Valleys Mam

There were 841,000 UK households that were workless in April-June 2010 because all members of the household were sick, injured or disabled, up 68,000 on a year earlier. Just over half of the people in these households are aged 50 to 64, with a further third aged 35 to 49. A further 612,000
workless households had some but not all members sick, injured or disabled, making a total of 1.5 million households containing at least one person aged 16 to 64 where these health-related reasons are at least partly the cause of worklessness. These figures come from an article published by  the Office for National Statistics. Released alongside the annual statistics on workless households , it gives new analysis on the reasons for worklessness.Another major reason for not working is domestic responsibilities. A total of 368,000 households were workless because all members of the household were looking after family or the home. Of these, virtually all – 357,000 – had only one member aged 16 to 64. Most of these individuals – 92 per cent – were women and most, 93 per cent, were lone parents. There were another 482,000 workless households with some but not all members not working for this reason, making 851,000 households in total.There were also 681,000 households that were workless because all members of the household were retired, with a further 490,000 workless households with some members retired, accounting for 1.2 million households in total.The article also looks at housing tenure, which is also a key factor for household worklessness. Almost half, or 49 per cent, of households living in socially rented properties were workless, compared with 24 per cent of those that own their homes outright, 22 per cent of household that rent privately and just 4 per cent of households with a mortgage.“The new analysis in this article adds an extra dimension to the overall totals of workless households which ONS has published for several years”, says statistician Jamie Jenkins. “This is the first time we have looked at the reasons for not working underlying the headline figures.”Among the facts to emerge in the annual statistical bulletin on work and workless among households are:

• The overall number of households containing at least one person aged 16 to 64 with no one in work in April to June 2010 was 3.9 million, up 148,000 households from a year earlier. Of these households, over three-quarters, or 3.0 million, were workless because all individuals within them were inactive, which means they were either not looking for work or were notavailable for it.
• Of the 11.5 million children aged 0 to 15 in households, 1.9 million (16.1 per cent) live in workless households, with most of these in lone parent households. For lone parent households with dependent children, 39.7 per cent are workless compared with 5.4 per cent of couple households with dependent children.
• The number and percentage of children in workless households has fallen from a year earlier, as nearly all of the increase in workless households has been in one-person households, up 162,000, to 1.5 million.
• The number of people aged 16 to 64 living in workless households was 5.4 million, up 26,000 from a year earlier, representing 13.5 per cent of all people aged 16 to 64.

Mam has been away for a few days break , much needed. I came back to find that some one had left me some interesting emails. One was to let me know that even more staff in DET are taking early retirement,some well known faces that have years of experience in business support and in economic development have gone or will be out of the door before the end of the month.That saddens me as their shared intelligence and wisdom goes too.Another was a guide to the new support for business and how it its going to work. Its good to know that someone does.Part of it is almost like a call centre script -"We have to be careful about how we convey these messages to our clients.  Be clear about the new finance offer – DE&T Business Finance. Try to avoid referring to the past grant system and instead focus on the new approach."

"We all must ensure that we send the message to our clients that the Assembly Government is ‘open for business’ and fully committed to supporting new enterprises and business growth – and our specialists can help with advice on start up, expansion, inward investment and exports." WAG is open for business, does this signify something I have missed - there are grants in other departments that business can access,do they come under the same rules.
Then this confuses me because it changes from WAG to saying 
"DE&T is open for business and we want to work with businesses who want to invest in Wales. However finance is only one aspect of business support: our offer to business should be wider and more strategic than finance". Business who want to invest in Wales,what about business already in Wales and isn't Finance Wales already tasked with doing that? More confusion for me here - I thought they were only going to support key sectors, but here they talk about financing new business " business finance that can be recycled to assist waves of new and growing businesses." Ah no they are hedging bets a bit here
"Our approach is responsive to needs and opportunities – high-quality proposals,outside the key sectors, will continue to beconsidered if they represent significantly better value than projects identified within our sector pipelines.We are keen to support projects that promote an increased share of Research and Development, commercialisation of R&D, and collaboration between universities and businesses."I think I will have to spend more time re-reading but I don't see the word SME any where. That is my main concern.I know full well that unless you support the growth of good indigenous business and ensure that happens , you will not get waves of business.Inward investment is a battle ground at present , the competition in recession times is fierce and they are rubbing their hands at our weakened position.Please will someone listen to the people who know the sector, we need joined up strategy and action plans that give opportunities to all types of business that make up the economy in Wales. Cherry picking is fine as long as it is a component of the plan not the plan. The strength of any strategy is the evidence and knowledge it s based on and ask any military leader what is needed most- its local intelligence , knowing the terrain, having intelligence from those who know and understand how to read data and signs. I don't think we are paying enough attention to our ground troops and local experts.

