Cameron: "Cuts will change our way of life"

[lifetime fan]

Homelessness 'rose 25% in England over past three years'

 

The number of households declared in need of emergency accommodation in England rose by about 25% over the past three years, new figures suggest.

 

SSentif said some 50,290 families and individuals were classed as homeless in 2011/12, up from 40,020 in 2009/10.

 

But the data company said spending on tackling homelessness had fallen from £213.7m to £199.8m over that period.

 

Ministers said the figures were "narrow and misleading" with homelessness now lower than for 28 of the last 30 years.

 

"We have maintained funding for homelessness grants at 2010-11 levels with £400m over the next four years, and on top of that we announced an additional £70m investment over the last year," a spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said.

 

Continue reading the main story

Priority need groups

Households with dependent children

Pregnant women

Vulnerable people with mental illness or disabilities

Victims of domestic violence

Those who lost their homes in disasters such as flooding

16 or 17-year-olds

18 to 20 year-olds previously in care

Those vulnerable due to time spent in care, custody or the armed foces

Those who have fled their homes due to a threat of violence

Source: Shelter

According to SSentif's figures, 6,120 more households were left homeless in 2011-12 compared to 2009-10.

 

It said the highest percentage increase was in the East of England while the North East was the only region which saw a fall in the number of households declared homeless.

 

SSentif's managing director Judy Aldred said some of the results for specific councils had been "quite shocking".

 

"By analysing the data at council level we were able to highlight some areas that are showing much greater increases than the national average," she said.

 

"In Birmingham, where homelessness increased 25% from 2009-10 to 2010-11, spend dropped from £7.8m to £5.5mn (29%)."

 

Local housing authorities are legally obliged to provide emergency housing for "priority need" groups without a home, such as households with dependent children.

[lifetime fan]

Back-to-work tests expert to step down after saying system needs to be more humane

 

An expert asked to review the system assessing whether the long-term sick and disabled are fit to work is stepping down after warning that the system needs to be made more humane.

 

Photo: PA6:30AM BST 31 Jul 2012

89 Comments

Professor Malcolm Harrington said that he was told a "fresh set of eyes" should look at the issue, after carrying out a third review of the testing system.

 

Prof Harrington's recommendations actually reduced the number of people considered to be fit to work.

 

But the Department of Work and Pensions denied that he had been forced out, saying he had only ever been due to carry out three reviews, the Daily Mail reported.

 

Professor Harrington told the BBC's Panorama programme: "They said to me 'you have been doing this for three years and you have come up with a number of recommendations which we are going to implement.

 

"'We think it would be a good idea if a fresh set of eyes looked at it for the final two years.'"

 

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Inadequate tests 'sending disabled back to work'

30 Jul 2012

Work capability assessments, controversial tests piloted under Labour in 2008, have been rolled out across the country by the Colaition.

 

It means that more than two million people who receive the employment and support allowance - which replaced incapacity benefit - are having their health assessed by Atos, a private contractor.

 

Ministers stress the importance of getting people off benefits and into work, accusing the last Government of abandoning them to a life on benefits.

 

Critics claim the tests are skewed towards forcing people back to work and Professor Harrington, a leading occupational therapist, was called in after results were challenged by thousands of disabled people.

 

He recommended reforms which have cut the number of people judged fit to work - and said that while ministers had accepted them there was still some way to go.

 

He told the BBC: "I think people are being treated more like human beings now, but it is still difficult to go through."

[lifetime fan]

Louise Mensch is off...don't let the door hit your arse on the way out.

[Anubis]

I note the Olympics has been used to good effect as there wasn't much comment on Cameron telling Clegg that Lords reform was being shelved as he couldn't deliver his back benches. Those cracks keep spiderwebbing out across the thin coalition ice.

[lifetime fan]

Todays Hate Mail has a piece about Boris going on a world tour following the olympics to raise his profile in an effort to replace Cameron.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Clegg looked a real prick today, going on about how contracts are made every day in business and when one side breaks it you renegotiate it. No you don't, you make them stick to the contract, you don't say 'oh, right, you're not going to pay what we agreed; oh well, have my house for whatever you like'.

