British Telecom announces another 15,000 job cuts – about 10% of its total remaining UK workforce. It seems likely that most of the losses will be from so-called ‘agency workers’ and consultants. These people tend to be from small businesses or, to be self-employed. The lack of employment legislation protecting their interests means they are often easier to dispose of too.
UPDATED: Journalist Dan Roberts of The Guardian adds some context to BTs problems here.
The fury about the MPs expenses claims which were obtained and published by The Daily Telegraph has been on its way ever since the banking collapse of last autumn. Why? Because when economic systems collapse, political systems tend to follow them down. What this set of stories has revealed is that many MPs tried very hard to keep up with the material possessions of the peer group they aspired to, which seems to have been the bankers. Perhaps, in turn, the financiers were trying to keep up with the oligarchs coming out of Russia. Well, whatever, greed got hold of them all.
As to where this story ends, the likelihood is that traditional human habits will win again – and the system will be blamed rather than the behaviour which was so easily condoned inside it. It would be good to see the House of Parliament give up its right to set its own wages, expenses and allowances, after all, it’s not their money.
UPDATED:12.30pm. Jon Snow at Channel 4 News offers an insight into Westminster world and asks a question.
…and your right to know what your elected representatives are doing.
UPDATED: 14th May 2009. Journalist John Slattery has a report on Heather and MP Alan Keen here.
Stephanie Flanders of the Beeb has a piece on today’s news that the Bank Of England will be printing or inventing an extra £50bn of quantitatively eased cash into the national economy over this summer. This amount is over and above the £75bn of queasing already agreed. The Wall Street Journal Europe have the facts here.
The value of the pound fell sharply as a result of this announcement. Falls in value of sterling tends to make goods in the shop more expensive for the UK because we import so much stuff.
The smiling cartoon of Gordon Brown follows his excellent recent You Tube performance(s). This seems rather sad, after capturing an object you have spent your whole adult life pursuing, it must be very difficult to discover that it is not something you are greatly skilled at. And then your so-called mates start criticising your smile…
Perhaps his last hope is in being so dull and worthy that Cameron looks even more dangerously flightly and insubstantial than he is. I expect Mr Brown will think it’s worth a go.
There are many grounds on which the ever-changing plan(s) for UK National Identity Cards can be challenged, and you can read about them at campaign group No2ID. The Home Office puts the other side of the case here.
One major concern for campaigners has been the constantly changing scope of the project over the past five years. This is typical of large scale Government IT projects and this habit has in the past led to a series of very expensive failures to implement technology successfully. There’s a story here from 2002 which outlines some of the reasons that large technology projects fail, many of these reasons still apply to the enormous ID card scheme.
UPDATED at 10.45am 6th May
Small parts of digital Manchester appear to be taking an instant poll on whether this is a good idea or not. The NO2ID response to this morning’s announcement is available here. Simon Davies from the London School of Economics who is one of the most vocal anti ID advocates has a column in The Guardian here too.
IT and Computing is to become more central to the national curriculum and the education of children in the UK.
What’s left of the internal cohesion in the Labour party appears to be breaking down. The Communities Secretary Hazel Blears has publicly criticised a failure to communicate effectively with the electorate and is now insisting this isn’t a criticism of the leadership, of which she is a part. Playing with the drawing which is made from live footage and the odd still photograph.
Printed journalism has been overtaken by something bigger, faster, more powerful and cheaper to make. But, as wise people have said, the journalism is the important bit, the final form it comes in, isn’t. What this all means for the world of the paid content provider we can only guess although it may be a little like this.
This was made for the news provision service of Computing.
Remaining British troops to withdraw from Basra airport six years* after the illegal invasion of Iraq and following civil war(s).
* Video.