 Mam has been away for a few days break , much needed. I came back to find that some one had left me some interesting emails. One was to let me know that even more staff in DET are taking early retirement,some well known faces that have years of experience in business support and in economic development have gone or will be out of the door before the end of the month.That saddens me as their shared intelligence and wisdom goes too.Another was a guide to the new support for business and how it its going to work. Its good to know that someone does.Part of it is almost like a call centre script -"We have to be careful about how we convey these messages to our clients.  Be clear about the new finance offer – DE&T Business Finance. Try to avoid referring to the past grant system and instead focus on the new approach."

"We all must ensure that we send the message to our clients that the Assembly Government is ‘open for business’ and fully committed to supporting new enterprises and business growth – and our specialists can help with advice on start up, expansion, inward investment and exports." WAG is open for business, does this signify something I have missed - there are grants in other departments that business can access,do they come under the same rules.
Then this confuses me because it changes from WAG to saying 
"DE&T is open for business and we want to work with businesses who want to invest in Wales. However finance is only one aspect of business support: our offer to business should be wider and more strategic than finance". Business who want to invest in Wales,what about business already in Wales and isn't Finance Wales already tasked with doing that? More confusion for me here - I thought they were only going to support key sectors, but here they talk about financing new business " business finance that can be recycled to assist waves of new and growing businesses." Ah no they are hedging bets a bit here
"Our approach is responsive to needs and opportunities – high-quality proposals,outside the key sectors, will continue to beconsidered if they represent significantly better value than projects identified within our sector pipelines.We are keen to support projects that promote an increased share of Research and Development, commercialisation of R&D, and collaboration between universities and businesses."I think I will have to spend more time re-reading but I don't see the word SME any where. That is my main concern.I know full well that unless you support the growth of good indigenous business and ensure that happens , you will not get waves of business. Inward investment is a battle ground at present , the competition in recession times is fierce and they are rubbing their hands at our weakened position.Please will someone listen to the people who know the sector, we need joined up strategy and action plans that give opportunities to all types of business that make up the economy in Wales. Cherry picking is fine as long as it is a component of the plan not the plan. The strength of any strategy is the evidence and knowledge it s based on and ask any military leader what is needed most- its local intelligence , knowing the terrain, having intelligence from those who know and understand how to read data and signs. I don't think we are paying enough attention to our ground troops and local experts.

Well its one way to define ourselves.David Cameron just on Mumsnet said  he loved oatcakes, how boring is that.Nick Clegg apparently likes Rich Tea , but didn't say if that was with or without butter.
Me I love M and S chocolate assorted. 

Whats your favourite - this list apparently gives you an indication of what you are.
What your biscuit says about you
1 Choco Leibniz:
Europhile
2 Jaffa Cake:
Extrovert
3 Chocolate Millionaires:
Lovelorn
4 Digestive:
Frugal
5 Malted Milk Cow Biscuits:
Toddler
6Jammie Dodgers:
Hyperactive
7Dark Chocolate Gingers:
Posh
8Shortbread:
Really Posh
9HobNobs:
Grounded
10Bourbon Creams:
Traditionalist

Basque separatist group Eta 'declares ceasefire' This is a still from the video that the BBC was showing. They are saying they will now pursue independence through peaceful means.  Nationalist politicians in the Basque country welcomed the announcement and called on the Spanish government and the international community to respond positively. No response yet from the Spanish government. The deputy editor of the Basque language newspaper, Gara, which follows the activities of Eta closely, said the Basque people had been hoping for this declaration.Other comments take the line that the statement doesn't go far enough, that it says nothing about lying down arms etc.
Its a first step and to be welcomed;lets hope that it is the first of many to end the bloodshed.

 

Russia’s finance minister has told people to smoke and drink more, explaining that higher consumption would help lift tax revenues for spending on social  services.Could you imagine what would happen if this was said over here.Alexei Kudrin said this as the Russian government announced plans to raise duty on alcohol and cigarettes. The finance minister  made this unbelievable statement.He declared that by smoking a pack, “you are giving more to help solve social problems such as boosting demographics, developing other social services and upholding birth rates”.  "People should understand: Those who drink, those who smoke are doing more to help the state,”
Alcohol and cigarette consumption are extremely high in Russia,  65 per cent of men smoke and the average Russian consumes 18 litres of alcoholic per year, mainly vodka.
Russian duties on cigarettes are low, most brands are 40 roubles (85p) per pack and non filter-tipped much less.