[lifetime fan]

Clegg looked a real prick today, going on about how contracts are made every day in business and when one side breaks it you renegotiate it. No you don't, you make them stick to the contract, you don't say 'oh, right, you're not going to pay what we agreed; oh well, have my house for whatever you like'.

 

 

He'd have first hand experience of this wouldn't he...shitting on public sector workers.

 

Cunt.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Then he and Hunt had the balls to talk about fixing the economy. Yeah, thanks for that. Great job.

[lifetime fan]

In all seriouness what have the libs got out of the coalition? I mean things they had in their manifesto that the tories diametrically opposed.

 

They've rolled over on the NHS, tuition fees, Lords reform, didn't get AV...

[WaltonRed]

if Clegg had a pair he'd pull out and force an election but he wont because even though he's sold out on everything he's still got what he wanted the most, a cushy government job and a platform to waffle shite

[Section_31]

Anyone who's never seen Deep Space Nine should really watch the last two seasons to see how the Tory and Lib Dem relationship will end.

[lifetime fan]

if Clegg had a pair he'd pull out and force an election but he wont because even though he's sold out on everything he's still got what he wanted the most, a cushy government job and a platform to waffle shite

 

 

He won't because he knows his thirst for power has fucked his party and not only will he no longer have a nice car and office, he won't even be leader of a tiny, unimportant, unelectable, irrelevant political party.

[Duff Man]

Sold their soul for fuck all.

[lifetime fan]

Sold their soul for fuck all.

 

 

Pretty much.

[lifetime fan]

Bank cuts growth forecast close to zero

 

Sir Mervyn King said the UK had been affected by the 'storm' in the eurozone.

 

The Bank of England has cut its growth forecast to close to zero from the 0.8% predicted in May, as the double-dip recession intensifies.

 

The quarterly inflation report indicated no growth for 2012 compared with 2% predicted a year ago.

 

The data has fuelled anticipation for fresh stimulus measures, including an interest rate cut to another all-time low from the current 0.5%.

 

Governor Sir Mervyn King said recovery hopes had consistently been dashed.

 

"The big picture is that output's been flat for two years," he told a news conference.

 

He also said that the future was unpredictable, since no-one could predict what would happen in the eurozone crisis, which would have an impact on the UK.

 

"It's a saga that goes on, and on, and on. [The idea] that we have come to the end of it is unrealistic. There's still a long way to go," he said.

 

The UK recession deepened between April and June, with output falling by 0.7%, official data released at the end of July showed.

 

The Office for National Statistics said the bigger-than-expected contraction, which followed a 0.3% drop in the first three months of the year, was largely due to a sharp slowdown in the construction sector.

 

Funding for Lending

 

The Monetary Policy Committee has continued its programme of quantitative easing (QE) in which it pumps fresh money into the banking system to try to boost lending and thus the wider economy.

 

In July, it injected a further £50bn into the system, taking the total value of the Bank's QE programme up to £375bn.

 

The Bank and the Treasury have also launched launched a new scheme to increase lending to households and companies.

 

Under the Funding for Lending initiative, the Bank of England is initially expected to lend about £80bn at below-market rates to banks and building societies.

 

Meanwhile, eurozone speculation is currently focused on Spain, which has already secured a 100bn-euro rescue deal for its banks.

 

It is feared that if Spain's government is cut off by the markets and has to seek a full-blown bailout, Italy may follow not far behind which would exhaust the eurozone's current bailout capacity.

 

That would have far-reaching consequences for Britain, which is the euro area's biggest trading partner.

 

What is your reaction to this announcement? What is your experience of the economy? Do you own a small business? How have you been affected by the recession? You can send us your views and experiences using the form below.

 

 

BBC News - Bank cuts growth forecast close to zero

[VladimirIlyich]

Bank cuts growth forecast close to zero

 

Sir Mervyn King said the UK had been affected by the 'storm' in the eurozone.

