Better get an allotment or a second hand refrigerated truck?

Quite. Hope you put that into practice when having a heart bypass, etc. Find a nice amateur to do the surgery.

When I bought my house in the SE for an affordable sum, Thatcher hadn't started selling off council houses and banning their replacment.

Go figure, as they say.

I didn't say that. You're the socialist who *should* have that foremost in your mind.

No. I'm perfectly happy with myself, thanks.

It's just like a driver running away from the scene of an accident (they have just caused). ;-(

Cheers, T i m

IIUC (ahem) in part deposits and income from investments (loans and capital), and increasingly from the Bank of England at very low interest rates.

(I've never been able to find the actual figures of the source bank assets - but I haven't looked that hard)

I don't think it'd be exaggerating to suggest that they're under some pressure to lend far more than they do by (effectively) the UK government. To 'stimulate growth' . . .

What are you saying the EU allows this.

I notuced how aldis versions of bisto and oxo look almost identical to the branded version just in bigger boxes and cheaper, but as I have to look at the ingredints I noticed that Bisto is vegitarian and there was no indicati on whether or not the adli versions were.

Yes the ECJ ruled on this. If a company hires workers in a low wage EU country then sends them to work in a higher wage EU company the workers can be paid at the lower level. Contrary to what remoaners would have us belief the EU has done very little on workers rights. These have generally come from collective bargaining agreements in the UK.

Pray tell, bert. Are you in favour of much better worker's rights in the UK?

Higher minimum wage, etc? Restriction on maximum hours? Proper breaks and holidays, etc? Better employment protection?

The sort of things unions were very good at negotiating.

Or are you just one of those who uses any argument that suits you at the time?

How will the unions negiotate for those workers that are illegal in the cou ntry ? And even if they are legal why haven't the unions insisted that frui t pickers get the minimum wage ? Why hasn't the EU insisted on such things. There;'s reasons why even EU workers won't work on some UK farms and that is down to poor pay and bad conditions. Get riod of those facts and peole w ill pick fruiot but as it;s a seasonal thing and you won;t get dole money e ven after the picking has finished because you have left the job and can't claim for X number of weeks 6 or 8 last time I heard.

Two of my friend used to go to hollend to do rose buddy why becaus ethey we re well paid good conditions even if it was hard work and the locals didn;t want to do it partly because they already had jobs for all year round rath e rthan a frew months once a year.

Anyone don't fruit picking here ? I haven't

The ECJ ruled on public sector tenders - not fruit pickers. Unless you have evidence otherwise . . .

Pretty much untrue - depending on what you mean by 'very little', I suppose. And a good deal of bargaining is underpinned by the EU and (particularly) the ECJ.

Smart money is on the UK becoming a low tax gig economy post Brexit.

They should be paid the minimum wage. But fruit picking is complicated. Sometimes the worker doesn't want to be 'in the system', and pay can include any number of things like food, travel and housing.

They're unlikely to be unionised even though the subs are usually pretty much free. Again, complicated.

Well that means you paid peanuts for it and thanks to Mrs T and the people who took out 125% liar loans, all the people earning £++++ in the city, all the influx of hot money from abroad, you have made a tax-free profit which must run to 6 digits.

When Mrs T started selling council houses, there were too many of them, and Londons population was in steady decline. There were no places in the country where a housing authority did not have immediately available properties.

You can thank the massive turn-around in Londons decline since 1984 and the huge increase in population since 1997 for the so-called shortage.

I think you'll find that the 'money' was simply created electronically, it's something to do with 'tier 1' capital and the like.

Nothern rocks entire business model involved borrowing (long) wholesale and lending (short) retail. This was bound to end in tears anyway.

And unlike the more recent past, lenders discovered new ways of managing their residential mortagage loan book, by parcelling them up into packages of loans that were then sold, (and resold many times over) as tradeable 'securities'.

But it wasn't the empty ones that were sold. They were only sold to tenants. And it applied throughout the country - not just London

Same happens in UK.

country ? And even if they are legal why haven't the unions insisted that fruit pickers get the minimum wage ?

Why just the minimum wage ? If it;s ahrd or back breaking work in the hot sun should they recive the sa me as tube drivers havign to work all day in the dark. Or pick any other workers.

Is it ?

Yes and normally does that;s why someone with a home might not see the gain s of a 2nd home while worling unlike MPs who seem to like having a second h ome.

So not as simple as joe blogs beign tool lazy to work then.

would you work for £2.50 an our ?

You want unions to insist on things for those who aren't their members?