General Discussion
An mp being investigated over £90 k in expenses. Has been found to have done nothing wrong, but may have to pay back some cash. Supposedly it was reported that she had located her parents into her tax payer's subsidised second home. Why so much persecution over mp's who sacrifice so much for the miserable electorate!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/10730894/Maria-Millers-1m-profit-on-taxpayer-funded-home.html
...and perhaps most compellingly, if most people over claimed their expenses to the tune of £5800 for whatever reason they would fully expect to lose their job, so therefore have no sympathy!
p.s. while on the subject of MPs a certain name keeps coming up on threads, so thought it high time to educate myself and not be 'behind the curve' anymore. It's the 'arm in strap' that gets me the most.
Anyway joking aside, if the SW as a whole could unite and show the same enthusiasm for rail upgrades....
If you owed the inland revenue money do you think they would accept a
small percentage? Don't bloody think so.Were all in this together
...and well done MM ...according to the World at One today, journalists at Dawlish are more keen to ask DC about her expenses than any other topic. Not that political humbug stopped there. The transport secretary was interviewed about investment in the SW and had to be pressed three or four times before even starting to half give an answer to the real question. Paraphrasing from memory:
1. "We are investing £38Billion over five years" (standard needle in the groove response but no mention of the SW there!)
2. We are improving Reading Station (so I suppose that will help with lines being washed away and flooded).
3. Stock to Bristol and Wales is getting replaced (so I suppose we should be grateful for some more old HSTs)
4. We will consider any good case put forward by NR (again non-commital)
Of course the response to the rebuild is to be praised and is no less than what should have happened. However, like trying to cover up a crime scene, it in no way makes up for the simple fact that it should never have happened in the first place. The January picture of the seafront shows beyond all reasonable doubt that what happened to Dawlish was entirely predictable and born of wanton neglect to the sea defences.
My challange to DC and PMG is, why didn't you also visit say Penzance and see what the locals would have said about it all there!! They have had to spend the last 8weeks driving not 10miles but 110miles to their nearest train to London. Simple, I doubt they would have had a fraction of the welcome there.
And this is the picture I am talking about...what the heck did people expect to happen in a storm when the foreshore has been left to be so completely denuded.
Going back to the point of this thread, the real reason politicians get held in contempt by voters is their frequent brazen side stepping of questioning which repeatedly makes them sound so duplicitious. Even AMM's 30second 'apology' yesterday, came across as 'saying I am sorry because I have to'.
@Clive: what 30 second apology of yesterday are you talking about? the apology made by maria miller in the commons concerning her expenses? what has that to do with amm?
Clive. That photo is entirely misleading I'm afraid. All it demonstrates is that the sand disappeared over to Exmouth in a January storm. It doesn't represent neglect, just nature. As I've stated on here before, had the groynes been repaired after the January storms, they would only have disappeared in the February ones. A little local knowledge goes a long way.
Sorry nothing, losing the plot, was of course MM not AMM - getting my MMs and AMMs all mixed up now! (editted) Anyway, thing is DC was getting quized about the expenses farce rather than the more pressing matters that we actually elect and expect polititians to get on with.
Sure nature did the damage but the council or whoever is responsible should never have let things get so ridiculously bad in the first place. It's a perfectly predictable outcome.
Doesn't really matter the timing of which went first, the groynes or the sand. The point is that the two are designed to be mutually beneficial to each other. Groynes help sand deposition that then helps protects the groynes. That both were washed away points to a design that was either grossly inadequate in the first place or has long since been left to languish?
Inadequate? You didn't witness the ferocity of the storms that sent the sand to Exmouth. What would have been adequate enough to prevent the outcome of the momentous events that unfolded in front of us? You aren't in a position to state whether things were bad before these storms, ridiculously so or otherwise! I maintain my point of view that your photo is completely misleading.
Did Dawlish get struck by a tsunami? - That would be an act of god.
Was there a volcanic eruption? - That would be an act of god.
Did Dawlish get extreme storms ? - Yes - Not an act of god.