 

The Bank of England has cut its growth forecast to close to zero from the 0.8% predicted in May, as the double-dip recession intensifies.

 

The quarterly inflation report indicated no growth for 2012 compared with 2% predicted a year ago.

 

The data has fuelled anticipation for fresh stimulus measures, including an interest rate cut to another all-time low from the current 0.5%.

 

Governor Sir Mervyn King said recovery hopes had consistently been dashed.

 

"The big picture is that output's been flat for two years," he told a news conference.

 

He also said that the future was unpredictable, since no-one could predict what would happen in the eurozone crisis, which would have an impact on the UK.

 

"It's a saga that goes on, and on, and on. [The idea] that we have come to the end of it is unrealistic. There's still a long way to go," he said.

 

The UK recession deepened between April and June, with output falling by 0.7%, official data released at the end of July showed.

 

The Office for National Statistics said the bigger-than-expected contraction, which followed a 0.3% drop in the first three months of the year, was largely due to a sharp slowdown in the construction sector.

 

Funding for Lending

 

The Monetary Policy Committee has continued its programme of quantitative easing (QE) in which it pumps fresh money into the banking system to try to boost lending and thus the wider economy.

 

In July, it injected a further £50bn into the system, taking the total value of the Bank's QE programme up to £375bn.

 

The Bank and the Treasury have also launched launched a new scheme to increase lending to households and companies.

 

Under the Funding for Lending initiative, the Bank of England is initially expected to lend about £80bn at below-market rates to banks and building societies.

 

Meanwhile, eurozone speculation is currently focused on Spain, which has already secured a 100bn-euro rescue deal for its banks.

 

It is feared that if Spain's government is cut off by the markets and has to seek a full-blown bailout, Italy may follow not far behind which would exhaust the eurozone's current bailout capacity.

 

That would have far-reaching consequences for Britain, which is the euro area's biggest trading partner.

 

What is your reaction to this announcement? What is your experience of the economy? Do you own a small business? How have you been affected by the recession? You can send us your views and experiences using the form below.

 

BBC News - Bank cuts growth forecast close to zero

 

So much for reducing public spending.

[JER]

David Cameron defends move to scrap compulsory targets for school sport

The prime minister says he wants to promote competitive sport instead of targets that can become a 'box-ticking exercise'

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Patrick Wintour

guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 8 August 2012 12.33 BST

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David Cameron and chief scout Bear Grylls watch climbers on a wall where youngsters in the National Citizen Service scheme are taking part in team building exercises in Wales. Photograph: Ben Birchall/PA

David Cameron has defended the decision to scrap compulsory targets for the minimum number of hours of physical education in schools, saying they had been a box-ticking exercise that discouraged schools from doing more sport.

 

He also disputed figures obtained by the Guardian showing that the government had given permission for 21 playing fields to be sold by schools in the last two years, and claimed the key to the regeneration of sport in schools was the return of competitive sport: "We need a big cultural change in favour of competitive sports. I think that is what really matters."

 

He also urged more teachers to give up their free time to teach sport as well as their main teaching subject. "The problem has been too many schools not willing to have competitive sport and some teachers not willing to join in and play their part."

 

He said in his conversations with successful athletes that he had been struck by how many had been drawn into sport by a teacher – such as a great geography teacher – who also inspired in them a passion for sport.

 

Cameron denied that his government had scrapped compulsory PE in schools, saying sport was still part of the national curriculum. He added that £1bn was being spent on sport in schools over four years. "If the problem is money it would be solved by money."

 

He was speaking on LBC radio in the wake of the huge Olympics success, and a growing political debate on the role of schools in generating sporting prowess. The mayor of London, Boris Johnson, earlier claimed that the success of the Olympics had been a Conservative lesson in showing the link between effort and achievement, as well as the role of competition.

 

Cameron agreed, saying: "I would like to promote competitive sport – we need more competition, more competitiveness, getting rid of the idea of all-must-have prizes and you cannot have competitive sports days. We need a big cultural change in favour of competitive sports." He also called for more sports clubs to get involved with schools.

