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Or take a look at the iPM Listeners' Opinion Poll. Entries must reach us by midnight Friday 8 May.
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Why are we wasting my tax money on
planning for a third Runway ,when Mr
Cameron our possible next Prime Minister
has stated a Conservative Government
would not support it !?
That would it not be a better Idea to
provide more passenger capacity by
moving Cargo to a new airport central
to rail road , and sea. Or even Stanstead.
Reducing traffic congestion around Heathrow , and the blighton people
homes in the path of the third runway.
Oris this too much of a sensible idea ?
Listeners comments please
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My idea for an opinion poll would be: 'Is it time to consider abandoning the money system altogether?'
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My question would be "Do you agree with the statement that multiculturalism has benefited Britain" and then respondents would be given the choice of answers 'Strongly agree', 'Agree', 'Disagree', 'Strongly Disagree', 'Don't know'.
I'm a student investigating how attitudes to multiculturalism might have been affected by terrorist incidents in the UK in recent years. I'd be very interested to know whether public opinion is now more critical of the concept of multiculturalism or whether people remain broadly supportive of it.
I'd also be interested in following how the opinion poll is conducted as I've been learning about survey methods!
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My question would be
"Should there be a minimum amount per patient spent on research into serious illnesses and should patient groups have a say on how some of that money is spent"
The reason for this question is the complete failure by Government and funding bodies to address the issue of ME/CFS which affects 250,000 people in this country.
The illness is estimated to cost the country about 6.5 billion pounds per year and yet between 2002 and 2008 only 3.2 million pounds were spent by the Medical Research Council on research into this illness. None of the money that was spent has funded the biomedical research into the condition which the patients and charities so desperately want. All research in this area is being funded by charity, mainly from the families of patients who already struggle financially.
Some may be aware that Kay Gilderdale is to be prosecuted for attempted murder over the suicide of her daughter Lynn who had suffered from serious M.E. for 17 years. It is likely that more money will be spent prosecuting Mrs Gilderdale than has been spent on Biomedical research into ME/CFS by the Labour Government during its entire time in office.
While Government may frequently have the wrong priorities, it is also a sad indictment of the British media that they will talk endlessly of irrelevances such as the appearance of Gordon Brown's smile, while ignoring major issues which seriously affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in this country.
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My Opinion Poll Question:
Should the English move towards independence?
Could we (like other European nations)make up some kind of national identity, have a written constitution, a flag with geometry that is easy to draw, reorganize and reform the language.... and also answer pretty much many of the other questions on this blog?
First , i just thought it was about time we rose up and cast off this caledonian yoke :-) but now i think independence would change the relationship with the scots and irish for the better, such that they might even vote for us at Eurovision
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ON 4 December 2008, the European Court of Human Rights held that it was unlawful for the UK authorities (the police) to retain the DNA of anyone who was not charged or who was acquitted.
The press reported that police forces will have to destroy all such DNA.
I'll bet you an old penny that not one DNA record has been destroyed.
There is a topic for you to investigate.
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Once again radio 4 has raised a subject
illustrates that the EU Court of Human
Rights is sticking its nose in ,and in
this case we should ignore it.
I refer to DNA , our most effective
tool in not only catching criminals ;
but also in stopping potential Rapists
and Child abusers. As if there was
a National Data Base of all our DNA
they would have no chance of not
being caught. I just cannot see why
having my DNA on a National Data
Base effects my Human Rights if
every one is on it ; unless I
have criminal intentions.After all
my personal details are already on a
number of Government Data Files.Nobody is saying finger prints
should be removed. That because
a person arrested ;but found not guilty
is more down to the prosecution service
deciding not to press charges. In the
past the fear of a all seeing God,and
confinement to Hell if we sinned kept
many on the straight and narrow. DNA
has a similar effect. That it would be
the most effective tool to track illegal
immigrants and terrorists ,and far more
effective than wasting money on I D
Cards which will hold similar details
about us ; and which no doubt copies
of will be on sale on E-Bay
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In view of the multicutural changing makeup of Britain, My opinion poll question would be "Do you think that the Church of England Bishops should lose their seats in the House of Lords".
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I would like an opinion poll on "Should unelected Regional Councils, such as the East of England Regional Committee, be allowed dictate housing policy when mass immigration is such an issue for the Country"
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"Should the state have a mechanism whereby the people can hold a referendum whether or not to remove from office an unpopular Prime Minister?"