Sorry Mrs C, but if you attribute outcomes as being inevitable in the face of perfectly predictable extreme weather in this era of climate change, then best just shrug it off when the next stretch of wall disappears and phone the Orange Army to come to the rescue again. Me thinks, you may not have to wait too long... even NR has only given it 4-10years.
Analysis:
Did central Central London get flooded this year? No. - Why? Thames Barrier, brilliantly designed and perfectly adequate.
Do the Dutch get flooded any more from horrendous North Sea storms? - No. - Why? Excellent flood defences, fit for purpose.
Did the Somerset levels get flooded 2years in a row? - Yes, rubbish defences. What came to the rescuse? - Dutch pumps.
Did the sand get washed away to Exmouth? Yes. - QED defences inadequate.
Would love to know more about exactly why they were so inadequate, but that doesn't change the essential truth that very clearly they were as all was swept away!!
Suggest massive rock armour granite boulders from Norway - that would have held good - not a pretty sight - but there is always a solution to be had if pockets are deep enough 
Extreme storms not an act of god? Eh?
You have failed to define "adequate" - and in doing so completely miss the point I'm making about your misinterpretation of events based upon photos. The defences have been adequate for decades, until these ferocious storms that no one could have predicted other than Mystic Clive.
Over to you for the final word.
Come on folks the damage that was caused by the storm was prediictable the wall has been poorly maintained since privatisation its a bit like not maintaining your home to a high standard eventualy the roof will leak. There has over the years been a lack of investment in the South West Railways and sea defences and our most important asset the beach that has little or no money spent on it. So maybe its time to stop throwing money at keeping birds safe at the warren and building cycle paths that are not used by the lycra brigade. Folk come here in there thousands not to watch birds or cycle but guess what they sit on the beach and enjoy the sea and by the way 92% drive here so what do we need loads of parking and loads of sand its not rocket science. Granite boulders why Norway dont we have quaries that have granite boulders in the UK there's a huge quarie on the M6 at Shap and there must be granite quaries in the South West or are the ones from Norway special in some way.
Thats what i was thinking. I thought I missed a new thread. Please posters keep to subject.
Found Ian Duncan Smith slightly grating this morning after being patronising about the disabled and benefit cuts affecting them to then immediately defend Maria Miller for her actions.
Apparently he had been booked to appear on the show as he was going to announce stronger penalties for benefit cheats. For some reason although he still appeared on the show that announcement wasn't made.
Wonder why?
That bloody idiot needs sectioning , along with a few others. Ive watched Saints and Scroungers and the vast majority of fraudsters on that programme have been foreign nationals and the overpayments have never been recovered. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/10667278/75k-benefit-fraud-GMTV-presenter-walks-free.html not your normal perception of a benefits fraudsters
Isn't it strange that a Tory MP gets caught out so where are Mrs C and Mcjrpc (are they the same person?) and Paul, the true blue people who believe that the tories cannot do anything wrong?
I am 100% certain that if it was another party, they would have been on here all the time shouting for the resignation, but as it's an honest Con, they are conspicuous by their absense, apart from Mrs C who went off subject above, and as the tories were going to clean up parliament expenses, well, they haven't done a very good job and they should get rid of MM.
I agree Carer, its acriminal act and as such she should be treated as such, I recall 3 Labour MPs imprisoned for fiddling expenses, and IDS has not been squeaky clean neither. The tory toffs are the worse the same as some on here who are so understanding of your average working class person needing to claim benefits.
Hahaha Carer!!!! I'm no Conservative! Good grief, what on earth makes you think that, you strange little person you??! So funny!!! That and the fact that you think that I'm Mcjrpc, just because he/she once (kind of) stuck up for me. The first cuckoo of Spring has clearly arrived!
For what it's worth, I think that MM should be sacked for abusing the system so wilfully. She's a typical Tory who's only in it for herself. If you read Private Eye or even only watch Have I Got News For You, you'd know how corrupt this government is.