 

Cameron was questioned over whether the education department had removed the requirement, introduced by Labour, for two hours of compulsory physical education every week in schools. He said: "Every school has to deliver sport. What the last government did – which is not right – is if you just sit there in Whitehall and set a target but don't actually do anything to help schools to meet it, you are not really solving the problem.

 

"In fact, by just saying, 'I want you to do this number of hours a week', some schools think 'right, as soon as I have met that minimum target, I can tick a box and give up'."

 

The prime minister claimed that the best schools say they do not want targets but want to be challenged to do more.

 

Cameron also disputed recent figures obtained via a freedom of information request by the Guardian, showing 21 playing fields had been sold in the last two years. He said 14 of these schools had closed, four had become amalgamated, and four had sold some surplus marginal grassland, and used the proceeds to improve school facilities. He added: "It was a mistake that playing fields were sold in the past, but they are not being sold any more."

 

Christine Blower, general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: "It's not because of teachers that funding for the school sport partnership has been so drastically reduced. Nor is it down to teachers that playing fields are being sold off, despite election promises.

 

"What we need is the support of government, not the shifting of blame. We know of many teachers who are spending time from their summer break taking children from their schools to the Games."

 

Malcolm Trobe, deputy general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: "The prime minister's criticisms of school sport are ill-informed, unfair and fail to recognise the huge contribution that many teachers make to sports in schools. Many teachers, not just PE staff, willingly give of their time to motivate and coach young people in a wide range of sports.

 

"The prime minister is right to emphasise the need to link clubs with schools but this is the government that two years ago removed the funding for probably the most successful school sports scheme ever. The 450 School Sport Partnerships were a national network of sports colleges that put specialist PE teachers to work with primary school pupils, linked schools with local sports clubs, brought high quality coaches into schools and promoted competitive matches. This scheme was devastated by the huge cut in its funding."

 

Lazy teachers to blame again - nothing to do with scrapping school partnership program. Maybe Cameron should miss a few olympic freebie and give up some of his time. Maybe the teachers would rather 'chilax' and play fruit ninga in their spare time.

[lifetime fan]

BBC News - School field sales fuel fears about school sport

 

 

The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, has approved the sale of more than 20 school sports fields in the past two years, official figures show.

 

The sell-off comes despite the coalition's pledge to protect school playing fields in England.

 

The figures are likely to fuel concerns about school sport.

 

A government spokeswoman said sales could only be approved "if the sports needs of schools and their neighbouring schools can continue to be met".

 

The figures, obtained through a freedom of information request by the Guardian newspaper, revealed that 21 out of 22 requests had been given the green light by the Department for Education (DfE) in the past two years. One more remains under consideration.

 

Sales pitch

Among the pitches reported as being sold off is a 1.6-acre (6,500-sq-m) site at Winchcombe primary in Newbury, Berkshire, which has outline planning permission for housing.

 

Others such as those at Kingsbury High School in north London are reported to be earmarked for lease to a company that operates artificial five-a-side pitches.

 

The DfE said that all applications to tell school playing fields were scrutinised by the independent School Playing Fields Advisory Panel and required the consent of Mr Gove.

 

The criteria for agreeing a sale include ensuring that there are enough remaining playing fields for local schools and communities and that sale proceeds are re-invested preferably in outdoor sport facilities - although plans to invest in indoor facilities or educational facilities are also considered.

 

The DfE later added that of the 21 approved for disposal, 14 were of schools that had closed, four were sites that became surplus when existing schools amalgamated, one was surplus marginal grassland on the school site and the proceeds were invested in the school library and better sports changing facilities.

 

The sports facilities on two more of the playing fields were improved by developers and then leased back for use by the schools and local communities.

 

Two years ago, the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition agreement said the government would "support the creation of an annual Olympic-style schools sport event to encourage competitive sport in schools, and... seek to protect school playing fields".

 

In a statement on Monday, the Department for Education said: "Sale proceeds must be used to improve sports or education facilities and any new sports facilities must be sustainable for at least 10 years."

