Penguin68

Mr Barber - you might wish to read the subsequent posts of those actually at the match who had noticed no drumming. Edited to say - I wonder what will be put in place to protect the sensitivities of those, particularly shift workers, who bought or leased homes near the old LL Police Station (with noise etc. expectations based on that) and now find there is to be a primary school plunged into their midst, with all the playground noise and disruption that might be expected.

This letter just received from TfL Dear xxxxx, Bus stopping arrangements in the St Giles High Street area have now changed, and will remain in place until at least late 2016. This is due to the London Borough of Camden improvements for pedestrians, cyclists and road users in the Tottenham Court Road area. Bus Route 176 The final stop is now on Great Russell Street, outside the YMCA. This is a permanent change. Yours sincerely, Signature_________________Image not displayed Tony Akers Bus Operations Manager I love the gloss on the word 'improvement' - TfL-speak for **cked.

It is indeed good news, although it's sad that we should be so surprised and pleased that someone who must live or work around us has acted decently. But there couldn't be a better time of year to see goodwill amongst men being evidenced.

Great, lets destroy the history and livlihoods of thousands of London black taxi drivers. And this pernicious street lighting ruined hard-working link-boys. Cab drivers could have banded together to offer a similar service - using different pricing algorithms as their prices are fixed by distance, time and time-of-day - indeed they still could, with the additional perk that they are the only drivers allowed to pick up on street hail. Black cab drivers (who are excellent and well trained) want to operate a monopoly. I'm just pleased that there are Ubers south of the river - and prepared to travel south.

Penguin is usually a reasoned and reasonable commentator that i am truly surprised at his post I am sorry, but any study of history will show that, even in the UK, cultural attitudes to domestic violence have changed dramatically over time. What was once acceptable (if not universally encouraged or lauded) in terms of parental violence towards children is now, and properly, seen as well beyond the pale. Cultural norms in some other societies are still in places where we were years ago. Remember that slavery is still acceptable in some parts of the world today (and sadly is still practiced, behind closed doors, by some visitors to the UK even now). It is a perfectly reasonable philosophical position to be a cultural absolutist and say that where we now are is the only place to be, and that anyone who takes a different view is, and always must be ?wrong? ? but that is just one philosophical position. A multi-culturist approach suggests that there is a moral equivalence between different cultural norms and that to place one culture ?over? another is not correct. I am closer to being a cultural absolutist than not, but I am not so blinkered as to assume that people who take a different philosophical position are inherently evil, even if I think they may be wrong. Which does not excuse or condone behaviour taking place on our streets today which challenges our cultural norms (although in a 100 years time what we accept now on our streets may well be unacceptable to our successors). The person as described doing this needs to be found, and perhaps the child placed into care or otherwise protected, but whether from someone who is bad, is mad (mentally disturbed, i.e. ill), or is different can only be discovered once he is found.

I think I wrote Of course, it is reasonable to expect that in the UK people must follow our cultural norms ? and we should absolutely not endorse or condone actions in the UK undertaken by people who would, in their own cultures, be entitled to act differently, Despise the act, but perhaps don't despise the actor as much as you would someone brought up in our culture who thus should absolutely know better. I am quite happy to say that my culture is better (many would argue against that) - but I won't say that someone who has been brought up in another culture is inherently evil. Some, who are, are evil. Many don't understand why we would think our cultural norms better than theirs.

It must be remembered that what we consider cultural norms now (things were very different 50 years ago) may not be cultural norms even now for other cultures. Of course, it is reasonable to expect that in the UK people must follow our cultural norms ? and we should absolutely not endorse or condone actions in the UK undertaken by people who would, in their own cultures, be entitled to act differently, but neither should we treat them perhaps with the same levels of shock and disgust which we would for people brought up in our culture who act contrary to it. Children, in particular, are treated very differently outside Western European norms (and we must remember that Scandinavians would have looked at what we considered acceptable in child rearing very differently from us, only a few years ago). What the OP has described seems horrid to us now, but an adult hitting a child would not have been seen as abnormal only a comparatively few years ago. When I was at school, corporal punishment was the norm. And any parent had a right to strike their child. Indeed, it was rather encouraged as a way of instilling discipline. ?Spare the rod, spoil the child? was once a genuine axiom (if actually, before even my time). We know better now ? but many cultures would not agree with us.

I was there. Apparently his name was Jeremy something and a large lady called Harriet was trying to push him off. I suspect that this may be a satirical reference to Jeremy Corbyn and Harriet Harman - in which case, and if so, possibly not in the best possible taste.

So - based on the helpful definition that a potager is a medieval herb/ kitchen garden, exactly how does a shop without any obvious garden space become a herb garden? Potager does not mean greengrocer and juice bar. It is an origin word for soup, the ingrediants of which do come from a kitchen garden. You might as well call a butchers a livestock farm.

If it's going to be a potager, why isn't it selling soup?

Surely tough on drumming, but more importantly, tough on the causes of drumming...

