07 May 2012 13:14
I’m not a big fan of cover versions of songs, especially when it’s difficult to imagine the original being bettered.For example, possibly the only Beatles tune ever improved upon by another artist in terms of delivery was 'With A Little Help From My Friends'...
posted by PJS with
26 April 2012 08:36
We live in a world where all manner of abbreviations and acronyms, from the familiar to the obscure, surround and occasionally shroud us like trees in a particularly dense forest. There are common, everyday versions, such as B&B, FYI and VIP; media...
posted by PJS with
19 April 2012 12:29
Royal Mail acquired few friends last week when it was suggested that the state-owned body was restricting stamp sales to small retailers in order to “protect revenues”. Apparently, the body still known to many of us as the GPO were concerned there...
posted by PJS with
14 April 2012 17:20
Though we know that for a brief period each year their accurate distribution will suddenly assume an importance not witnessed at any other time, many of us leave buying (and sending) Christmas cards until the very last possible minute. This has nothing...
posted by PJS with
11 April 2012 15:56
Though the dust may have had time to settle in the aftermath of last month's Budget, the longer-term repercussions of the Chancellor’s announcements continue to reverberate. We already know that millions of existing pensioners will be affected by an unforeseen...
posted by PJS with
21 September 2011 12:33
I've always thought political party conferences somewhat strange affairs, only for the die-hard supporters.
But sometimes, through all the rhetoric and bluster, comes some news that will potentially affect us all. That was the case with the Pensions...
posted by Rob Clarke with
13 May 2011 12:26
Knowing what people earn is part of my day job, but every now and then I see something that makes my jaw hit the ground at some speed.
Generally, I think there's a lot of hogwash spoken about how much people earn and a great deal of green-eyed...
posted by Rob Clarke with
05 April 2011 12:07
For too many years politicians of every hue have shied away from making fundamental changes to the state pension. They have tinkered around the edges but never tackled the biggest issues – the confusion around how much someone is due to receive and the...
posted by Rob Clarke with
11 March 2011 13:22
If you’ve had the misfortune to read my blog you’ll be aware that there is a real issue around public sector pensions.
This was brought to fore yesterday with Lord Hutton – a former Labour Works and Pensions Secretary in the last Labour government, let’s...
posted by Rob Clarke with
01 March 2011 10:49
The European Court of Justice has potentially thrown a huge spanner into the insurance world. Now this is not some mad xenophobic anti-European rant but what is it with the Belgians?
In 1995 the whole face of football was changed irreparably...
posted by Rob Clarke with
11 February 2011 08:17
I read an interesting article this morning around the issue of public sector pensions and how there is a real danger of a huge gap opening up between the haves and the have-nots. This is especially true of the differences in pensions that employees with...
posted by Rob Clarke with
01 February 2011 13:26
Last week's massive fine levied on Barclays was shortly followed by the same bank closing down its in-branch advice service for all but the very wealthy. So despite my feelings towards the 'advice' given by banks, it is a great shame for the individual...
posted by Rob Clarke with
14 January 2011 12:08
This week has seen some interesting news on age. Earlier in the week the BBC presenter Miriam O'Reilly won her case against the BBC for age discrimination. Then yesterday there was the landmark announcement that the Default Retirement Age (DRA) will be...
posted by Rob Clarke with
10 December 2010 08:49
Yesterday's political focus centered on tuition fees while the news bulletins were full of images of the violence accompanying the student protests. But earlier in the day a couple of announcements were made by the Government that actually affects far...
posted by Rob Clarke with
07 December 2010 14:30
Boiler rooms may seem a great place to be in this cold weather but that's not the case.
You may or may not be aware that a Boiler Room is a term used to describe share fraudsters who contact people out of the blue offering non-tradable, overpriced and...
posted by Rob Clarke with
