Stuff NZ
" The Australian radio DJs linked to the death of the British nurse Jacintha Saldanha had been trained "not to air any prank calls without permission" and are now "playing dumb", a source from besieged Sydney station 2Day FM claims.
The claim appears to contradict interviews given by DJs Michael Christian and Mel Greig where they said they were not aware of the approval process for prank calls.
The source said all 2Day FM presenters, producers and content managers were compelled to undergo "decency and standards" training every six months, in compliance with a ruling from the industry watchdog.
The training sessions, run by 2Day FM's in-house lawyer Tania Petsinis, include the specific instruction "not to air prank calls unless they get the subject's permission ... if there is doubt about a prank call, there is a clear chain of command in management that we have to escalate the call through".
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
Yes, immigration can bring huge benefits. But on this scale and at this speed, it's too much to cope with
Daily Mail
"But the mass immigration that has been taking place in Britain over the past decade has dramatically changed the cultural make-up of this country. If immigration occurs gradually — as it did in Britain on and off for centuries — then immigrant communities feel the need to integrate. Over time they become essential, indeed defining, parts of the life of the country. But immigration on the scale revealed in the new census is a recipe not for integration, but fracture. It spells the end of our unified national way of life. With immigration continuing at this rate, the British way of life becomes simply one option in a set of lifestyle choices — something you might adopt if you care to, but only in the way you might take up yoga or swimming."
"But the mass immigration that has been taking place in Britain over the past decade has dramatically changed the cultural make-up of this country. If immigration occurs gradually — as it did in Britain on and off for centuries — then immigrant communities feel the need to integrate. Over time they become essential, indeed defining, parts of the life of the country. But immigration on the scale revealed in the new census is a recipe not for integration, but fracture. It spells the end of our unified national way of life. With immigration continuing at this rate, the British way of life becomes simply one option in a set of lifestyle choices — something you might adopt if you care to, but only in the way you might take up yoga or swimming."
Tuesday, 11 December 2012
'British whites' are the minority in London for the first time as census shows number of UK immigrants has jumped by 3million in 10 years
Daily Mail
"Just 44.9% of Londoners are White British, according to census data - 7.5million residents of England and Wales were foreign-born in 2011 - Census data reveal just 59% now call themselves Christian as a quarter say they have no religion and 5% are Muslim - Less than 90% of country is white for the first time ever"
"Just 44.9% of Londoners are White British, according to census data - 7.5million residents of England and Wales were foreign-born in 2011 - Census data reveal just 59% now call themselves Christian as a quarter say they have no religion and 5% are Muslim - Less than 90% of country is white for the first time ever"
Thursday, 6 December 2012
The Chancellor's medicine may be harsh. But Ed Balls would be economic poison
Daily Mail
"A few weeks ago I happened to meet Balls’s boss, Ed Miliband, in a TV studio. He said: ‘You don’t seem very impressed with what the Government is doing. Shouldn’t you be joining us?’ I responded that on the day he stands up and says: ‘I apologise humbly to the British people for the fact that the last Labour government, of which I was a member, wrecked the economy and squandered all our money,’ I might start to think about it. Miliband lapsed into silence, and on that note we parted.
......For his part, Ed Balls offers a far larger and more dangerous deceit: the scandalous pretence that we can sustain the lifestyle which he and Gordon Brown told the British people they could have, without earning the means to pay for it. If Balls ever had to practise his political principles as a businessman, his deceitful prospectus would be exposed as a Ponzi-style scheme that would earn him a stiff prison sentence for fraud. More seriously, if ever again he is allowed to get his hands on the Treasury tiller, any chance of restoring this country to solvency will vanish up the chimney. Every time we voters get frustrated by David Cameron or George Osborne, we must remind ourselves of the lurking Balls menace."
