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MannyGee

Listed below are comments made by MannyGee between Friday, 20th June 2008 and Thursday, 2nd October 2008.

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Calling time 12:15pm on 02 Oct 2008 Since the object is to stop teenagers drinking in the streets, an alternative to banning off sales to under 21's would be to make it an offence for someone under the age of 21 to be caught in the street with an opened bottle or can of alcohol.
This way if someone was going to a party for example, they would be entitled to carry with them an unopened bottle of wine or a 6 pack but any bottles which had been opened could be classed as an indication that they were drinking in the street.

More of an effort could also be made to clamp down on the sale of alcohol to under 18's (I suspect that it's the under 18's who are causing the problem rather than the 18-21 year olds).
Catching a few offending retailers and removing there licence to sell alcohol should serve as a deterrent for others.
The lipstick strategy 2:34pm on 22 Sep 2008 "I also admire the fact that she is a conviction politician... I am a conviction politician like her."

Gordon Brown - September 2007
And now, time for the news 12:13pm on 09 Sep 2008 I think the BBC needs to make the national news a bit more national.
At present, there is very little reported as to what is going on in the parliaments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, for this you have to wait for the local news.
At the same time, the national news will report on things that are specific to England or England/Wales such as health and education.

So the national news is really the English national news, not the British national news.

Much of what happens in Holyrood would in fact be of interest to the rest of the UK, particularly since the SNP came into power because the possibility of Scottish Independence effects everyone in the UK.

Likewise, I have no idea what is happening in Wales or Northern Ireland because very little is reported on the national news.
Maybe there are things of interest happening in those countries, I wouldn't know though because the majority of what happens in those parliaments is only broadcast within those countries and not to the whole of the UK.

Many of the countries in the EU have a slot in the news of what is happening in the EU, we can't even share the knowledge of what is happing in the rest of the UK.
Bills, bills, bills 12:59pm on 04 Sep 2008 #140

My example was in fact how it works in Luxembourg, not Scotland.

As regards poor areas in Scotland, this is where the 400m block grant comes in. It is currently there to compensate for the low earners. If the grant is still there then the poor areas receive a boost to their funding to make up for the shortfall in LIT
Bills, bills, bills 12:51pm on 04 Sep 2008 #139

There is a census each year in which we declare how many people are living in the property, where you work, what you do, how much you earn etc. Then a few months later they send you your tax card for the year, you give this to your employer and that lets them know which tax bracket to put you in.

I've been here 6 years, the first 4 renting and then bought a place 2 years ago.
There's a property tax when you buy (although I was exempt as a first time buyer) but this is a one off tax.

I've never had to pay an annual tax towards services, however, there are some services which we pay for such as water (there's a meter in the house to measure how much you use) and bins (this is calculated by weight apparently).
Water and electricity are still run by the state and are included in a single bill, the bins are paid once per year by the company that manages the building (the residents pay a monthly fee to the management company to cover the bins, maintenance, heating etc.)
Bills, bills, bills 11:21am on 04 Sep 2008 #133. Aberdeenbill wrote:

"Why should someone on a high salary who has worked hard to get that high salary be forced to pay more for the same services as someone on benefits who chooses to be on benefits. "

People on high salaries tend to live in more affluent areas where most people are on higher salaries.

People on low incomes tend to live in poorer areas where most people are on low incomes.

The 3% you pay goes to your local council to pay for services. If you and the other people in your area are high earners, paying more than those in the poor areas, then your council will get more money and be able to provide better services.

Poor areas, on the other hand, won't have such good services since there won't be as much money getting paid in LIT.
Bills, bills, bills 10:11am on 04 Sep 2008 I live in Luxembourg where we have pretty much the same system as LIT. We pay income tax and a share of that goes to your local commune (council) to pay for the services.

When you get your wage, no extra tax to pay afterwards which is less hassle and less demoralising since you're only paying tax once off your wage.

As a relatively high earner I will be contributing more than those on lower incomes. Do I grudge this? Not at all, the money goes to my local commune and pays for the local services. The more money the commune gets, the better the services they can provide, which for the record, are far superior in my experience to those provided anywhere I've lived in the UK.

Branding LIT as unworkable is nonsense, other countries are using it and using it more successfully than the UK's implementation of Council Tax.
Tavish Scott takes to the leadership stage 10:36am on 27 Aug 2008 "Same tactics, same flaws, same admiration of Margaret Thatcher"

We know this not to be true. He's trying to capitalise on last weeks comment by Alex Salmond that was taken out of context.
I've read the interview and I've heard what Alex Salmond has had to say on the matter since then, there has been no evidence of any admiration for Thatcher, quite the opposite in fact.

So Tavish is starting off by telling needless lies in his opening speach? Is this supposed to warm the electorate to him or is he just starting as he means to go on?
The Iron Laddie? 1:59pm on 22 Aug 2008 The Labour party really are the biggest bunch of hypocrites around.
Gordon Brown tells us how he admired Thatcher as a conviction politician like himself.
He then invites her round for afternoon tea.
At the tea party he gives her a silverware set.
He and his cabinet have taken to stealing all their policies from the tories.
The gap between rich and poor is worse now after 11 years of Labour than it was under the Tories.

...and now they're all demanding an apology from Alex Salmond?
Working through the figures 1:43pm on 20 Jun 2008 "Tories say the Nationalists are, once again, basing claims of a surplus upon what they call the "volatile and diminishing" supply of oil."

The question always getting asked is 'what would an independent Scotland do when the money runs out'
That oil has been propping up the UK economy for the past 30 years and we've got sod all to show for it. How come no one ever asks 'what will the UK do when the oil runs out?'

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