 

Continue reading the main story

“

Start Quote

Primary schools is where it starts ... catching people young is incredibly important”

End Quote

Jeremy Hunt,

Culture Secretary

 

Also on Monday, the Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt described school sports provision as "patchy" and said that ministers wanted to boost participation in sport on the back of Team GB's Olympic success.

 

Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Mr Hunt said: "Primary schools is where it all starts and catching people young is incredibly important." But he accepted pupils faced "an element of luck", for example in terms of having an inspirational teacher.

 

"At the moment school sport provision is patchy in some places and we need to do what we can to make sure that the very best examples are spread throughout the whole country and this is absolutely going to be a focus over the next few months and one of the things we really want to take away from these Games," he said.

 

Mr Hunt's comments came after the British Olympic Association (BOA) called for a "step change" in sports policy.

 

On Friday Lord Moynihan, chairman of the BOA, called for an urgent overhaul of school sport policy.

 

Lord Moynihan said it was wholly unacceptable that more than 50% of medallists at the Beijing Olympics came from independent schools.

 

Figures from the Department for Education show 213 playing fields were approved for sale between 1999 and April 2010.

[Skidfingers McGonical]

Just another day for you and me in paradise.

[lifetime fan]

Just another day for you and me in paradise.

 

 

Camron can fuck off and live in Switzerland with that other cunt Collins too.

[JER]

Cameron's enthusiasm for sport extends only to daily free jollies to the games. Expect nothing in terms of funding or initiatives to get more people active. He doesn't think the government should do anything for taxpayers, except collect more taxes. And they don't even bother with that for their very best friends.

 

John Major put the current success purely down to lottery funding - as clear an admission that state intervention works as you will find...

[Strontium]

BBC News - School field sales fuel fears about school sport

 

 

The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, has approved the sale of more than 20 school sports fields in the past two years, official figures show.

 

The Department has received 22 applications since May 2010 for the disposal of school playing fields. Approval has been given for 21 applications and one is under consideration.

 

Of the 21 playing fields we approved for disposal 14 were schools that had closed, four were sites that became surplus when existing schools amalgamated. Of the other three:

 

• One was surplus marginal grassland on the school site. Proceeds of the sale were invested in the school library development and sports changing facilities.
  
• One was leased to a company to redevelop and improve a playing field (for the school’s use) that was subject to poor drainage and under used. Funding introduced all-weather playing surfaces comprising of four 5-a-side pitches, two 7-a-side pitches, a full sized football and hockey pitch and a six-court indoor tennis facility. The school also profited from private hire of facilities outside school hours.
  
• One was due to be leased to an Athletics Club to improve sporting provision for the Club and the school, although in this case the project did not go ahead.

 

 

If we were going to spin a real story out of this, though:

 

Figures from the Department for Education show 213 playing fields were approved for sale between 1999 and April 2010.

The figures, obtained through a freedom of information request by the Guardian newspaper, revealed that 21 out of 22 requests had been given the green light by the Department for Education (DfE) in the past two years.

 

21 in 2 years = 10.5 per year

213 in 11 years = 19.36 per year

 

True headline:

 

COALITION HALVES PLAYING FIELD SELL-OFFS

[Stu Monty]

True Headline:

 

ALL MAJOR PARTIES CONTINUE PASSING PUBLIC LAND TO PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS.

[lifetime fan]

If we were going to spin a real story out of this, though:

 

 

 

21 in 2 years = 10.5 per year

213 in 11 years = 19.36 per year

 

True headline:

 

COALITION HALVES PLAYING FIELD SELL-OFFS

 

 

 

Stronts, I think you've accused virtually every single poster on here of tribal politics at one time or another and yet you are the only poster I can't remember ever criticising thier own party.

 

Because Labour done shit doesn't mean the coalition doing slightly less shit is acceptable, it isn't.

[Anubis]

Lousie Mensch? Resigning out of the blue? With her thirst for political battle? She could just have easily have given up her role as Sam Dingle in Emmerdale if she really wanted to spend more time with the kids.

 

Do I detect the faint aroma of scandal?