"A few weeks ago I happened to meet Balls’s boss, Ed Miliband, in a TV studio. He said: ‘You don’t seem very impressed with what the Government is doing. Shouldn’t you be joining us?’ I responded that on the day he stands up and says: ‘I apologise humbly to the British people for the fact that the last Labour government, of which I was a member, wrecked the economy and squandered all our money,’ I might start to think about it. Miliband lapsed into silence, and on that note we parted.
......For his part, Ed Balls offers a far larger and more dangerous deceit: the scandalous pretence that we can sustain the lifestyle which he and Gordon Brown told the British people they could have, without earning the means to pay for it. If Balls ever had to practise his political principles as a businessman, his deceitful prospectus would be exposed as a Ponzi-style scheme that would earn him a stiff prison sentence for fraud. More seriously, if ever again he is allowed to get his hands on the Treasury tiller, any chance of restoring this country to solvency will vanish up the chimney. Every time we voters get frustrated by David Cameron or George Osborne, we must remind ourselves of the lurking Balls menace."
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
Britain is going bust
Terry Smith
"Far from moderating this recklessness, the Labour government got in on the act, increasing public spending by 42%, in real terms, between 1996-97 and 2006-07. Then, when the imaginary – borrowed - growth of the pre-2008 period fell away, government, professing itself just as bemused as almost everyone else, slumped into a larger deficit than any other major economy, and started racking up stupendous amounts of public debt.
This process has left Britain in a hole, but hardly anyone has stopped digging. Needless to say, debt continues to escalate, and the current government has been criticised by many for “cuts” which actually left real public spending higher in 2011-12 (£696bn) than it was in 2008-09 (£673bn), let alone 2000-01 (£498bn). "
"Far from moderating this recklessness, the Labour government got in on the act, increasing public spending by 42%, in real terms, between 1996-97 and 2006-07. Then, when the imaginary – borrowed - growth of the pre-2008 period fell away, government, professing itself just as bemused as almost everyone else, slumped into a larger deficit than any other major economy, and started racking up stupendous amounts of public debt.
This process has left Britain in a hole, but hardly anyone has stopped digging. Needless to say, debt continues to escalate, and the current government has been criticised by many for “cuts” which actually left real public spending higher in 2011-12 (£696bn) than it was in 2008-09 (£673bn), let alone 2000-01 (£498bn). "
A case of lies, damn lies and our rocketing national debt
CityAM
"GO on, take the quiz. You know you can’t wait, so here goes. Which of these statements do you believe to be most accurate: a) the coalition is planning to cut the national debt by £600bn between 2010 and 2015; b) it is planning neither to reduce or decrease it; or c) the coalition is planning to increase the national debt by around £600bn. The obvious, undeniable answer, as readers of this fine newspaper will all know, is c)."
"GO on, take the quiz. You know you can’t wait, so here goes. Which of these statements do you believe to be most accurate: a) the coalition is planning to cut the national debt by £600bn between 2010 and 2015; b) it is planning neither to reduce or decrease it; or c) the coalition is planning to increase the national debt by around £600bn. The obvious, undeniable answer, as readers of this fine newspaper will all know, is c)."
Why I, as a British Muslim woman, want the burkha banned from our streets
Daily Mail
"Thanks to fundamentalist Muslims and 'hate' preachers working in Britain, the veiling of women is suddenly all-pervasive and promoted as a basic religious right. We are led to believe that we must live with this in the name of 'tolerance'.
And yet, as a British Muslim woman, I abhor the practice and am calling on the Government to follow the lead of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and ban the burkha in our country. The veil is simply a tool of oppression which is being used to alienate and control women under the guise of religious freedom. .....I have read the Koran. Nowhere in the Koran does it state that a woman's face and body must be covered in a layer of heavy black cloth. Instead, Muslim women should dress modestly, covering their arms and legs. Many of my adult British Muslim friends cover their heads with a headscarf - and I have no problem with that. The burkha is an entirely different matter. It is an imported Saudi Arabian tradition, and the growing number of women veiling their faces in Britain is a sign of creeping radicalisation, which is not just regressive, it is oppressive and downright dangerous. The burkha is an extreme practice. It is never right for a woman to hide behind a veil and shut herself off from people in the community. But it is particularly wrong in Britain, where it is alien to the mainstream culture for someone to walk around wearing a mask."
