moonraker

You still havn't understood me, I believe our sucess will be greater in than out, not that we wouldnt have suceess outside the EU.

What a load of tosh, you will be playing the patriotic card next. Why is that those against the EU always question / accuse those who are pro EU of having no faith , being unpatriotic, blah blah blah. Such simplistic accusations only illustrate the inanity of the anti argument and the detachment the anti EU rabble have from the reality of a globalised world that is sans British Empire.

Oh did the Commission President deliver the Queens Speech, thought not.. My faith in the UK and supporting our continued membership are not mutually exclusive. Whilst we may be OK without the EU I firmly believe we are better off in than out and that the EU is better with us in it.

I have great faith in the UK, and your rather naive statement about control from Brussels only demonstrates your lack of knowledge and understanding of the EU, come back whan the Commision President delivers the Queens Speech.

Not quite that simple tough, many Texans are Texans first and Americans second, there are many groups in the US who do not consider themselves Americans first. The cultural divides in the US are as broad and wide as Europe’s, Californians, Texans, Alaskans, New Englander, have very different outlooks. It works precisely because it is Federal not in spite of it. The Scots are Scots First, Europeans second and British third yet they are part of the UK and many who oppose the EU want them to stay within the UK.

I have great faith in the the UK and I did not say our prosperity is entirely linked to 'Brussels'. My point is that the claims that we can independently negotiate trade deals that are at least as beneficial as the EU is naive. My view is the opposite to your accusation, it is the anti EU position that is narrow and constrained. Lord D makes the point that the EU is not Europe, thank you I am so pleased you have cleared up my lifelong confusion have a gold star.

Those who are against the EU seem to me to be backward looking, believing that a UK on its own can have a degree of influence far in excess of our true position in the world. Whilst there are many issues with the EU it is still vital to our future. Anti Europeans can deny all they like that foreign investment won't migrate to the rest of Europe, the truth is it will, and we will all suffer.

We have got to stay in, there may be issues with the EU but they are nothing compared to what life would be like for the UK outside the EU.

"I've read Mandela." Didnt learn much from it, it would seem.

It called reconciliation, both he and Adams are symbols for the opposing protagonists and the fact that we as a society need to move on, to forgive (not forget). You need to read Nelson Mandella, his ability to forgive to move on and build something worthwhile should be an example and inspiration to all.

Dosnt say he believes in it just that he donated to what he as a private individual believes is a good cause Criminon UK a registered charity concerned with prisoner rehabilitaion. .

I agree a carbon copy of Blair is not what is required, but acceptance by the Labour inner circle that political parties exist to represent the widest possible views of the electorate not would be a good starting point. I also agree that with our current FPTP system then we we are a two party state. I am always amused when I listen to tories and labour defending the indefesable FPTP, its the one thing they agree on beacuse it ensures only they can attain power.

The Labour Party is in a very bad place. The left is fragmented, Greens, Nationalist (SNP and Plaid) the LD's all attract left of centre voters. Blair was the one leader who has been able to counter the other left of centre parties. He did this by relegating the role of the unions and offering 'middle class' voters a voice. Miliband unpicked all of this and got what he deserved at the poles. I cannot see a natural successor to Blair and therefore the left will remain fragmented, allowing the Tories to continue without an effective challenge, a depressing thought. To all you LD bashers just wait and see what you get from an unfettered tory government, you might then just appreciate the bravery of the LD’s. Clegg may have made some mistakes but history will not be as critical as the electorate have been. We now face a generation of rule by the greedy, selfish and self centred, Tories, whose right wing is full of wannabee Kippers who wont jump ship for fear of loosing power. Cameron will do well to remind his smug party that they are only supported by 25% of the electorate, hardly a resounding mandate.

To add a bit of colour to my previous post. Dad (now 92) Brother and Myself Saints fans, travelled up from Chippenham by Train with a Party 7 (Ugh) each for company. We were with two friends, one a Palarse supporter the other the father of Darren Eddy late of Leicester and Norwich. Party 7's fully drained we made our way to the Fulham Road and a Pub full of Saints Fans. On entering the ground we squeezed into a spot in the middle of the shed and awaited the spectacle to come, the arrival of Malcolm Allison resplendent in silly hat prompted some friendly banter. Before the game started the know infamous rivers of p*ss started rolling down the terraces. The game tough not a classic was great to witness, Saints in control and winning a place in the FA Cup Final. Our journey home flew by and we were soon in our village local recounting the day and adding to the truth!

Me, my brother and dad, with couple of non Saints freinds, realy great day. Sadly service to Queen and Country ment I missed the final.

Whilst I have enjoyed Top Gear Clarkson in particular has become to predicatble and to repetitive. His actions are as others have said unnaceptable and amount to assult at the least, instant dismissal for the vast majority of people. Clarksons star will fade after this, he is a one trick pony.