'fraid someone's interfered with your radar Carer! I had to look back over posts to see why i've rattled your cage and once I'd skimmed through your recent issues with Mrs C and Paul (I hadn't realised quite how hung up on them you are) I can see, months ago, that you didn't like me objecting to racism/bullying/bigotry. Has it been niggling you all this time?
instead of writing up your ledger of spite why not take it down to Dawlish station and note down some train numbers, you clearly need some fresh air!
Private Eye and Have I Got News For You - yes agree, very good sources of info. Such, such, a shame that Spitting Image is no more. And Bremner, Bird and Fortune.
So why no satire on the tv these days? After all it isn't as though scriptwriters are short of topics to write about.............
Tsk Lynne, the self-appointed forum police will be knocking on your door for daring to go off-topic!
Off topic? Dunno about that Mrs C. The thread's about Maria Miller's expense claims. I was noting the lack of satirical tv programmes these days. Don't know about you, but I can deffo see a connection between the two!
@Mrs C - not 'mystic clive' (i should wish, i'd be a very rich man!) please see lynne's thread on 'network rail... deffo...breakwater'.
@leatash - norway granite is best. dawlish defences have used dartmoor granite (by rail) and more laterly norway granite (by sea). as above, please see lynne's thread on 'network rail... deffo...breakwater'.
@Daverc - yes mission creep by me i think, sort of happened from making the point that all the political expenses farce/humbug going on last friday detracted/distracted journalists from focusing on asking dc and his sidekick about what they are going to do to protect the other 4miles of seafront that only has a life expectancy of 4-10years before being breached again. instead they just basked in the glory of the hurculean effort of the orange army and talented civil engineers for personal political electoral gain. a lovely day for all, but a missed opportunity for the sw to nail them down to committment to investing in sea defences and rail resiliance !!
Mr. C. Unt at it again and yet MM can get away with her abuse of the system http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/04/07/benefits-uprating-1-cut-real-terms_n_5103616.html?utm_hp_ref=uk
From the little I understand of these things, it seems the real whopper is the juggling around of which of the two of an MPs 'homes' is their main home. In this case MM has been forced to undeclare the one she sold (did I hear a £million?), i.e. reverse the attempt to categorise it as her main home. Hence, it is now liable to capital gains which she must now pay - this being the real punishment (financially). Politically, probably unelectable next year although Basingstoke probably a safe seat?
The really inexcusable aspect of this, is that I see she has an economics degree and a husband as a solicitor yet pleads 't'was an honest mistake m'lud'. Anyway, plenty of people commute from Basingstoke, what then is the second home needed for? - Get a hotel for the odd necessary late night like the rest of us!!!
I suspect that DC's real blind spot on this is that he is overly desperate (with an eye on the election) not to lose one of his vanishingly few rising women stars in the ministry. Remind me again, how many women cabinet ministers does he have? - One, did I hear?
I believe there are four women in the cabinet:
Theresa May (Home Secretary)
Justine Greening (Sec of State for International Development)
Maria Miller (Sec of State for Culture, Media and Sport)
Theresa Villiers (Sec of State for Northern Ireland)
4/22 Hmm indanger of becoming 3/22.
To be apolitical for a mo, still better than 0/22 from the Lib Dems.
I also note that only 12.3 per cent of the Lib Dem's 57 MPs are female, 16 per cent of Tories and 31 per cent of Labour. What century are we in??
Wish this forum would stick to Dawlish subjects...as for the bickering between the same old lot ....goodnes knows what peiple visiting think.
The forum should be removed ..it does Dawlish no favours at all... go to Facebook and bicker there.
Dawlish subjects only eh Wondering? Have all the threads you've started then been Dawlish subjects only?
https://dawlish.com/thread?groupid=1&userid=4725
(apologies ALLEMS. I appreciate this post and the one from Wondering above is a bit off topic)
Oh dear Lynne you do have too much time on your hands correcting 'everyone and everything'.
I repeat time the forum was ended.
'Everyone and everything' that sounds like a sweeping generalisation to me Wondering.
I was merely pointing out that you have started threads in the past that have nothing specifically to do with Dawlish. Presumably then you won't be doing the same in the future?
