Current Affairs

[barney]

I do think a vulnerable 17 year old, underage in the eyes of the law, is in a different position to a grown woman old enough to become an MP and mature enough to become a Minister. In the latter case I do smell a rat when she apparently declined the complaint route offered at the time, didn't pursue any other complaint route she considered more appropriate and only breaks cover when she scents blood.

The age of consent in UK is 16 so she would not be underage.

Yes sorry I should have been clearer. Underage in the eyes of US law, where she's pursuing the case.

The age of consent in New York is 17.
That’s where she’s bringing the case even though she lives in Australia.
Andrew has never committed a crime in New York which is why it’s a civil case.
I’m sure that if he offered a few million, she’d feel a lot better about it.
Her team are not expecting him to challenge in court because in the public eyes, he’s already done for.
They will settle for money.

[Onelife]

Her team are not expecting him to challenge in court because in the public eyes, he’s already done for.
They will settle for money.

But not without a verbal or written admission of his guilt she won’t...me thinks!

[towny44]

IMF forecasts UK growth to be lower than expected in 2022 as it recovers from the Covid, pandemic, but still the fastest in the G7, as it was last year. Brexit has been a real disaster hasn't it?

I think you probably appreciate that does not show a clear picture. In 2020 the UK seriously lagged behind many other comparitive countries as they recovered but the UK didn't. So for 2021 it was starting from a very low base point and caught up rapidly during the first half of 2021. However in Q3 and Q4 it appears to have fallen back quite a bit to 5th place behind France, Italy, Germany and Canada (with the US and Japan showing lower figures). Over the course of the pandemic the UK economy has contracted by 1.5% placing them in second last place within the G7.

So at this point I don't think any serious conclusion can be made about success or failure.

Lies, damn lies and statistics!

[barney]

[quote=barney post_id=314871
Her team are not expecting him to challenge in court because in the public eyes, he’s already done for.
They will settle for money.

But not without a verbal or written admission of his guilt she won’t...me thinks!
[/quote]

Bet she does

[Onelife]

[quote=barney post_id=314871
Her team are not expecting him to challenge in court because in the public eyes, he’s already done for.
They will settle for money.

But not without a verbal or written admission of his guilt she won’t...me thinks!

Bet she does
[/quote

Only bet what you are willing to lose Barney

[Bensham33]

It's funny that those who considered Sue Gray's investigation inadequate are now not happy with a police investigation.

I don't think anyone had said that.

[Gill W]

According to an MP supporting Johnson -

Johnson was ‘ambushed by cake’

[barney]

Ambushed by cake is a classic headline

I’m a hostage to wine

[Kendhni]

Maybe so. But falling 1.5% in a pandemic is not the disaster Project Fear predicted. And inwas only quoting the IMF. What do they know eh?

#GlassHalfFull

That made me laugh ... I haven't heard of 'Project Fear' since the promises of £350million a week for the health service
Actually the IMF report was much more comprehensive than what you are trying to state, and it did mention that the gains earlier in the year had fallen away in the second half of the year relegating the UK to 5th position in the list.

#SelectiveReading

[Kendhni]

According to an MP supporting Johnson -

Johnson was ‘ambushed by cake’

I loved the headline "Rishi Sunak accidentally went to Boris Johnson’s No 10 birthday event"

[oldbluefox]

I never once believed the sign on the bus but neither did I believe the exchange rate would collapse, house prices would fall, financial institutions would all leave, freight would back up at Dover, travel to the Continent would become difficult, there would be issues surrounding supply of certain drugs, unemployment would rise etc. And we didn't go to the back of the queue as predicted by Mr Obama who later changed his mind.

[barney]

I never once believed the sign on the bus but neither did I believe the exchange rate would collapse, house prices would fall, financial institutions would all leave, freight would back up at Dover, travel to the Continent would become difficult, there would be issues surrounding supply of certain drugs, unemployment would rise etc. And we didn't go to the back of the queue as predicted by Mr Obama who later changed his mind.

I’m sure that there must be something that they got right.
I had a devout remainer mate telling me that Brexit had made it impossible for him to retire to Spain.
No it hasn’t I told him. Just apply for a visa.
Oh, that’s too much trouble, he told me.
Really, I said.
So it sounds like you don’t really want to go.

[Gill W]

I loved the headline "Rishi Sunak accidentally went to Boris Johnson’s No 10 birthday event"

It could happen to anybody!

[Onelife]

I never once believed the sign on the bus but neither did I believe the exchange rate would collapse, house prices would fall, financial institutions would all leave, freight would back up at Dover, travel to the Continent would become difficult, there would be issues surrounding supply of certain drugs, unemployment would rise etc. And we didn't go to the back of the queue as predicted by Mr Obama who later changed his mind.

The remainers forgot one thing, which is the resilience of nations to survive…trading on fair terms has always been negotiable.

