Film: The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel directed by John Madden

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2555736/

UK Afghan war effort commeration

If there is one thing I would rather this country do less well in it is pointless pagentary and state occasion such as this:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-31866944

I would sacrifice this to have a better, more capable, and cost effective defence, or better run public services.

So I'm sure no expense was spared here - unlike in the under funded Afghan operation.  Our general inability to run the operation in the early days has led to distrust from America - who we don't like to admit had to bail us out on some of the operation.

The sight of war criminal Blair and defence penny pinching Brown sitting next to each other just sickened me.  Brown is famously supposed to have balked at a request for more budget for the Afghan campaign by saying "we already spend a huge amount - why can't we fight two wars at once".

I also find it ridiculous that any political debate on defence spending always starts of praising our service men and women, without addressing the disgraceful way money is wasted on the budget.  For £36bn we do not get much bang for our buck.

Much of this is the political interference and companies like BAe having politicians over a barrel with the threat of job reductions if costs are not met in full.  We end up building expensive aircraft carriers with compromised designs with massive cost over runs - all in the name of protecting high skilled jobs at great expense.

HSBC - way too big to fail

A bit harsh but the parliamentary special committee requesting that the Rona Fairhead non executive director at the time of the HSBC tax evasion should be fired from her current job at the BBC Trust.

It was good to see these people being asked "what did you think the big bucks were for" and asking them to accept some responsibility.

But it also showed that the bank was just too big to be managed hierarchically - and no management structure could have stopped this.  Therefore it needs to be a smaller organisation.

Odds on Rifkind getting into the Lords?

I think it will probably still happen - he did not come across at all well in the dispatches programme.  Claiming as an MP that he is "self-employed" and that £67k was too small a salary to live on, hence the need to take on consultancies work.

Type 26 initial investment announced

Initial investment announced for Type 26.
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-31554494

Always interesting to see how this works, in some ways BAE have the government over a barrel - in order to safeguard British jobs.  So the question of is this the most effective capability often comes a distant second.

As with the Type 45 I expect the eventual number of ships will be much reduced as costs spiral (as they are bound to on a complex project which are often optimistically budgeted).

Government bribes for older people

In the past few years successive UK government have had policies skewed toward older people (for older people read "active voters").

So things like:

1. Winter fuel allowance
2. Free bus travel
3. Free TV licence for over 75
4. NS&I pensioner bonds with market beating interest rates

All with no means testing.  This leaves younger people (read "unlikely to vote") struggling for things like living wage, help with travel costs, expensive childcare, and a housing crisis.

It is not fair and the bribery with tax payers money has to stop!

See related article - estimated cost £3bn:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-31580520

Film: Jack Reacher directed by Christopher McQuarrie

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790724/