Had to check your Nurses Pay quote, nurses pay is banded, mimimum for SRN being £21.5k, this rises all the way to a maximum of £98,453 yes thats right £98 k or 20k more than an MP! They are aslo entiltled to up to £6700 london waiting. Equally you £22.8k for ambulance staff is pretty arbitary many earn more and some earn less, and as to the Civil Servant figure where did that come from?

Don’t know where you get some of your figures from they don’t reflect what my family and friends get from the public sector and the ONS doesn’t agree either. Public sector workers are paid on average 14.5% more than those in the private sector, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In 2013, average hourly earnings in the public sector were £16.28 an hour, compared to the average £14.16 among private employees. But the difference was skewed because more public sector jobs require high levels of skill and university degrees. I know this gap may have narrowed due to the very unfair pay freeze but you are (on average) still ahead. I recently had a good member of staff leave to do the same job in the Civil Service because she would get a 40% pay rise, and yes we may have been under paying her. Additionally the public sector enjoy cheaper but better pension provision than the vast majority of private sector workers. Also belittling Batman by calling him a dishwasher just serves to undermine your argument. If memory serves he is a Weapons Technician and to be on £50k will have spent at least 12 years training, gaining experience and qualifying by passing exams and interview boards. On top of that he spends extended period away from home and out of touch with loved ones, cant pop out for a pint or a meal and in the main does what is asked of him all without the right to strike. I do not know which agency you work for but I am sorry to say you should have chosen a different career if you don’t like the reward’s it provides. Finally reducing the number of MP’s by 50 or so and increasing base salaries by 25% would cost approximately £12m, raising 1.5million public sector workers pay by the same amount would cost £10.5 billion.

I do agree with much you say, the rise and rise of the party line an the whips office has a lot to answer for and the deceitfulness and double standards of a far to big minority needs addressing. I would cut the commons to 400 with only 2/3 from political parties the rest must be independent. Far to much policy is based on party dogma and vested interests, not what is best for the country at large.

I believe that if we paid a more realistic salary for the job they do we would get a better class of MP. Richard Branson is irrelevant. The sort of salary I am talking about is what an experienced private sector professional would expect, the doctor analogy above works for me. My Wife one son, one daughter and brother work in the Public Sector, I did for 20 years. I only partly recognise your comments and it very much depends on which part of the public sector you are alluding to, Health and Educational staff are in my opinion undervalued especially if you are not a doctor or teacher. But it is undeniable there are many areas in the public sector that are not staffed by heroes. Hard done by is not a term I would use, we get the politicians we deserve not because we vote for them but because we don’t value them.

Whether you like it or not the current pay for MP’s is to low. Once upon a time 99% of MP’s had a private income, either from their other job, family or inheritance and investments. Parliaments hours were scheduled to suit the legal profession. Those days are long gone but todays MP’s have to put up with working conditions that most of us would run a mile from; unscheduled late working, the majority of their time for the majority away from family, constituents who expect them to be 24/7/365 at their beck and call, constant sniping by the media, their colleagues in opposition and wannabee politicians representing narrow interest groups. Many MP’s could and a good proportion do earn far more from other employment. And here in lies the problem most MP’s would if not MP’s be commanding a higher salary than an MP gets without most of the crap that comes with it. So what we get are to many politicians who want the power and kudos of being an MP but are not prepared to sacrifice the income to which they are accustomed or to which they aspire. On the point of presence in HP this is a red hearing an MP’s first duty is to their constituents. The commons is an over used meeting chamber where they make to many unnecessary laws and facilitate inane debates that are judged on the quality of insult and comedy not reasoned and informed debating. The best work of MP’s goes on in committee, constituency surgeries and getting out and about talking to people. There are many very talented (and honest) people who might otherwise become MP’s if it were not for the lack of pay. If we paid our politicians properly I really believe our politics would improve both in conduct and in outcomes.

The Royal Navy has a great deal of significance in todays very uncertain world. Being an Island we do not have recourse to overland supply over 90% of our imports and export travel by sea, that is our economic lifeline and requires secure seas, piracy has a direct impact on our economy. We still have a number of overseas territories to which we have a legal duty for defence and security, these territories are either to small to be effective independent states and or want to remain with the British family. Add to these our international commitments via NATO, the UN and other less high profile agreements and the need to patrol our home waters a well funded, professionally manned, highly capable Royal Navy is as relevant today as it has always been. Currently we are asking far more of it than we are prepared to fund, and the fact that the men and women of the RN are delivering the outputs they are with insufficient and inadequate ships and to little manpower all whilst being undermined by politicians (all of them) is frankly a national disgrace.

This, all those saying we should have done this or that need to recognise that their is no magic strker tree. We should only bring in players if the ones avaible are good enough to improve the squad not just to fill a hole.

Goes to show that the vast majority of us fans don't really know anything about running a football club. Thats the nature of being a fan and a very strong argument against fan owned clubs.

12 is fine took my 6 yr old grandson in Hospitality for the Ipswich game, he loved it.