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How much per month should they have as disposable income? How do you decide if they have enough disposable income? What outgoings should be factored in to decide as to whether you have enough disposable income?

Define "can afford it".

My summer bike cost more than my car. Worth every single penny. My winter bike was half that. My hard tail was half that.

So you want me to pay extra above that I pay out of direct taxation for the NHS? Why should employers pay? What does it have to do with them?

I certainly wouldn't ban them, however, only a fool doesn't believe that businesses won't abuse them and their should be some regulation of them.

So you want employers to pay if an employee needs surgery?

They are creeping in everywhere. Local FE college is laying off 100 staff, mainly teaching & student support staff, due to a massive funding cut but has "offered" to take some of the teachers back on zero hours contracts. Big new distribution centre opening by J14 of the M6. 75% of the waged jobs are zero hours contracts. It's almost a return to the old hire and fire.

I take little heed in the jobs created figures as I do in the unemployment figures. Both are manipulated for political means by both parties and stopped reflecting the truth a long, long time ago.

Plus the increasing use of zero hours contract which invariably hit the lowest earners making them increasingly reliant on government paid benefits. Government paying for businesses instead of businesses paying a living wage.

That's how I read it as well.

In other words, fu ck you Jack cause I'm OK.

Meh. Why waste money.

Having thought about it, if I had £5k to spend I'd be going Bianchi Oltre XR2, Merckx 525 or Specialized S-Works Tarmac. They are speed geometry as opposed to distance but f**k me, they're great bikes.

Or dividends.

He didn't say that. His general point is that a successful manager will be snapped up regardless of colour/creed/religion and I totally agree.

He's correct though. Football is colour-blind, all it wants is success regardless of race, religion or creed & Barnes failed as a manager because he was poor & has been judged on that, not his skin colour.

I'll not read any of the press until after the election as they've all gone into default election mode which is just bol locks. The only interesting thing, to me, is if The Express openly comes out on the side of UKIP, otherwise it's a case of "as you were" as per every election I can remember.

Voting Socialist? We don't have a mainstream Socialist party in the UK. It died with Blair.

I disagree. I think they were his policies and those of his cabal.

You really do chat sh*t. When unions like the ATL, who have NEVER been on strike ballot their members then you know something is wrong. When your ardent tory workmates call for his resignation then you know that something is wrong. As I've mentioned before I've met him professionally a couple of times as well as members of his team and whilst I've never doubted his sincerity I've never walked away thinking anything but "WTF his he on?" He lived in a world so removed from reality that it was scary.

Strange that I don't know one, what with being one and being married to one. The bloke was a dangerous idiot.

A reference that a father of young daughters gets instantly.

Unsurprisingly I share Aneurin Bevan's view of the tories but I genuinely wouldn't mind a another coalition. Labour need fiscal restraint and I simply don't trust the tories to do anything but axe services and reward the wealthy. A coalition solves those problems IMHO.

If the re-sale element had been in existence previously I would have renewed my STs knowing that I wouldn't dip out cash wise on those matches I couldn't make. Well done SFC.

£5k will buy you a very serious road bike. If you're looking at endurance riding then you'll most likely want a slightly more relaxed geometry. The Bianchi Infinito CV was bike of the year last year and you'll get a top spec'd one for that amount. Canyon sell direct and make great bikes so it will depend as to whether you want the advice of a LBS or buy direct.