And er.......we wouldn't be bickering would we, you and I?
(apologies again ALLAMS)
Nobody forces you to read or engage with this forum wondering, so maybe you could delete it from your pc
According to the BBC:
'The discrepancy springs from the difference between the size of Mrs Miller's mortgage, which was £525,000 when she entered the Commons in 2005, and the £237,500 purchase price of the five-bedroom property.
The commissioner believed she should only have been able to claim expenses for interest payments on the original 1996 mortgage of £215,000 and additional claims were outside the rules.'
Question - When the £525,000 was approved what was that based on?!! And why had it gone up from the original £215,000 on said same house? If I was cynical I would be wondering if it was a case of, '...pile it on the London Home, not our bill, so let's max. it out'. That may well be totally unfair, but if it crosses my mind, I doubt I am the only one...
Relevance to Dawlish - with local cuts often in the headlines, no corner of administration should be beyond electoral scrutinity...
Ref. today's 'Metro, pg.4' The 'South London' home was actually in Wimbledon and sold for £1.2m profit!!
Surely the smart 'chess move' would have been to magnanimously refund the full £46k?, looked good, secured the job and reputation of self and party? Some people just don't 'get it' do they?
Wondering. You have had months of everything Dawlish and now the trains are running folk will revert to politics etc now you have the Air Show/Carnival to look forward to and another bad winter could give you the prospect of further damage to the wall so in not all negative.
For the Government to have come out with any creditbility she should have been sacked. They condoned the fraud and should make her pay back the full amount. I hope she is now subject to police investigation
Carer, you miss my point. I'm sure that Mcjrpc gets it.
Changing subject to Pistorius though Carer? Isn't changing subject a capital offence around here? ;-)
I was using that as an example/comparison if you are that touchy about it, and not going off topic, unlike some on here. Of course, you are always right, aren't you, and everyone else is wrong, apart from your alta ego, Mcjrpc!
Couldn't agree more. Well said that young lady.
Warning, warning, Grammar Police alert.
Oh dear, I spelt something wrong.
MrsC feels so superior now.
No 'now' about it Carer, as I already was superior to you. You stick to not apologising and to shouting (bold and capital letters), and I'll stick to being Mother Superior.
Talking to you Mrs C.................................................................................................
How can you rob the taxpayers of this country resign and then be awarded £17,000 in redundancy it actually beggars belief
Thought this was interesting given the topic of this thread. It's by Michael White of The Guardian.
"• So get rid of Maria Miller and vote Ukip for an end to political hypocrisy and expenses greed? Not exactly. Nigel Farage cheerfully admits to his participation in the Great Euro-Gravy Train robbery to the tune of £2m of expenses since 1999 – far more than Ronnie Biggs managed from his 1963 caper. Some fellow-Kipper MEPs do even better, and all this on top of their £79k salaries in a job they all despise, especially the work bit. One was jailed for fraud (£36k diverted to cars and wine), another for benefit fiddling (£65k). That's an even higher proportion than Labour considering Ukip currently has seven MEPs, after losing six to pub sulks and defections since 2009.
• Not convinced? Then take a look at the online battle raging at Cupwith reservoir, on the moorland outside Huddersfield, between locals and William Legge, aka the 10th Earl of Dartmouth (which makes him Princess Di's stepbrother). A Kipper MEP for South West England, he's also a Yorkshire landowner. At stake is a planning application to build a windfarm (each turbine worth £20k a year in rent to its landlord), which critics say makes Legge a hypocrite since Ukip opposes wind nonsense. Harried by activists and a tenacious blogger called Autonomous Mind (they keep finding Legge's name linked to labyrinthine company structures involved), Legge finally abandoned his Maria Miller posture this week. "The land is owned by a relative," he conceded. But who?"
To say that all politicians are as bad as each other is a wildly sweeping statement, but it would be folly to believe that the Kippers offer anything different to the mainstream parties as far as putting their noses in the trough is concerned. They certainly offer something different as far as racism and bigotry is concerned, but that's another story.