The government in June announced plans to more than double duty over the next three years from 250 roubles (£5.30) per 1,000 filtered cigarettes to 590 roubles (£12.50) in 2013.
That will not go down well,in the late 1980s and early 1990s shortages led to  protests and  Gorbachev had to appeal for emergency outside supplies.
The Russian government has recently imposed a minimum legal price for vodka, put a zero tolerance ban on drink-driving and banned sales of alcohol after 10 pm to try curb the deaths of thousands of Russians every year from abuse of alcohol.

Hat Tip Martin Shipton 
Two high-ranking civil servants have been suspended as a probe continues into how £500,000 of public money came to be used to buy a former hotel for a group headed by a Shaolin monk.
 Amanda Brewer and John Adshead are employed in theDepartment of Economy and Transport. They have been suspended for the past four months. That was kept quiet.
 Ms Brewer is a board member of a not-for-profit company called Powys Fadog Community Development Centre, which hopes to open a health and wellbeing centre in the former River Lodge Hotel.Mr Adshead who is Ms Brewer’s line manager, authorised  £500,000 towards the purchase of the former hotel.
The investigation relates to whether the civil servants had a conflict of interest.
That is a huge amount of money to invest  . Powys Fadog has an option to lease the premises which expires next year. It hopes to run residential courses in all aspects of martial arts training, provide residential Welsh-language courses and use the building as a base.
It will be interesting to hear the result .i wonder who is investigating this.
Apparently Karen Sinclair has been raising concerns over this project and its cost for three years

After the innuendo and various challenges on Guido 's blog this week William Hague denied having had an "improper" relationship with his special adviser, Christopher Myers, who had resigned earlier
He cited "pressure" put on his family by the "untrue and malicious allegations" circulating on the Internet.
 Today David Cameron declared his "100% support" for,Hague;who  also has had the backing of his local constituency party chair
At a press conference this morning Hague refused to be drawn on his decision to appoint Myers, or respond to the suggestion that he had exercised "poor judgment" in sharing a hotel room with his assistant.He said: "Yesterday, I made a very personal statement, which was not an easy thing to do. I am not going to expand on that today."
He was still being pushed on  Myers's eligibility for the job, and why he had given Myers the job despite already having two special advisers.Apparently there had been unease in Downing Street at Hague's judgment in appointing a 25-year-old graduate with little apparent expertise in foreign affairs.
Was the statement the wisest way to respond to Guido's rumours. Somehow I think he would
have been wiser to keep quiet. Hague admitted to "occasionally" sharing hotel rooms with Myers during the election campaign. But he added: "Neither of us would have done so if we had thought that it in any way meant or implied something else. In hindsight, I should have given greater consideration to what might have been made of that, but this is in itself no justification for allegations of this kind.
Is this sort of death by pen the way we want to see society being steered. I certainly don't.
Mr Hagues sexuality is his business.His lack of judgement is another ,and as Foreign secretary a matter that he needs to reflect on.
What about Ffion Hague in all this, is she really the sort of woman who would be a front for her husband if he was gay.I wouldn't have thought so .She is a significant author, businesswoman and broadcaster in her own right, she’s nobody’s second fiddle.
She  was born in Cardiff. Took her first degree, in English Literature, at Jesus College, Oxford and her second (an MPhil) at the University of Wales.Worked as a policy civil servant, a director of a national charity and, since 2000, has been a headhunter specialising in main board appointments and board evaluation.She holds a number of advisory positions in the commercial and not-for-profit sectors and has recently published her first book, The Pain and the Privilege, on the women in Lloyd George's life.
It will be interesting to see if Guido backs off,especially as some big name bloggers have had a go at him over this.Or will it just spur him on.

The first nursery at the House of Commons, opens today and  will be run by the London Early Years Foundation.The 40-place nursery is on the site of the former bar and cafeteria, known as Bellamy's Bar, situated on the first floor at Number 1 Parliament Street, opposite the Palace of Westminster.
The nursery will provide full daycare for the children of MPs, civil servants and other Westminster staff  At the moment, it is not open to children of peers.
LEYF has already received interest from more than 20 parents who are considering registering their children at the setting.
This is all down to the Speaker John Bercow pushing ahead despite much opposition as you can imagine He said ,Parliament is 'behind the times' and needs to be more family-friendly.

Some Tories branded  it a 'reckless waste of taxpayers' money'.Labour,  accused the Tories of being 'anachronistic and gave their backing to the project, with Joan Walley, Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent, North saying that 'workplace nurseries are important', and the Labour MP for West Bromwich, East, Tom Watson, criticising the 'anachronistic and vociferous views of a minority of MPs'. He said, 'There are plenty of places to get a beer in this place, but there is nowhere for our hard-working staff to drop off their kids.'
So now the  mother of all parliaments has room for children,alongside a hairdresser, travel agent, post office and a number of bars and restaurants.
About time too. 