I know that sounds a bit tetchy, but I bet it would get plenty of votes.
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The huge levels of government borrowing highlight the need to cut costs and spending. Instead of recycling tax money in ever decreasing circles between HM Revenue & Customs and government employees, those employees could just receive their net pay. Their pay slips would still show the tax and NI they would have paid.
Therefore, my question is:
"Should government and public sector employees pay tax?"
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Perhaps IPM could discuss why Today and PM have suddenly decided that 2 billion pounds of taxpayers money is "a drop in the ocean" and not worth saving in reference to identity cards. Thirty pounds per tax payer seems a lot to me. Makes me wonder how careful they are with the licence fee?!?
Best Regards
David Lemon
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I think Ive cracked the MP expenses problem.
Currently in London there is being built something called "an Olympic Village" where to quote the website "thousands of athletes and officials will stay during the London 2012 Games. The Olympic Village development will include 11 residential blocks, each made up of five to seven buildings"
Surely when not in use by the heroic athletes of the world this spectacular complex could double as an "MP's Hotel". If this happened there wouldnt be any need for expenses, piano tuners, oven gloves, etc.
Every other man and woman in the country has to stay in an hotel while working away, so why not MP's ?
Oh and as a bunus, the Olympics in 2012 are between 27 July to 12 August... coincidentally the same period as the normal Parliament summer recess. I cant see a problem !!!!
Your thoughts please, and if it proves to be a winner .. we can pass the idea onto Gordon.
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Having trawled all the local shops on a bank holiday Monday to find nicotene gum and ultimately having to travel six miles to the local supermarket to find some, would it not make sense to make it compulsary for any shop with a tobacco licence to offer a range of Nicotene replacement products.
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Yet more concerns about children being allowed to die and suffer at the hands of parents & their partners. Social workers are once again attacked, all these children also had Health Visitors.
Lets now look at the fast diminishing numbers of Health Visitors in this country and their ways of working.
Is corporate working better than geographic working, or are GP attached Health Visitors more effective.
Also the recent marketisation of Primary Health Care, is this putting children at risk. Health Visitor are expected to provide the most basic child health surveillance of children or pass this onto less experienced workers, who are of course a lot cheaper.
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MPs' Expenses - Tax Implications
If the Telegraph did pay 300,000 pounds for the expenses data, the recipient should have registered for and charged VAT. They will also be subject to income tax on the money.
There seems little point in worrying about the loss of data that was going to be published in any case, but it justifies following up to recover six figures worth of tax.
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This little piggy went to market - to exploit it:
Gordon "clean snout" Brown.
Jack "half-a-snout" Straw.
Hazel "three snouts" Blears.
Any more little piggies?
The system will always be rotten until a completely independent body is responsible for setting MPs' pay and expenses, and sets these in line with what typically applies in business for equivalent situations. Meanwhile all our present MPs should be deselected and have to put themselves up for selection again.
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If David Cameron got all his MP's to refund any payments made which
were not in the spirit of the legal regulations of MP expenses.
He would gain the support and confidence of every voter regardless
of their political persuasions , and restore confidence the
Leadership of his party . It would also upset many Lab our
Ministers as they might have to follow suite
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Having problems with my Twitter , had one success , and one for 2 words test
then tried to post a story ; but failed to find the correct button which I pressed on the last 2 times. Giving up Twitter will stick with IPM
my favourite early morning wake up and doze listening.
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Theme 1:
Why are the MPs making profit on the back of the taxpayer? When a MP buys a house from expenses and allowances, afterwards sells the house........ Who is to keep the money? and the profit? I would like to see that all MPs in London or SMPs in Scotland stay/live in some sort of special accomodation; If they need rooms to represent the UK there will be parlementairy rooms available, It doesn't need to be a £2000,000 house in W1.
Theme 2:
When I want to study as an adult in Scotland as a part-time student I get a "grant" of £500.00 When I would be living in England the whole course would be paid. So much for UNITED Kingdom.....
Have fun!
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The E U have failed every years to have its accounts ratified , is it not
about time our EU expense claims were investigated .
I have heard stories of lucrative travel expenses for car journeys ,
when the MP used a cheap flight. The ritual of signing on for cash and
the going home. Are their any information to back these stories up.
If so its our cash. What do other I P M think
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Rudicrus. I agree with the idea that England should move toward independence but slightly concerned about who would run the Country if all the Scots are disallowed.