"Thanks to fundamentalist Muslims and 'hate' preachers working in Britain, the veiling of women is suddenly all-pervasive and promoted as a basic religious right. We are led to believe that we must live with this in the name of 'tolerance'.
And yet, as a British Muslim woman, I abhor the practice and am calling on the Government to follow the lead of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and ban the burkha in our country. The veil is simply a tool of oppression which is being used to alienate and control women under the guise of religious freedom. .....I have read the Koran. Nowhere in the Koran does it state that a woman's face and body must be covered in a layer of heavy black cloth. Instead, Muslim women should dress modestly, covering their arms and legs. Many of my adult British Muslim friends cover their heads with a headscarf - and I have no problem with that. The burkha is an entirely different matter. It is an imported Saudi Arabian tradition, and the growing number of women veiling their faces in Britain is a sign of creeping radicalisation, which is not just regressive, it is oppressive and downright dangerous. The burkha is an extreme practice. It is never right for a woman to hide behind a veil and shut herself off from people in the community. But it is particularly wrong in Britain, where it is alien to the mainstream culture for someone to walk around wearing a mask."
Tuesday, 4 December 2012
Mining crunch hits profits – rate cut expected
Financial Review (Australia)
"Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens and the Reserve Bank board are scrambling to kick-start growth amid signs the resources investment boom will start to taper off next year. One of the Reserve Bank’s worries is that exports are being hit by the strong dollar, which is being held up by purchases from central banks even as local interest rates have been cut. A group of influential academic and business economists acting as a “shadow” central bank board said the economy wasn’t in such bad shape and urged Mr Stevens to hold his nerve. But the latest data suggests the economy could fall into a deep slump during the 2013 election year unless housing construction, manufacturing and consumer spending pick up. “At the moment it looks like the non-mining economy is expanding at less than 1 per cent per annum and that’s where 85 per cent of the economy is and 97 per cent of the work,” Goldman Sachs Australia chief economist Tim Toohey said. “If you’ve got mining rolling down, and clearly the government is not going to add much to employment, the big driver has to be the non-mining side of the economy.”
"Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens and the Reserve Bank board are scrambling to kick-start growth amid signs the resources investment boom will start to taper off next year. One of the Reserve Bank’s worries is that exports are being hit by the strong dollar, which is being held up by purchases from central banks even as local interest rates have been cut. A group of influential academic and business economists acting as a “shadow” central bank board said the economy wasn’t in such bad shape and urged Mr Stevens to hold his nerve. But the latest data suggests the economy could fall into a deep slump during the 2013 election year unless housing construction, manufacturing and consumer spending pick up. “At the moment it looks like the non-mining economy is expanding at less than 1 per cent per annum and that’s where 85 per cent of the economy is and 97 per cent of the work,” Goldman Sachs Australia chief economist Tim Toohey said. “If you’ve got mining rolling down, and clearly the government is not going to add much to employment, the big driver has to be the non-mining side of the economy.”
Mining boom over. Nothing to show. Harder times ahead
Andrew Bolt, Herald Sun (Australia)
"I repeat: the crisis we face is that the mining boom is over with nothing to replace it. And what on earth did we do with all that easy money? What trash did we buy? What surpluses squander? "
.....Mr Morse says China’s growth will slow from 10.5pc to 5.5pc by 2020 - Credit Suisse thinks it could be as low as 4pc, and the US Conference Board 3.7pc - but the crucial twist is that appetite for resources will wane as the Politburo calls time on history’s greatest building boom in history and opts instead for a modern, sleek, consumer and service-driven economy..."