272 university workers in Wales take home six-figure sums, with pay starting around £2,000 a week.
Cardiff University vice-chancellor Dr David Grant was the highest paid in 2009, having earned £275,000 with pension contributions.
//CDATA[if (typeof dartOrd == 'undefined') dartOrd=Math.random()*10000000000000000000;if (typeof tm.zones == 'undefined') {tm.zones = "";}document.write('uk.doubleclick.net/adj/icwales2.5293/' + 'article_mpu;slot=article%5Fmpu;sect=education%2Dnews;templ=page;cat=News;reg=Wales;st=r2;oid=27167668;sz=300x250;gs_cat='+gs_channels+'' + tm.zones + ';tile=4' + ';ord=' + dartOrd + '?"><\/scr' + 'ipt>'); //]]> <a <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">href</span>="http://<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">trinitymirror</span>.grapeshot.co.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">uk</span>/wales/redirect.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">cgi</span>?target=http://ad.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">uk</span>.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">doubleclick</span>.net/jump/icwales2.5293/article_<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">mpu</span>;slot=article%5Fmpu;sect=education%2Dnews;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">templ</span>=page;cat=News;reg=Wales;st=r2;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">oid</span>=27167668;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">sz</span>=300x250;gs_cat=GS_CHANNELS;tile=4;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">ord</span>=765872579?" target="_blank"> <<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">img</span> <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">src</span>="http://<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">trinitymirror</span>.grapeshot.co.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">uk</span>/wales/redirect.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">cgi</span>?target=http://ad.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">uk</span>.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">doubleclick</span>.net/ad/icwales2.5293/article_<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">mpu</span>;slot=article%5Fmpu;sect=education%2Dnews;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">templ</span>=page;cat=News;reg=Wales;st=r2;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">oid</span>=27167668;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">sz</span>=300x250;gs_cat=GS_CHANNELS;tile=4;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">ord</span>=765872579?" width="300" height="250" border="0" alt="article_<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">mpuAdvertisement</span>" /> </a> Richard Davies of Swansea University picked up £228,000 including pension contributions, while Bangor’s outgoing vice-chancellor Merfyn Jones was paid £217,485.
OK so this sounds huge amounts - what do they do for the money ,what is their value added to the sector and the university that pays them.What do they add to GVA?
What qualifies them for the job- that's all relevant
I have no problem with salary levels if the job demands it and the incumbent earns it .
How does this compare to the rest of the UK?
I would like to see the list of the other high earners and how they match up too, this is public sector pay after all.

 Musing on the power of personal healing Several close friends have been through major trauma recently and I am amazed at how they coped.Thinking back on my own times like that ,its the same sort of things that we hook to or look too.
The inner strength, we all have. We find it deep, deep within us. Often at times, when we would least expect to dredge up another barrel of determination and energy. Other times it is within the things we cling to when we are in need of succour and comfort. The things we collect or unwittingly keep beside us. Around us. We feel secure within the blanket of our own surroundings.Our personal favourites. Our warm blankets of love.   What are yours
Some of mine Casseroles, chunky soup and bread, chocolate.Smells are pungent memories, bacon cooking, certain perfume,certain aftershave,horses,wood smoke.Visuals - yellow roses, a tray set with a pot of coffee with white cups and plates. Crackling fires, a seat by the hearth, gazing into the ball of fire of an African sunset  The familiarity of our clutter that anyone else would may be donate to a car boot
but which serves to warm our hearts, open our minds to delicious titbits The books read and kept, are friends that we cannot bear to part with.Life is rich in things that do not cost money and sometimes its good to get grounded in those.

An overseas collector has paid £9,500 for John Lennon's toilet The piece of porcelain was used by the music legend when he lived at Tittenhurst Park, between 1969 and 1972.
John Lennon gave it to builder John Hancock, telling him "to use it as a plant pot" after he installed a new toilet. It was expected to sell for £1,000but went way over that. It had been in the builders garage for 40 years, it was sold by his son.
A whole load of Beatles memorabilia was sold for big money.
I don't see the fascination but maybe time to sort out all those Beatles LPs and EPs !!!

So Oscars 's been nominated for the regional list by the Tories then.
A meeting on Friday endorsed Mohammed  Asghar as a candidate for the Tories' regional list for the
assembly elections.They also endorsed William Graham for the regional list.Wasn't there a heads up that the grass roots didn't want him , looks like HQ had their way then.