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Today (14thMay) we hear that 2 Lords are suspended, an MP is expelled from a party and another resigns his post but both keep their seat. Parliament just don't get it. Public outrage regarding expenses is so great that nothing short of sacking these people right now will suffice. The problem is nearly all the members have been at it and it is now quite plain they cannot police themselves. We don't want independent inquiries or a firm of accountants sweep the finer details under the carpet. We need Her Majesty the Queen to dissolve parliament now. Send the flipping MP's back to the constituencies to face the music and be de-selected or re-elected as the local party officals see fit.
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My friends and I feel that holding the 2012 Olympic here in this country is a disasterous idea. I know that the French were relieved not to be hosting the event.
We are already suffering the effects of over immigration into England, and we cant even control our borders and the numbers coming here.
Surely the Olympics will offer the world an open door into our small country, and this will be impossible to police!!
Why does our government always turn a deaf ear to the concerns of the those they claim to represent?????
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If I stole some money from my Company , and when found out give it back and
say sorry it was a mistake , would I escape prosecution
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How many people are there, who, like me are so sick of the culture of bottomless greed, self interest, armchair expert, sheep brained, drink fuelled, football, television and car addicted pet owning, that they have got the hell out and become nomads on the network of canals that run through our once proud nations lands?
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Your winning question 'Do you know your neighbour' you should really be asking why being 'busy' is more important than inviting your neighbour in for a cup of coffee or enquiring if they need anything if they are ill, especially if another neighbour is on their own, elderly etc etc
Wait until someone else's circumstances hits them, such as bereavement, wonder if they would appreciate excuses then.
We live in a selfish society, it is as simple as that
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I think the BBC should play The Dambusters theme in the lead up to every hourly news bulletin. That would lift the nation's spirits out of depression far more effectively than any political or economical fix.
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You had lots of excellent questions in your Opinion Poll Competition and it is appreciated you can only choose one winner.
That said, nobody is ever interested in the fact some people do not have a TV (I know somebody in that situation), because of cost of the TV and then the BBC licence especially.
BBC Radio 4 is excellent, but if you have no visitors, there is no visual contact with the outside world if you are on a fixed income or very ill and living alone. The Licensing Authority could be a great conduit with the BBC and Government to rectify matters for those deserving of help. Please, somebody pick up this point. If a Politician can get money to clean a moat, then surely an elderly or sick person should have their TV licence waived AND a free small flat screen TV, bearing in mind it is alleged another Member of Parliament bought one for £8,000 with tax payers money presumably. How many people in the UK do not have a TV and if they do cannot afford to switch it on because of the licence fee. Never mind climate change footprint with holidays, what holidays for some !!!!
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Lets hope the Speakers resignation is not linked to a promise of inflicting
on the House of Lords
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I am unemployed and in my 50s. These days all my applications for jobs entail me emailing my details to the agent/employer. I have noticed that some agencies/employers have started to ask for a photograph to be attached along with your CV! Are they in fact discriminating by the back door? Why should they need to see how you look, unless those looks are central to fullfilling the job spec eg modelling? Of course, a photo will show whether you are male/female, black/white, presentable/'deviant'(eg coloured hair,tattoos, piercings etc), 'old'/'young', of a religious persuasion(eg Sikh)... Does the legislation have a loophole?
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The Invitation of Nick Grif to the Queen'sGarden Party shows we are a
true Democracy. Personally the trauma and expense of going to London
by train and at the age of 76 having to stand , or a car journey
with the complications 0f how to pay the congestion charge puts me
off of ever going . Indeed as a Hon. Chief Executive of a Youth Organisation with a open invitation to the garden party, I nominated one of my teenage cadets and his family . I think they got much more out of it
than I would have.
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Ed Smith made some valid points about "U turns".
Is it possible that Ms Lumley presented the facts to Mr Brown in such a way that his response was "when the facts change, I change my mind."
Ms Lumley also commented on the democratic process.
Why do the media use the term "U turn", and why is a change of attitude seen as weak?
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Does anyone else feel that Lesley Ash should, in light of her returning to work so soon after taking £5 million from the NHS, return some or all of, what now seems, an over-generous award, especially in light of the considerable difficulty we will all now face in funding public services.