"I repeat: the crisis we face is that the mining boom is over with nothing to replace it. And what on earth did we do with all that easy money? What trash did we buy? What surpluses squander? "
.....Mr Morse says China’s growth will slow from 10.5pc to 5.5pc by 2020 - Credit Suisse thinks it could be as low as 4pc, and the US Conference Board 3.7pc - but the crucial twist is that appetite for resources will wane as the Politburo calls time on history’s greatest building boom in history and opts instead for a modern, sleek, consumer and service-driven economy..."
Monday, 3 December 2012
'This is as bad as a world war': Bank of England boss's grim view of financial crisis which has left a debt 'that will be paid by our grandchildren'
Daily Mail
"Andrew Haldane: People 'had every reason' to feel 'deeply upset and angry'- George Osborne to admit bringing public finances back to order will take longer than expected - He has to find more than £23bn through further cuts and tax rises by 2017 Institute of Fiscal Studies said era of austerity could last until 2018"
"Andrew Haldane: People 'had every reason' to feel 'deeply upset and angry'- George Osborne to admit bringing public finances back to order will take longer than expected - He has to find more than £23bn through further cuts and tax rises by 2017 Institute of Fiscal Studies said era of austerity could last until 2018"
Why did none of the Aborigines there notice the Aboriginal song was a con?
Andrew Bolt, Herald Sun (Australia)
"....After the film, Wadi took to the stage, having been introduced as a Pintjantjatjara man from Mutitjulu. He addressed the audience, answering questions about his culture before singing a song “in language”, a performance that brought some in the audience to the verge of tears...
In August this year, Wadi appeared in Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court, charged with 30 counts of fraud. Only this time, Wadi wasn’t Wadi, son of an “Aboriginal magic man” from Uluru; he was Dallas Gwilliam from Neutral Bay in Sydney. As soon became apparent, Gwilliam, who is 40, was not Aboriginal and had never served in the military. As part of the case against him, DPP lawyer Steve Higgins accused Gwilliam of having constructed “an elaborate web of lies”, a statement which, though true, seems dismally inadequate. Gwilliam’s con was ever-evolving and wildly improvisatory, a 20-year jazz solo of A-grade bullshit in which he had posed not only as Aboriginal royalty and a special forces veteran, but as a Shaolin monk, seeded tennis player, telco millionaire, martial arts expert, UN peacekeeper and Chinese racing-car driver."
"....After the film, Wadi took to the stage, having been introduced as a Pintjantjatjara man from Mutitjulu. He addressed the audience, answering questions about his culture before singing a song “in language”, a performance that brought some in the audience to the verge of tears...
In August this year, Wadi appeared in Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court, charged with 30 counts of fraud. Only this time, Wadi wasn’t Wadi, son of an “Aboriginal magic man” from Uluru; he was Dallas Gwilliam from Neutral Bay in Sydney. As soon became apparent, Gwilliam, who is 40, was not Aboriginal and had never served in the military. As part of the case against him, DPP lawyer Steve Higgins accused Gwilliam of having constructed “an elaborate web of lies”, a statement which, though true, seems dismally inadequate. Gwilliam’s con was ever-evolving and wildly improvisatory, a 20-year jazz solo of A-grade bullshit in which he had posed not only as Aboriginal royalty and a special forces veteran, but as a Shaolin monk, seeded tennis player, telco millionaire, martial arts expert, UN peacekeeper and Chinese racing-car driver."
Saturday, 1 December 2012
The new police commissioners appointing their friends as deputies - on up to £68,000 a year
Daily Mail
" New unelected jobs are being created even though police and crime commissioners (PCCs) already have offices full of staff
Many have handed them to friends and political allies
Use of taxpayers’ money to put PCC's 'mates in cushy jobs' will damage public confidence, expert warns"
" New unelected jobs are being created even though police and crime commissioners (PCCs) already have offices full of staff
Many have handed them to friends and political allies
Use of taxpayers’ money to put PCC's 'mates in cushy jobs' will damage public confidence, expert warns"
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