Actually, is this a high(er) tech version of 'Knock Down Ginger'?...

You won't get a text if the parcel is being sent to you as a gift. The purchaser might, but the person receiving the gift won't, as Amazon will only have delivery address details. But they should try to deliver first. It doesn't seem quite kosher to me.

sheff wrote on December 11th As it happens I've just seen someone get hit side on in there car attempting to pull out from that junction. This lunchtime. Mr Barber writes on December 12th The good news dramatically were crashes at this junction than the past. Really?

The dangerous Barry/ Underhill junction had ?build-outs? (much at the instigation of Mr Barber) in order to make the junction safer to cross for motorists in Underhill Road. These are ?protected? by road hatchings which should place parked vehicles a little away from the junction to improve visibility. However, and on both sides of Barry, I have noticed very large white vans parked up to the build-out and over the road hatchings ? making pulling out of Underhill to cross (particularly travelling south, away from the Whateley end) very hazardous. By the time you have edged out far enough into the road to see past the white vans, traffic is already on you. I would have thought the parking mavens employed by Southwark could have done something about this, although I note the sweet-heart deals between any and all builders and the council might well exempt them from any requirement to park properly. Actually, having large commercial vehicles parked at junctions obscuring visibility seems almost a requirement locally now ? maybe it?s a new bye-law I?ve missed.

The 26th December is NOT a bank holiday - you never have bank holidays on a Saturday - the bank holiday associated with boxing day (but the 26th is Boxing Day) is on Monday 28th.

Thanks for amending the title - far less worrying

'Hit and run' most frequently refers to personal injury - this is a more worrying headline than needs be. Not nice, but no one was hurt.

Housing is a limited resource, it cannot both meet the needs of people wanting to own their own homes and of those who wish to invest in residential property (for whatever reason, income today or a pension pot for the future). Unlike many European countries we have created home ownership expectations - so owning rather than renting is the aspirant norm. Taxation is an (albeit weak) attempt to try to balance these two demands. The loss of residential property in the centre of town to foreign (often non resident) investors, who are buying as a hedge against their own economies turning sour on them, and often effectively taking these properties out of the residential market (as no one lives in them) has made the situation far worse, particularly as these investors can afford to apply all the tax dodges going. Some prestige blocks in London are now marketed in e.g. Hong Kong before the UK - some are never marketed in the UK. But we should not allow exasperation at this type of behaviour to overflow into animus against ordinary joes who want to build a nest-egg for their own retirements in the UK.

How is it any of their business? How can they then triage if they don't? If you want e.g. to discuss your medication or side effects, then a telephone consult might be sufficient, or a chat with the pharmacist. If you are worried about a lump then there may be a greater urgency than if you are seeking a regular review. They want sufficient information to determine the urgency and nature of your needs. It may be that the practice nurse or pharmacist is actually your better first port of call than a GP, and may be more readily available. GPs having face-to-face appointments with patients who don't need to see them face-to-face, or who could be as effectively seen by another type of practitioner is one of the reasons why there is a shortage of appointments. Nurses and pharmacists are very good at handing on to a GP if there is something outside their competency.

So what happens if you use the equity in a BTL to put as a deposit on a residential? Is that a tax complication? - other than taking out an additional mortgage on the BTL I am not sure how else you would release the equity, other than selling it. Loading up the BTL with new debt simply means that when you come to sell you get less - as the mortgage holder gets back the loan. It will both reduce your tax bill, but also your returns. That made some sense when you could claim back mortgage interest on rental income (you could then leverage your borrowing) - which you still can for now, but increasingly less so. Also I am not sure the extent to which lenders will now lend in this sort of scenario. They probably will, but with higher interest and faster pay-back required.

Buying a reasonable quality ready to bake margherita base from Sainburies or similar, adding your own toppings (I like chorizo with jalapenos or anchovies with capers), drizzling a little olive oil over it, popping it into the oven for 10 minutes or so, and you have a great pizza for a fraction of the cost even of discounted deliveries, and in your own time and with assured ingredients.

In addition any capital works (new bathroom, new k*tchen etc.) you have undertaken - in order to bring it up to standard for letting etc. can be claimed against your capital gain. Redecoration, unless it forms part of a capital work, e.g. new painting of new plasterwork, would in the past be paid for out of the 10% annual wear-and-tear allowance against rental - although this is now being withdrawn. This does mean that you must keep records of work done.

I stand corrected

The focus was on BTL but the proposal is that a 3% extra stamp duty charge will be levied on second homes regardless of what they are used for. I am not sure this is right - by definition a second home is not thus available for third party use. The charge is on new buy-to-let and second homes, not second or additional properties per se. I believe that buying a new property as a ('first') home and subsequently/ consequently letting out your old property would not trigger the higher stamp duty. Nor would any action prior to April next year (2016). However, if you still retain a mortgage on your initial property then the 'right' to claim interest charges against rental revenues will be tapered, with the intent that interest charges will cease to be allowable landlord expenses.