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With the constant news surrounding Israel/Palestinian conflict I found online some interesting facts which the main media or Governments seem to consider and its this. If palestine is a country. When was it founded and by whom.What were its borders. What was its capital and major cities.What constituted the basis of its economy.What form of government.Name one Palestinian leader before Arafat.Was Palestine ever recognised by a country whose existance at that time leaves no room for interpretation. What was the language of the country of palestine. what was the prevalent religion of the country of palestine. what was the name of its currency and finally since there if no such country today what caused its demise and when did it occur.or is it just an invention just to war against Israel?? There is more but youll have to check it out for yourselves if your not afraid of what you might discover
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Hello,
Could the programme have a serious prod at some of the more sanctimonious and morally questionable contention regularly heard concerning possibilities of constitutional reform? It feels that an unwritten agreement exists to dismiss the possibility of true PR without serious consideration, citing the problems in places like Israel where coalitions are a fact of life. Isn't it the point of democracy to represent the views of the public? Shouldn't we strive for a house which mirrors the country and which will have to co-operate in order to prosper? Much less convenient for politicians, but that was never the point... Being Israeli I know the problems with that system well, but they are all avoidable with a bit of forward-planning, making it difficult for one-issue or pressure-group parties to prosper. Another point - recalling MPs seems to becoming an accepted idea. Good. All politicians though, still agree that this power should only be given when it is independently demonstrated that the MP did something really wrong. Why is this then? At a time when politicians claim to want to engage more people in the process, what could be better than making them regularly answerable to their electors? Imagine the scene if the electorate could dismiss MPs following vote on contentious issues such as the invasion of Iraq, or the supresion of freedom of information, not to mention when electoral promises, such as the referendum on the European constitution, are broken.
Looking forward to it,
Uri
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Suggestion for a story:
The controversy in York about the proposal to install barriers in the beautiful historic railway station. And the repercussions of station barriers in general.
What cultures allow open access and a trust system for public transport? Does expecting the best mean that people live up to expectations? (Visit the Vienna underground for an example of safe clean non-barrier transport.)
Is the pressure for barriers another symptom of the greed and incompetence seen in other spheres right now? And example of the cultural poverty of policies that put profit before all other goods?
Do barriers compromise passenger safety if there is an incident that requires the station to be evacuated?
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Breavement by Suicide
Do you think its right to be dismissed from your job because a close member of the family hung them selves. When attending the appeal meeting against their decision the company could not answer my questions and they used my information to doctored their notes
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Perhaps iPM could cover the displacement of 6000 Nepalese Dang people from their homes on the border between Nepal and India by the Indian security forces, SSB. There have been reports of many atrocities. This region gets very little coverage in Western media.
See for example
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2009/others/feature/jun/news_feature02.php
http://newsblaze.com/story/20051210073733nnnn.nb/topstory.html
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Over the next few weeks 16,000 London school children are participating in Rossini's Opera, Cinderella.
Children from across Camden, Tower Hamlets, and Barnet are on stage at the Cochrane and the Unicorn Theatres, with up to 120 performing each day. And as someone off the street last Saturday, with two children under ten, I thought it absolutely fabulous (despite arriving in high dudgeon after an enormous row in the British Museum, where everyone had fallen out with everyone else). Everything about the performance was about enabling the children (and adults) to enjoy what often seems an alienating art form. Brilliant.
But better than all that is the thought of all these children, from across London and from struggling schools, who are getting the opportunity to perform, with professional singers and musicians in a first class production. This is a story. About small charities, who do enormous things, and for the benefit of huge numbers of children.
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http://www.boingboing.net/2009/06/04/heartbroken-cereal-l.html
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Our village primary school (Crail, in the East Neuk of Fife) will, thanks to falling numbers of children, soon reach the point (about 80 or 90 children) where the council can no longer justify a full-time (non-teaching) head teacher. Many other primary schools in this large, and quite rural, county are in the same boat.
This is a problem, because it is very dificult to recruit or retain, good teaching heads -- all the good ones want to be promoted to non-teaching head in a larger school.
Fife council is offering (but not imposing, for which all praise to them) an interesting, and (at least round here) novel solution. They are suggesting that we share a full-time head with another similarly sized school a couple of villages away (Pittenweem). Opinion locally is mixed -- some people are concerned about dilution of village identity, about not having a head on the premises all the time, or about being guinea pigs; others see this as a chance to get a really good head, even if only half the time.
I wonder if there is potential for an iPM feature on this and other innovative ways to keep village schools viable as numbers of children fall. And what about other village institutions -- pubs, post offices, shops?
Steve Linton
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Do do some more on meditation,and look into Sahaja Yoga,which is free and has a great website www.sahaja.org
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