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UK government officials live it up at taxpayers' expense
With the cost of living in the UK rising dramatically over the last 12 months, petrol and diesel at an all time high, the economy in a melt down as the credit crunch ripples through the business community ... you would think that under the leadership of "prudent" Gordon Brown the Labour government would at least make a show of reining in their own spending on Whitehall official's wages and bonuses.
After all those same officials have dug their heels in when it came to discussing inflation linked pay rises for nurses, the police force and members of the fire service. So it will come as a pretty hurtful shock to find that whilst on the one hand the faceless bureaucrats have been urging "caution" to the unions and the public in general, whilst they themselves have shown no such restraint when it comes to their own pockets which they appear to have been filling to the hilt.
With the average senior civil servant pocketing a whopping £7K on top of their already substantial pay packet, for their "success" in running the country's departments ... it will no doubt leave the average Joe in the street wondering just what, exactly, those successes are? Were they when the Government lost computer discs with millions of peoples details on there leaving them open to fraudsters? Perhaps it's the fact that they leave file after file of *confidential* information about terrorists for any old man in the street to pick up off the trains?
Maybe it could be that they are simply congratulating themselves on a job well done - with redundancies at an all time high and the economy in terminal freefall towards a full blown recession? Who knows ... but following hot on the greedy heels of the MPs in Westminster voting for an inflation busting pay rise and the refusal to vote off the "John Lewis" list which forces taxpayers to pay to furnish their second homes with luxury goods from the upmarket department store ... is it any wonder that members of the public in the UK see MPs and Whitehall officials as "living the highlife" at their somewhat costly expense? With the cost of living in the UK rising dramatically over the last 12 months, petrol and diesel at an all time high, the economy in a... more -
British MPs: ID cards 'could threaten privacy'
The government should limit the data it collects on citizens for its ID card scheme to avoid creating a surveillance society, a group of MPs has warned.
The home affairs select committee called for proper safeguards on the plans for compulsory ID cards to stop "function creep" threatening privacy. It wants a guarantee the scheme will not be expanded without MPs' approval. The Ministry of Justice said it had to balance protecting the public with protecting a right to privacy.
The Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said that many people welcomed the use of devices such as CCTV cameras.
The National Identity Scheme is due to start rolling out later this year, and will eventually hold details on everyone in Britain over the age of 16. The government should limit the data it collects on citizens for its ID card scheme to avoid creating a surveillance society, a group ... more -
Pakistan's Parliament has more women (as a %) than the UK & US Parliament...
Often Muslim countries are seen in the West as having negative attitudes towards women and women being oppressed yet the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has more women in its parliament than the US and UK parliaments.
Pakistan has 22% women in its parliament compared to only 16.8% in the US and 19.5% in the UK parliament!
Even in Kyrgyzstan a mainly Muslim nation (with 75% being Muslim) have more women in parliament (25%) beating Pakistan, US, and the UK!
Women in Islam have simular rights to men even though unfortunatly not all people act on Islamic teachings. Often Muslim countries are seen in the West as having negative attitudes towards women and women being oppressed yet the Islamic Repub... more -
Nicholas Soames called to court over quad bike
Nicholas Soames, the Conservative MP, is being prosecuted for allegedly riding a quad bike on a public road with a child perched behind him. Nicholas Soames, the Conservative MP, is being prosecuted for allegedly riding a quad bike on a public road with a child perched behin... more
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Bob Spink sacked after row over private life
A Tory MP has been sacked by the party following a split with his local constituency association over his private life.
Bob Spink, a Right-winger, had the whip withdrawn hours after he threatened to resign, complaining that the party was not doing enough to protect him from repeated attempts by his local association to deselect him as its MP. A Tory MP has been sacked by the party following a split with his local constituency association over his private life. ... more
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