[barney]

I never once believed the sign on the bus but neither did I believe the exchange rate would collapse, house prices would fall, financial institutions would all leave, freight would back up at Dover, travel to the Continent would become difficult, there would be issues surrounding supply of certain drugs, unemployment would rise etc. And we didn't go to the back of the queue as predicted by Mr Obama who later changed his mind.

The remainers forgot one thing, which is the resilience of nations to survive…trading on fair terms has always been negotiable.

Brussels is now coming to terms with the fact that the U.K. has left and they are going to have to continue without our input and money.
There are sizeable anti Eu factions in many countries, France in particular.
They have bought in to the Euro farce so are stuck forever.
Verhofstadt seems to still be a bit obsessed with the U.K. but most others are just getting on with their own problems, which are exactly the same as ours.

[Onelife]

It’s an exciting time for the UK, not only do we still have our trading partners in the EU but we now have those around the world, so now is the time to spread our wings and fly…. onwards and upwards!

We just need the right leader to take us there.

[Quizzical Bob]

It’s an exciting time for the UK, not only do we still have our trading partners in the EU but we now have those around the world, so now is the time to spread our wings and fly…. onwards and upwards!

We just need the right leader to take us there.

No we don’t. They’re still there but it’s too expensive to trade with them. I’m talking about selling to them.

[Mervyn and Trish]

It’s an exciting time for the UK, not only do we still have our trading partners in the EU but we now have those around the world, so now is the time to spread our wings and fly…. onwards and upwards!

We just need the right leader to take us there.

No we don’t. They’re still there but it’s too expensive to trade with them. I’m talking about selling to them.

Well according to ONS figures UK sales to the EU were higher in Q2 2021 than 5 years before, just before the referendum. So someone is flogging them stuff!

[barney]

One thing business people like to do is whinge about any given situation instead of looking for solutions.
The majority voted for change and change is what we got.
Find solutions and get on with it.
We had a problem with our January delivery because someone in Denmark didn’t fill the paperwork in correctly.
We were hit with a customs and vat charge.
When pointed out to the supplier they immediately reimbursed us.
No problems since.
Under Rules of Origin, our imported goods attract a 12% charge which the supplier has absorbed.
My point is that solutions are easily available.

[Onelife]

It’s an exciting time for the UK, not only do we still have our trading partners in the EU but we now have those around the world, so now is the time to spread our wings and fly…. onwards and upwards!

We just need the right leader to take us there.

No we don’t. They’re still there but it’s too expensive to trade with them. I’m talking about selling to them.

Hi QB,

There is undoubtedly still a lot of red tape to overcome, not to mention the impact that covid has had on trading economies but the signs of improved exports to the EU are positive…certainly better than some economists were predicting.

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-sti ... 021-07-09/

[barney]

Economist’s predictions are hardly ever correct.
Most of the time they are out and often miles out.
It is not a science.
It’s best guesses.
Some pro eu think tanks who really can’t get over it still predict apocalypse.

[Quizzical Bob]

One thing business people like to do is whinge about any given situation instead of looking for solutions.
The majority voted for change and change is what we got.
Find solutions and get on with it.
We had a problem with our January delivery because someone in Denmark didn’t fill the paperwork in correctly.
We were hit with a customs and vat charge.
When pointed out to the supplier they immediately reimbursed us.
No problems since.
Under Rules of Origin, our imported goods attract a 12% charge which the supplier has absorbed.
My point is that solutions are easily available.

There are no solutions. None that are not at the same cost that they were before. Statements such as this are why I GET SO ANGRY!!!

It wasn't a majority by a long, long way.

[Quizzical Bob]

It’s an exciting time for the UK, not only do we still have our trading partners in the EU but we now have those around the world, so now is the time to spread our wings and fly…. onwards and upwards!

We just need the right leader to take us there.

No we don’t. They’re still there but it’s too expensive to trade with them. I’m talking about selling to them.

Hi QB,

There is undoubtedly still a lot of red tape to overcome, not to mention the impact that covid has had on trading economies but the signs of improved exports to the EU are positive…certainly better than some economists were predicting.

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-sti ... 021-07-09/

The red tape will always be there, and red tape costs money. That's why potential customers in the EU prefer to buy from suppliers without any red tape. If you (one) read further down in that link you will see that the outlook is far from rosy.

[barney]

I assume by red tape, you mean doing business like the rest of the world.
The European Union is a diminishing market.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Sorry to have stirred this up again by taking a glass half full view of recent statistics. I'm sure some businesses have suffered or gone under because of the combination of Brexit and Covid and they have my sympathy. But many others haven't and have indeed thrived. They've adapted to the change rather than trying to deny it for 5 years.

QB is right. Red tape is an issue for some customers. But it works both ways and many who previously bought from the EU are now buying British. And there are companies who have taken advantage of that, targeted the home market and seen turnover increase several times over.