Virgin Boss Dies Laughing

According to British Airways their new home at Terminal 5 is set to transform your travel experience.

According to the Daily Mash it also has caused the death of Richard Branson.

Meanwhile Heathrow has hailed the catastrophic opening of its new terminal five as an 80% improvement on a normal day at terminals one, two, three and four.

British Airways passengers had to wait only five hours to collect their luggage, compared to the usual 12, and only 300,000 pieces of luggage went missing over the day.Airport boss Bill McKay said an

'outstanding' first 24 hours had been marred only by a small riot and a handful of isolated knife fights.

He added: "It did turn a bit nasty when someone pointed out that the terminal was just a big shed that wasn't actually connected to any departure gates. Thank God for Alsatians, eh?"

The Daily Mash - RICHARD BRANSON DIES LAUGHING

Wendy says Soul-searching is Over

A couple of days ago I heard Wendy on the radio and wondered if she had had elocution lessons as her voice has considerably toned down.

Now we hear that, according to Wendy, Labour's soul searching in Scotland is over! Not if the image shown here is anything to go by.

One wonderful quote from the interview when asked How much support and help do you get from Gordon Brown?

Wendy Replies:

I talk to the Prime Minister when I have to. I suspect the last time I spoke to him was a month ago. It's not a daily conversation.

Seems to me she is trying to distance herself from him if at all possible.


Wendy Alexander interview: 'Soul-searching is over and we're on way back' - Scotsman.com News

Rousing the sulking, apathetic hordes

According to the veritable Polly Toynbee rousing the sulking and apathetic hordes who don't have an interest in Politics or want to vote is easy. Just give them the ability to vote for those who won't win in a straight forward first past the post election.

According to Polly

An alternative vote (AV), ranking candidates in 1,2,3 order, allows for a second preference to be redistributed from the lowest-scoring candidate's share until one candidate has more than 50% of the vote. It's hardly revolutionary, but it makes it worthwhile to vote for a smaller party as first choice, with a second-choice backstop to keep out whichever party you hate most: Greens and others can register their true support. It is such a small change it needs no referendum and should be done right now for the next election.

Notice how she says that the second vote can be used to keep out the party you hate most. Now I can't imagine that her desire for AV, as she calls its, is anything to do with the fact that the Conservatives now have a regular double digit lead in the polls.

Polly Toynbee: One small electoral change could rouse the sulking, apathetic hordes | Comment is free | The Guardian

Nimrod replacement under threat

How can we in this time of conflicts in both Iraq and Afghanistan continue to misrun and underfund projects in such a way that the lives of members of the armed forces are jeopardised every time they go out on Operations.

I have blogged about the problems with the Nimrods on a number of previous occasions. We cannot afford for this aircraft to be in active service for much longer without the likelihood of further casualties

The SNP MP for Moray, Angus Robertson said

"There are many legitimate questions about the increasing cost and growing delays in the Nimrod replacement programme.

"We cannot, however, lose sight of the safety dimension and the need to replace the ageing current Nimrod fleet. The tragic loss of the Nimrod in Afghanistan underlines the need for a replacement system as a priority.

"If the MRA4 is no longer the appropriate platform then which should it be, how long will it take to introduce and at what cost?"

Whatever decision is made it must try and ensure the safety of our Service Personnel on active duty.


BBC NEWS | Scotland | North East/N Isles | Nimrod replacement under threat

Ministers lay blame for Aberdeen’s cash woes on Liberal Democrats

Happily these days we are no longer living in Aberdeen as the council struggles to deal with a budget that is causing closure and cuts in a number of services, I must say I would tend to agree with the SNP who have said

...blame for the financial troubles at Aberdeen City Council was placed on the former Liberal Democrat administration yesterday.

This prompted claims that the accusation by SNP ministers will split the current Liberal Democrat-SNP coalition leading the city.

Spending watchdog, the Accounts Commission, has called a public meeting to investigate the council’s “precarious” financial position. It follows an Audit Scotland report that criticised staff absence rates, and the failure to introduce planned savings.

The furore over the council’s £27million budget cuts flared up in the Scottish Parliament yesterday.

The SNP in Aberdeen have inherited a precarious position from the Lib Dem's and now have to tighten the strings to get back to a decent financial position. Tough decisions have had to be made which the Lib Dem's preferred to brush under the carpet.


Press & Journal - Home Page - Ministers lay blame for Aberdeen’s cash woes on Liberal Democrats