us who pay taxes.

I still cook proper dinners for my family. You check the queues at all the southern chicken outlets and its full of all these supposed poor people. If they could be bothered to cook they would save a fortune. The truth is they dont want to do ANYTHING themselves, they just want to sit back and be given everything.

[Garawa]

The reason why I would prefer english/british applicants is because we want to teach them a basic understanding or law regarding will's and probate.

We were offering £10.00 an hour plus if you hit target (which was low) that would be £20.00 an hour.

When I return to work in a year or two's time I'll be knocking on your door!!!

[brb]

Rob - you gave me a laugh and sorry my friend but I feel you need to keep up with the problems of the seeking work structure or maybe you have actually recognised the problem. I didn't think any companies advertised at the job centre these days! Let alone that I believe that most genuine having worked & looking for work people would never even go there to look for work in the first instance. I personally would seek many ways for employment if the future should hold that my current employment ceased, the job centre would be the last of those places I would visit. Also I hasten to add their website is the most poorly run and maintained system of many available for job seekers. Employees within them would also openly admit their own failings within these centres for GENUINE employment seekers. All blinkered under the banner of a so called 'job centre'.

[Robpthegills]

Hiya BRB.....I think you are spot on tbh.

The problem is I naively thought that going to the job centre would be the minimum requirement for anybody seeking work or genuinely in need of a job. Someone who didnt already have a job thus helping out the job situation.

I do not want to go to employment agencys whom I have to pay a fortune too for finding me someone who is more than likely leaving another job to come and take my job.


Gary you would be more than welcome my friend. It was a genuine offer and was advertised as such for 6 months. Hell even if they did badly they would end up with about £15.00 per hour.

[Poshgill]

Rob, couple of things mate. Firstly you are assuming that people that look for work in Job Centres have the skills you are looking for. There is a degree of naivety there. The majority of people seeking work at these places are unskilled workers that would be good, factory, warehouse or driving staff. These obviously would not have the skill set that you require for your position. There are also a lot of trades people that use the Job Centre, so obviously the pool that you are recruiting from. Also there are strict rules (that need looking at) about unemployed people going into work. Was you offering a salary for a 40 hour week with OTE? If not, then no unemployed person would touch it. Any unemployed person working more than 16 hours a week, even in voluntary work, faces benefit cuts as they are deemed to be not in a position where they are actively seeking employment (and for all those that moan that unemployed people don't do anything, that is the reason why.)

Of course there are shops seeking staff. Plenty of them at the moment. How many will retain those staff after Christmas? And that is another reason why unemployed people won't take casual work and that is because the system prohibits people from doing so. Once a temp job comes to an end people can wait weeks for their benefits to come through and in some cases, they lose weeks of benefit. Do you honestly expect a married person with responsibilities to take a job for 5 weeks on minimum wage and then lose a couple of weeks benefit?

My wife left her current employment recently (through her choice I must say) and within 4 weeks, she got 2 jobs. One as a Christmas casual in the Post Office and in January she starts in the Civil Service. Not once did she go to the job centre. My advice to you if you are looking for staff is to go to a Recruitment Agency. (Not a Staff Agency) Of course it costs, but they will do all the advertising, sifting of CV's and interviewing and only put people through that they feel are good enough for the role.

BTW, I don't criticise Cameron for being an Etonian, I criticise him for being totally out of touch with the everyday person in the street.